Sunday, March 18, 2012

Night Flight

Anyone who was quilting back around 1999-2000 and was active on the internet might remember Jane Kakaley's website, "Quilts: Not Just for Beds". Jane made pictorial quilts of flowers using hundreds of small squares, from which she created patterns for sale. She also did 6 or 7 mystery quilts that she presented on the web. I really liked her website, but one day there were some strange messages on the site, like someone disappeared or something, and Jane never posted another thing.

A couple weeks ago after I finally remembered who it was that designed this quilt, it occurred to me to google Jane L. Kakaley. Turns out she has a Facebook page now, and a few of her quilts that I remember were in the photo section. Oddly enough, I visited her old webpage just a few days ago, and now it seems not to exist.

Anyway, this was one of Jane's mystery quilts, and it actually turned out okay, only because Jane put up samples of the fabrics she used. There's still not as much contrast as I might have preferred among the dark blues, but I like it anyway.

Because the quilt is so busy, I used a pantograph called Inkblot by Willow Leaf, which is just a fun meander. The variegated blue thread added some interest. I'm pleased with how it turned out, and I'm feeling more confident on the longarm after a long hiatus. I still have to put some binding on here, and I'll try to get that done this week so I can have another finish for March.





Saturday, March 17, 2012

March Finish

Happy St. Patrick's Day! We were going to have a nice Irish potato soup for supper; but I was busy quilting, and my husband was busy outside, and nobody wanted to cook. So we had pizza, and Shamrock Shakes from McDonald's for dessert. I had a Shamrock Shake once three or four years ago and then forgot about them 'til this year. They're so darn good that it's a good thing they only offer them for a few weeks in March.









Tesselating Leaves is my finish for March, a small quilt top I finished about 12 years ago and never quilted. It's a good example of why I don't do mystery quilts anymore. I liked these fabrics very much when I chose them, but the tan fabric blends right in with the peach, and the leaf pattern is lost. Overall, I don't think the quilt has much impact, but it will make a fine little lap quilt for someone in a nursing home. I'm happy to have another UFO finished and out the door.