quiltstringz

Thanks for sharing - this was a wonderful story and an awesome quilt

cindy4857

The child receiving this quilt will truly be blessed. Such time and care you put into it. Great job.

red-warrior

Wonderful design and colors.....love it!

QUILTNMO

that is a amazing quilT!!!!!

LadyElisabeth

This is a great work of art, absolutely beautiful and it will be cherished for many years.

Sallyjane

Only your 3rd quilt? Amazing!!!! Such meaning and thought, not to mention hours and hours of sewing and quilting have gone into this quilt for twins. I think this is one baby quilt that should be hung on the wall for display. The baby quilts I make are drag-alongs, meant for lots of wear and tear.

laxgrandma

Thank you so much! I'm a bit overwhelmed by everyone's responses!

Answers to a few specific questions.

All three of my quilts have a lot of applique. The first one was from a pattern by Linda Hohag published by Brandywine Design (www.brandywine-design.com) call Critters Dancin' in the Moonlight. The second quilt I did was for the twin brother of the dad who got the Lion King quilt. I wanted to do an alphabet quilt with all animals. I couldn't find a pattern, so I took a few of the animals from the Dancin' in the Moonlight pattern, jazzed some of them up, and then got ideas from stuff I found on the Internet for the rest. I will post a picture of it within a few days. At the last minute, I decided to do a little book to go along with it because some of the animals were a little obscure. I literally wrote the verses, added the artwork and printed the book in less than three hours the night before I took the quilt and book to the parents.

The applique technique I use is basically the one I found in the Dancin' book. At the time, I really didn't know there were any other options. I draw the designs in Publisher, a desktop publishing program that is part of Microsoft Office suite. It's not really a drawing program, but it works for me. I make templates by cutting the pattern pieces out of heat-resistant mylar. Then I cut a piece of fabric with an allowance to turn under. I use a little glue to make them adhere and not slip around on the templates. Tip: Don't pay the ridiculous prices for adhesives for quilting. Good ol' Elmer's washable school glue sticks work great! Then I use a small paintbrush to wet the edges with liquid starch. I use one of those little Clover irons and iron the edges under. I get a very crisp edge that way. I have found I can do very small pieces. If something is really too small, I hand embroider it on. Then I use a small zigzag stitch to first assemble the pieces of the applique, and then to applique the piece to the quilt. I have since read about using fusible webbing to attach applique pieces. I just can't imagine it holding through repeated washings. And I just can't do a satin stitch that looks decent. Plus, I don't want that border. The narrow zigzag using invisible thread work well for me.

On this quilt, there wasn't much applique. Simba and Nala of course were applique. The giraffe's necks were pieced while their heads were applique. All of the symbols except for the upper left were applique. The diamond circle was pieced - twice:~) It wasn't all that hard, but I almost gave up sewing it to the giraffe piece and the background piece and having it lie flat. I'm doing a mariner's compass quilt for my son, and I think I'm going to applique them on th quilt back. It's so hard to get circles to lie flat.

I use paper piecing for most everything. I can print them onto freezer paper. I do not stitch through the paper. I fold it back along the sewing line and sew right along the crease. Eliminates that nasty job of digging out those little pieces of paper.

I have gotten a some disapproving looks and comments about the little tricks and tools I use like paper piecing and using glue. I guess I'm not a purist! I just want the end result to look good and not fall apart! I'll use any techique that helps me achieve that goal!

fxsts93kf

Your quilt is stunning! Thanks for all the tips!

Grandma Peg

Very nice quilt!

amyjo

wonderful history of how the fabric is made, glad you shared as I have always wondered how they made it. You did a wonderful job on the quilt. Love it. Be a beautiful wall hanging if they wanted to keep it as a keepsake.