Monthly Archives: June 2024

Whisper

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Whisper
June 2024

I’ve been focusing my quilting this year on using what I have in my scraps and stash, and to avoid (as much as possible) buying new fabric. Between these two sources of fabric, I probably have enough to make a few dozen quilts! This quilt, like All Star and Homecoming that I made earlier this year, was also inspired by an orphan block that I received from Jocelyn over at Happy Cottage Quilter. The inspiration block for this quilt is on the left side, immediately below the fold (row 3, column 1). If you look at it closely, you’ll see that the floral fabric is different from the other block’s floral print fabric.

I had plenty of yellows in my stash and scraps, however, I did end up purchasing the floral print fabric as I wanted a similar colorway to the inspiration blocks’ floral print. The purple/white flying geese were also made from using what I had on hand. I finished this as a quanket, backing with another stash item of a solid buttery yellow fleece.

I have named this quanket Whisper to represent the orphan block that quietly hinted at what this quilt has become. The name is also for the flying geese whose wings whisper on the wind as they fly in formation across the sky.

I donated this to Baby2Baby, a nonprofit that provides children living in poverty across the country with diapers, clothing and all the basic necessities that every child deserves.

Teal Waters Run Deep

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Donation Blocks for Teal Waters Run Deep
June 2024

Each year, in honor of my sister and her sister-in-law, I make blocks to be included in a quilt donation for the Trudy Crowley Foundation fund-raiser held in Australia. The foundation supports the Trudy Crowley Center, providing a safe space, self-care and advice for those with ovarian cancer and their families. Kate over at Tall Tales from Chiconia is the maestro for the donation quilt, orchestrating the theme, layout and final assembly, and coordinating with the many quilters who provide blocks. Each year, she comes up with clever and fun new themes, and this year’s theme is Teal Waters Run Deep. As an avid sailor, the theme really resonated with me.

My three blocks tell a story from my time sailing. My husband and I have been sailors for nearly forty years, sailing off the shore of Southern California in an area called Channel Islands. The sailboat block is to represent our sailboat. Our first sailboat was a 1969, 25′ Islander Excalibur that we christened, Anduril to pay homage to another great King’s sword. Our second was a 1983, 40′ Jeanneau we christened Whiplash Smile to honor her history of being owned and sailed by Billy Idol’s manager. Our current boat is a 2016, 45′ Beneteau, we christened Wind Thieves.

The postage stamp block with the appliqued whale is for the many times we have had the good fortune of seeing whales while out sailing, a sight that never gets tiring. We’ve seen Humpbacks, Grey Whales, Sperm Whales, mama whales with their calves, and the largest of all, the California Blue Whale. I never tire of seeing the spout, the slow roll of their back as the dorsal fin cuts up through the water, and back down again. And if they are diving, catching a glimpse of their tail fluke as they make their descent.

The snails trail block is to represent the time we got the rare and amazing opportunity of seeing a whale doing bubble net feeding. The swirling nature of this block pattern reminded me of how the water looked as the whale would dive down, and then circle up through the water blowing bubbles as it ascended.

And, TADA! Here is the finished quilt. I’m always so amazed how so many different perspectives on the theme all come together to create something so magical! Great job to the contributors, and kudos to Kate for spearheading.