My First Quilt
As a first time grandmother-to-be, I got an unstoppable urge to make a baby quilt after seeing a picture on the gallery forum here of the "Tale of 2 Kitties Quilt". I found the pattern and instructions online (by Jacqueline Patron) and had a great time finding fabric, mostly from the Little Fawn series by Dear Stella. I complicated the whole experience by deciding to make the quilt smaller than the pattern and by using fabric for the center panel that stretched my fairly basic sewing skills to the max as I had to fit the four parts into an 18-inch square, involving much patching-together and finagling. I had no idea how much math - not my strong point! - was involved in quilting!! I think the triangles (determining size) and the diagonal pattern added to the challenge. Once I had the patchwork finished I was lucky to find a talented local long-arm quilter to do the actual quilting. I do love how the fabric colors and patterns came together and I enjoyed fussy-cutting the little animals, ferns, etc. The quilt was finally finished in time for the baby shower, and my daughter's reaction upon seeing it was one word: "Perfect!". So it was well worth it and I have to thank those who contribute to this forum - it was a lifesaver to be able to search for helpful tips here!!