Page Buttons

Saturday, January 9, 2016

Balloon Festival

I finished up my Layers of Charm quilt for my niece yesterday, and since the photos of the top were taken at night, I am so happy that I got the opportunity to show off the gorgeous colors in the Meadowbloom line with the pictures of the finish.  Sunshiney pictures would have been fantastic for these fabrics, but that was not to be.  You can see that my deck is still a little damp from the recent rain we've had, but since tomorrow is bringing even more precipitation, I had to seize my cloudy photo window and make it work.


You know, sometimes names for my quilts immediately jump out at me, and sometimes I struggle. My mom loves word play and imagery as much as I do, so I almost always discuss my quilt names with her whether I need help with it or not.  Sometimes we really have to play around with several options to come up with a name that I like for a specific quilt, but even though I was having a tough time with this one, Mom came to the rescue (as she often does).  Immediately, she said that the shape of these big blocks looked like the tops of many hot air balloons in flight, and I knew she was right!  So, this one is aptly named Balloon Festival.


I'm not one for New Years' resolutions, but if I had to make one, it would be to try to sew my stash as much as possible.  Make no mistake, this is definitely not a fabric fast.  I will certainly continue to buy fabric for custom orders, when I see it on sale, and when I know I just can't live without it.  In general though, I want to try to make my stash work for the quilt I'm making more often, rather than jumping at the chance to buy more- even if it means using a certain fabric that works well, but may not be exactly what I had in mind.

The backing for this quilt is a perfect example.  Since this quilt was made with a layer cake, there weren't any scraps for the backing.  Instead, I pieced the back using the same colors as the top, but I was able to pull every single fabric from my cabinet.


I even had enough Kona Berry in my cabinet for the binding, and I love how the deep shade frames the quilt.  This photo also shows the pretty details of the prints in this line.  Since many of them are smaller, they aren't very visible in the full-quilt shot.

I think my niece is going to love this quilt.  I won't give it to her until next Christmas, so I'm way ahead on my 2016 gift list, but the fabrics and colors are perfect for a "tween" girl.

I also have the pleasure of kicking off the new year by welcoming a new sponsor- Five Monkey Fabrics!


Five Monkey Fabrics has a beautiful selection of modern fabrics, including yardage and bundles, as well as individual fat quarters half yard cuts.  The shop has fabrics from a wide variety of designers, and their prices are fantastic.  I love this Michael Miller Fiesta bundle-


and it seems I can't get enough of Christmas, because I'm also scheming about the things I could create with these holiday prints!


I would be remiss if I didn't also let you know that Five Monkey Fabrics has an AMAZING clearance section with lots and lots of gorgeous fabric yardage, half yards and even fat quarters to snatch up.  The clearance fat quarters are only $1.50!  Right now there are clearance fabrics from several beautiful collections, like Little Azalea, Lottie Da, Freshcut, Madrona Road, and many more.

Five Monkey Fabrics is also really helpful when it comes to orders of custom bundles or specific yardage.  Beautiful fabrics, great customer service, and free shipping on US order over $50 is tough to beat!  Even if your order is less than $50, Five Monkey Fabric's shipping rates are great, and orders are shipped out in 1-2 days!

I am so thrilled to welcome this new shop to My Quilt Infatuation.  Definitely check them out!


5 comments:

  1. Your niece is going to be thrilled when she gets this quilt and how nice you already have a Christmas present ready to go. I like the Fiesta bundle of fabric best. Blessings, Gretchen

    ReplyDelete
  2. Once again, I just had to look at the picture and I knew it was your blog. So cheerful, and the name is perfect!

    ReplyDelete
  3. The quilt is wonderful and cheery. When I read "Balloon Festival," I immediately was in Albuquerque. Now, you talk about gorgeous colors. I went year before last and was out before dawn to see the character balloons take off. We had a three year old with us and he was "good as gold" with all the excitement - maybe because Grandma Sudie (and another lady who is a surrogate grandma were there). If you ever get a chance, go see the balloons. It is fantastic. My daughter lives there (and is a high school math teacher), so I just happened to be there while Grandma Gina was in Israel for three weeks. I'd love to go again. The quilt captures many of the colors in all the balloons. I adore the bright cheery yellow - it makes the quilt pop for me! My older grandson asked me to make him a quilt and this would be a great pattern for him. Then he asked me if I would make his little brother a quilt, too. I need to get that done so someday they will have quilts that grandma made them. Thanks for the inspiration and you are certainly ahead of the game for Christmas 2016.

    ReplyDelete
  4. That one came together fast! I love the plum binding, it is a great accent to the rest of the fabrics. I've been trying hard to shop my stash for each quilt I start. It's a nice feeling to find a place for one of the older prints in the stash.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks so much for your comment and for visiting! I read and appreciate every single comment, and I reply to each one as soon as I can. If you don't hear back from me, you might be a no-reply blogger. :)

09 10 11 12
Blogging tips