Twister

Ready for another quilt post?  Well, that's what I have photos of, so it will have to do.  My friend adopted a baby a year ago.  It was a quick process from being selected for placement to the birth, so I put some other projects on hold to work on her quilt.  As soon as I got the text telling me the gender, I got in my car and drove 2 hours to my favorite quilt store.  I have a couple stores locally and there are a handful between here and that store, but I needed a large selection to really be inspired.

Actually, I started with this fabric from Hobby Lobby.  It caught my eye because of the various bright, yet girly colors.  Also, the mom likes paisley.  From there, I just gathered numerous bright, happy fabrics that worked well with the inspiration fabric.

That's my normal method - pick an inspiring fabric and then find other fabrics that coordinate.  That's also my very favorite part of the whole quilt process - just picking the fabrics and imagining how they will work together.

My mom's family is creative.  And social.  About once a month, there is a Cousin's Quilt Day and anyone who wants to work on projects is welcome to join.  There is a diverse group of people from my grandpa's cousins on down to my own cousins.  It's not limited to quilting.  Often people do other sewing, crocheting/knitting, scrapbooking, homework, or just visiting.  It's usually held about an hour and a half from here, so we don't make it often.  We try to go once in the Spring and once in the Fall.  

I had seen one of my grandpa's cousins do a Twister quilt at one of these gatherings.  Many of the other family members thought it was too busy, but I loved it.  I thought it would be perfect for this baby quilt.  I bought a template and went right to work. It was quick and simple and looked a lot more complex that it actually is.

I loved this quilt.  It was so warm and happy and charming.  Everyone that visited my house while it was here loved it.  Most importantly, my friend loved it.  And when my sister in law announced they were expecting a girl, I made another just like it for her.  I never duplicate quilts, but this one, I did!  In person, the colors are more vibrant and the oranges and yellows are less similar than they appear here.  It is really such a happy quilt.  I get so excited when I see Baby Madeline or Baby Lily using it.