It’s baby time in our family! My daughter Sara and two of her cousins are all having babies within weeks of each other this spring. What a happy coincidence! There are lots of delighted grandmas counting down the days – we’re all so excited. Last weekend we had the first baby shower, for cousin Katie who is expecting a little girl. I made her the most adorable baby quilt – I defy anyone to look at this quilt and not smile!
I came across this pattern in the book Sweet Nursery Chic by Susan Cousineau and just fell in love with it. I knew it would coordinate perfectly with the pink, black, and white color scheme that Katie is planning for her baby’s nursery. I used flannel, chenille, and polar fleece, in addition to cotton quilting fabrics, to provide a variety of textures for a curious baby. And to make this girly design even cuter, I added a 2″ polka dot ruffle all around.
The pink poodles are cut from polar fleece fabric and appliqued using Heat ‘n Bond Lite Iron-on Adhesive. I blanket stitched by hand around all the applique pieces using pink DMC embroidery floss and black perle cotton.
In the center of the quilt, a large polar fleece flower is surrounded by a patchwork of pink and black prints. The original pattern called for the use of decorative buttons for the flower center, poodle noses, and other accents, but I wanted to keep the quilt baby safe, so I substituted a tiny yo-yo for the flower center, and simply used embroidery for the rest.
Dense quilting can stiffen a quilt, so I kept the quilting to a minimum, mostly outlining and stitching in-the-ditch, to keep the quilt soft, cuddly, and drapeable.
The purses, on a background of pink cotton chenille, are cut from plush polar fleece and embellished with pom-pom fringe and pink feather boa trim. The boa trim is a cute addition to the quilt, but is not washable, so I basted it on, to make it easy to remove. Under the feathers, I used a band of the pink and black ric-rac patterned fabric (shown in the full quilt view) to cover the edge of the pom-pom fringe. So, if the quilt is used as a wall hanging, the feather boa can remain, but if it is used everyday, the feathers can be taken off and the the whole thing will be washable and baby safe.
I added a matching hanging sleeve on the back of the quilt, to make it easy for the new parents to simply slip in a drapery rod and mount the quilt on a wall.
I always include a label on my quilts. After all, they’re works of art, and they should be signed. It adds a nice personal touch, too. The back of the quilt is pink polka dot Minkee fabric – so soft and cuddly!
It was so much fun seeing Katie open her gift! The quilt elicited lots of oohs and aahs, as did all the adorable little pink dresses and booties and hair bows she received that day. Baby Laura is going to be quite the fashion plate! With two wonderful parents like Katie and Dan, she’s also going to be one happy and well-loved little girl.
5 Comments
gorgeous! you do beautiful work!
Leslie,
Adorable! Sounds like we need to come over for a quilt retreat 🙂
Jacqui Carrion
Good idea, Jacqui! I could use some help finishing up the one I'm working on for Sara's baby. It's going to be so cute!
I love the label! I'm curious how you did the lettering? Thanks!
I drew the lettering with a pencil then inked it with a Sakura Pigma Micron pen.