Thursday, September 21, 2017

100% NZ for Ben - Bloggers' Quilt Festival entry


Returning to my most recent finish - this 100% NZ single bed quilt - sharing on the Blogger's Quilt Festival this week.

Time to make a quilt for the second of my cousin Kaylee's children...Ben didn't mind what colours it was; I had found the silver fern fabric last year and wanted to use it so I thought I'd do an NZ black/white/grey theme (and then found out he has just recently redecorated his room in grey, so it has all worked out well!) 


Measures 57" x 76" - nicely covers a queen bed (with no overhang).
Took me a while to gather together the right tones of black, grey/silver, and white; and then took just as long to work out the pattern - that took quite a bit of math I can tell you!




For the backing I used a world map panel, and some Kiwiana-themed fabric for colour, along with top and bottom panels of the silver fern fabric again.

Home is where the heart is (and NZ is where it will always be for me!)


I stuck to simple in-the-ditch quilting through the NZ/squares section,
and straight horizontal lines in the top and bottom panels. 
We are about to shift to a new place in the Edendale township (downsizing from the property we are on) so I wanted to get this finished this week as my last quilt here at 111 George Street and also so I can give it to Ben (who lives up in the Ida Valley) when Kaylee brings the kids down for the Kidzone Festival in Invercargill.



 I have loved having such a big living area that my sewing gear could sit easily in one end of the room - at the new house I will have a lovely north-facing spare room to act as my sewing space (and have already filled the double wardrobe with craft supplies...and that's before I even think about moving the tubs of fabric that are under the two spare beds at the moment!! Yikes, where will I fit it all?!)

And here is the young man himself, stoked with his new blanket:


20 comments:

  1. What an awesome quilt! I love how you added the map to the back of it.

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    1. Yes I am pleased with how it all came together.

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  2. Very cool 'Kiwi" quilt!! Good luck with the move.

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    1. Thanks Julie, we are all settled in and I am 'breaking in' my new sewing space LOL!

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  3. What a wonderful gift. Your use of black, white and grey has worked so well. And the backing looks wonderful!

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    1. Thank you! It came out exactly how I had envisioned it.

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  4. Always nice when the math works out right! Such fun to see Ben with his great quilt! :)

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    1. I was thrilled it came out just as I had visioned it! Phew! (And without any swear-words too!)

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  5. Awesome quilt! The world map on the back is cool, too. It's a way to learn where countries are located.

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    1. Thank you! It was a cool way to use something from my stash too!

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  6. Beautiful quilt. The young man seems really pleased with it too. Great world panel. Where did you find it? My daughter and her husband spend 2 weeks on vacation in NZ and loved it.

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    1. I honestly don't remember where I got it from! But it was in my stash so it was a good chance to use it.

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  7. Cool quilt! I love the map on the back, I have a map panel that I've been trying to figure out how to use, this is a great idea!

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    1. Adds interest to the backing, certainly! Thanks for stopping by.

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  8. What an AWESOME aunt you are!!!

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  9. What a great quilt, front and back. The recipient looks like he thinks so too. Good job!

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    1. Thank you very much! He didn't know what to expect, was a surprise for him.

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  10. How could I go past an NZ quilt! Well done figuring all that out. I hope he doesn't take it to rugby games. If I ever see it on TV I'll know where it came from. I grew up in Dunedin and we used to go ice skating at Idaburn dam in winter. It was a bit freaking skating on a lake, but special too. I just remember it being super cold.

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    1. Thanks Wendy! Yes it certainly does get cold in that valley - what great memories you must have of the ice-skating, not something I have had the chance to do (on a frozen lake at least.)

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