Friday, May 18, 2012

Fresh Flowers in the Desert Quilt

Are you ready for a quilt show? I know I am! We live in an area where quilt shows are few and far between. The closest one is 30 miles away and it only takes place every other year. Otherwise, I'm looking at driving 3 hours. Needless to say, I don't get to many of them. So virtual quilt shows are a treat for me so I love it when y'all share the quilts you see on your blogs.
Then Amy pulls out all the stops and hosts this enormous quilt show twice a year to coincide with Quilt Market  and its going on this week:

So, those of you who quilt, join in on the fun, and those of you that don't, pop over for a visit and be inspired to make your first quilt!

The quilt I'm sharing is my most recent finish. A couple years ago, Randi, who blogs over at I Have to Say, hosted The Road to Spring Quilt Along. At that time, I hadn't discovered this secret world of quilting blogs and I was a new quilter, but about a year later, I stumbled upon her quilt and knew I had to make it.


 I didn't have much of a stash at that time, but don't worry, I would do you proud if you saw it now! :)
We have an amazing quilt store about 75 miles away (feel sorry for  me?) and I only get there about 2 or 3 times a year. I know, not often, but I do my share of damage when I go. In fact, I had to make a trip there yesterday afternoon after I pushed the crew out the door. Thus, I knew they had received some rain and I threw my quilt in the truck hoping I would stumble across something green that would be a pretty backdrop for pictures.


Little towns always have the most charming courthouses...with GREEN lawns!

Online fabric shopping fills in the gaps. We won't mention the fact that I have gotten to know my UPS man very well either. Seriously, I have invited him to eat with us, given him baked goods, and he invited us to go to the horse races with he and his wife. However, the quilt shop in Lovington, NM is worth the extra road time! It's called The Country Store and DeAnn is amazing. She's not online yet, but I pestered her about that yesterday. :)

So on  one of my jaunts to the quilt store last year, I spied the entire Fresh Flowers by Deb Strain for Moda  Line of fabric propped up in all its splendor and I knew it was going home with me for this quilt. Often I hem and haw over which fabric to use and which pattern to choose, but this time the planets aligned and the decisions came easy.

I don't have much to share in the way of the process because I was still new to the fact that we, as quilters, love to see every stage of a quilt in the making. And I don't have a great story except for the fact that I simply had to make this quilt and I love it. The bright colors were not what I normally migrated to, but I had to have it and this is the result.

I named it Fresh Flowers in the Desert because this about the only way I can enjoy fresh flowers out here. The wind is relentless and combined with the heat and dirt, it's a struggle to make much of anything grow.
Next year, I plan to take the Master Gardener program through the Extension Office because I want to grow something like this. In the meantime, I will be content to grow my flowers through the magic of fabric:

I bought a backing for it, but ended up not using it so I have a lot of green fabric in my stash. Funny thing is, I ended up going with a different green fabric. I love the swirls on this piece and I finished it off with a scrappy binding

I had Jackie quilt an all over pattern of flowers and swirls on it.
 Looking back, it might have been cute if I had her quilt it using green thread, but I was afraid of that green thread at the time. Even so, I think it turned out really cute and she always does an amazing job.

A fresh, happy quilt that makes me smile. It measures 68"x80" and will be on the guest bed if you come to visit in the spring. Never had a guest bed, but now that we are empty nesters (insert teary eyes here), I guess we kind of do. Seems we have quite a few overnight visitors these days. This is and will always be our DD's room, but it does double duty when company comes a callin.

  When the wind is howling at 60 mph and burning up anything I have planted outside, I can rest assured that I will always have bright, happy flowers that are wind proof.

22 comments:

Denise :) said...

What a lovely piece! It is fresh and pretty and does rather remind me of fresh flowers! :)

Krista @ Sewwhatscooking.com said...

Love your quilt! Thanks for sharing!

Barbara said...

That is a beautiful quilt! I love the colors. The quilting is very effective.

Deanna said...

Great quilt! Such pretty colors are allowed to shine with the simple design. Very nice!

Cascade Quilts said...

Lovely quilt! I love the green backing too - and the quilting just tops it off!

carol fun said...

What a pretty quilt! and aren't you the arty photographer - LOL - I love the pics with the quilt draped. Very nice. Oh I wish I had gotten this collection when it came out. I've seen several quilts that use this Deb Strain fabric and I love it-- have a great weekend!

CitricSugar said...

Pretty and fresh. A lovely quilt.

Janet said...

So bright and beautiful! I took the master gardener course - here where I live and I am pretty sure that it's adapted to fit the climate where you are. Anyway I learned tons and my garden improves slowly each year. Hope you get some pretty flowers to go with your pretty quilt.

Mom said...

The fabrics are so lively and happy!

Margaret
http://quiltsoflove.blogspot.com/

Sarcastic Quilter said...

I absolutely love you saw a quilt and had to make it! You've done a wonderful job, girlie! Such a pretty quilt.
Thanks for sharing!

Now, can I come visit you and quilt with you out in ranch country? I love no towns/stores/etc. to speak of for the pleasure of creating. :)

juliehallfeldhaus said...

love your quilt and the colors. this blog hop is fun and inspiring.

straythreads said...

wonderful quilt and quilting
Ann

NaomiG said...

That is beautiful!!! Your quilts are such a glorious inspiration, every time.

Cow Pies & Mud Pies said...

You said you were sending it to Kansas? Well, let me get you my address! HA HA HA HA

It's beautiful Karin!!!

Eileen said...

love your quilt and the story is fantastic, too! i live in the country but i'm surrounded by 100's of acres of orchards, so much greenness most of the year. i, too, get many ups/fedex/etc deliveries during the year, but since i'm slow in getting to the door, usually see the deliverer as he/she is climbing into their truck and i wave and yell, "thanks"! hubby works for WSU in the extension office, so runs into master gardener people all the time--they're a special group and you'll love all they have to share with you! thanks for sharing, good luck with your garden, and have a great day

BunkHouseQuilts said...

Absolutely perfect! I love your story too. I can certainly relate to traveling distances and online shopping. Online 'everything' is how we survive. By the way, my UPS driver is Jim and his wife is Elaine. heh, heh, I do bake him stuff and send him out the door with Christmas candy, but haven't been invited to the races! Have a great summer!!!

Jo said...

Love your quilt and the pictures turned out great too!!

Jean said...

I absolutely love this quilt. I want it for my bed ;)

pinsandneedles said...

A very pretty quilt with bright, cheerful colors! Love it!

Simply Sandy said...

Love this happy quilt. The fabric is so bright and fresh. Great design and the back is pretty, too.

Kristie said...

I love this quilt! Is there a pattern for it?
Kristie

Staci said...

This fabric was just perfect for this quilt. What a wonderful finish!

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