Bloggers Quilt Festival // Around the World Modern Quilt

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As far as quilting and blogging goes, this is one of my favorite events! The Blogger's Quilt Festival is a semi-annual party started by Amy, and who doesn't like looking at hundreds of favorite quilts? This is my third time participating, and this summer I was thrilled to see that my quilt from the Spring Festival was one of a few Amy featured on her site.Back to this year. Introducing the "Around the World (or at least the metro area) Quilt." It is my favorite right this second for a few reasons; here they are, David Letterman Style.
10. It is done! Washed and dried and crinkled.9.  I machine bound it--and it looks great! I figured that if I machine bound enough quilts poorly, one of these days it would have to click! Good timing.8. I had a fabulous little quilt holder (whose arms were a bit too short) and we took pictures of it all over the metro area today, although none of them really panned out like I had hoped. But my ear infection-recovering kids and I did enjoy beautiful 76 degree weather together all day long--I'll take that over quilt pictures any (most) days.7.  I had fun making it, and was able to sew much of it with quilt guild friends.6. I cut the backing too short, but didn't realize it until I had quilted it. Oops. I love the improvised scraps of orange against the aqua back.
5.  It is the first time I have quilted with thread that I didn't want to "blend in,   in this case, aqua. I quilted it kind of how I swim backstroke--a little "organically" (which really means that I can't sew or swim super straight, so I just pretend like I'm doing it on purpose) in a diamond pattern, following the string blocks.
4. I love the binding fabric--it is an old grid pattern from Jackie Shapiro's Sweetpea line (and I used it to bind another quilt recently). I bought it for $3 a yard. It ties the gender-neutral quilt together nicely, I think!3. I have wanted to make a string quilt for a long time, and I'm hooked, but I like how this one isn't as chaotic as some. Especially since I have little fingers to tear off the paper backing. It makes me think I could try real paper piecing and do okay. :)2.  Some of my very favorite scraps are in this quilt--KJR basketweave in blue and orange, orange Kei Honeycomb, Mendocino octopi on the back and seahorses on the front, I could go on and on.
 1. It is happy and it is cheery and it makes me smile, and I'm sending it to one of my best friends for her  soon to be born baby. (I figured if I put that out there, I will actually send it and not keep it.) Finally, this quilt is very "me." It features my favorite summery combination right now of yellow and orange and aqua with a bit of blue and green thrown in. And it includes my signature color, which my mother in law calls "Katie blue."  Pretty cool to have your own color.

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