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Saturday, November 16, 2013

Baby Quilts Everywhere!

I was delighted when my daughter-in-law picked out a rag quilt design for our newest grandchild's baby quilt!  These are fun to make and sooooo much easier than a traditional quilt!

All ready to toss into the washer and dryer to get that lovely rag quilt look & feel!!!

My son, of course, has some very particular ideas about what is appropriate for a boy-child of his!  Nothing "girlie" or even "babyish" is going to go in Mr. Cooper's room - No sir-ee!!!  He made some very specific requests for this quilt.....

1.     Only sage greens, creams and browns
2.     No animals or anything else "cutsie"
3.     Only stripes, dots and plaids allowed!

Wow!  That was a challenge, let me tell you!  My son is a hunter and loves the peace and tranquility he finds in the forest, and he wanted that feel for Cooper's nursery.  After working with these lush, calming colors, I decided to name this quilt, Tranquility.  I think that best describes the feeling my son tells me he gets when sitting in the woods in the crisp early morning hours, just him and God and the perfect sounds of nature all around them.

I know - some of you are saying, "How could he kill Bambi?!?!"  I said that too when he told me he had taken up the sport.  But it is not just a sport for him - he has the meat processed and they use the venison in many of their meals.  Then a few of my loved ones barely escaped with their lives after accidents with deer, and I learned about how even all the deer suffer from lack of food sources when their population gets out of hand.  Then my son shared the joy he gets from his time alone in the woods with God, so I shut up and began to thank God for giving him such a wonderful way to meet with Him so often.  The benefits have far outweighed my squeamish tender-hearted misgivings.  (And much to my son's dismay, the deer actually don't show up very often LOL!!!)

So.... back to Tranquility.....I was fortunate to have enough of the colors and designs in my cottons stash for the top.....some of them were even pulled from my scraps bin!

I loved adding that gorgeous plaid shirt on the right!!!
It's so hard to find plaids in yardage.
I only purchased one half-yard of this piece of Kaffe Fassett fabric to add some brightness to it.....



For the back, I had planned to use this pale, pale, pale sage green dots print to give it a nice light ruffle on the front between all the blocks.....


.....but after deciding on the size and number of blocks I wanted, I realized there wouldn't be quite enough of this fabric.  I had 2 yards and needed 2-1/2!  Of course, I only realized this after I had cut it into 8" strips!!!

It's an older fabric, so I didn't even try to find more.  I thought about doing some sort of a design on the back, like adding some darker blocks spelling a "C" for Cooper in the middle, but I just couldn't fall in love with that idea.  Then I remembered a flannel in my stash that I bought when Hobby Lobby sold off most of their fabrics.  I think I paid $2-3 a yard for this piece :)  Here it is, playing very nicely with the other fabrics..... don't you just LOVE those rich, chocolatey browns.... YUM!!!!


And I love that it now has a flannel backing!
This soft cream animal print works perfectly with the theme of the rest of the quilt :)

I chose to use a Thermore batting, which I have used in all my rag quilts.



This thin polyester batting washes well and doesn't add too much weight to the finished quilt.

Tranquility on the Design Wall, choosing placement......

All the blocks were quilted together individually.... gotta love quilt-as-you-go designs!!!

I finished up snipping the seams last night :*)

I'll be tossing this in the washer and dryer today - yippee!!!  Cooper is expected to join us around Christmas-time, so I'm delighted to have his quilt, done and ready for his arrival!!!

And since I started this project this month (even though I finished it too), it is my November NewFO Challenge project......

Click HERE to see more!

Next up, I'll be quilting Genevieve's Banners quilt this weekend.  You can read more about her quilt HERE.


It's all sandwiched and ready to go.  I'm planning a very light quilting design, so hopefully it won't take too terribly long to do.



Looks like I'll have TWO baby quilts to deliver at Thanksgiving....
something to be very thankful for, am I right?

Wishing everyone a delightful weekend!!!

Hugs & Blessings!
Teresa
=^..^=

Linking up:
Cat Patches - 2013 NewFO Challenge
SoScrappy - Rainbow Scrap Challenge
Patchwork Times - Design Wall  Monday
Freemotion by the River - Tuesday Linky Party

29 comments:

  1. I just love Tranquility - so aptly named. What a peaceful, relaxing quilt that will grow with Cooper. Nothing better than two babies - and two baby quilts to deliver!

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  2. Tranquility is the perfect name for all those soothing browns, greens and creams! What a cozy baby quilt it will be. I know you are looking forward to lots of grandbaby time!

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  3. I have never made a rag so I enjoyed seeing all the details. What a beautiful color palette! How big are the squares?

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  4. Teresa......Genevieve and Cooper have a very talented Grandmama! I do love the colors of Cooper's rag quilt and hopefully his daddy will too! Many people think that people just go hunting to kill an animal, when in reality, they hunt for the thrill of the hunt AND the food!

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  5. That was a challenging request for a quilt and I think you did an amazing job!

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  6. You met the challenge well, Teresa! Tranquility is the perfect name for your creation. : )

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  7. Funny about your son...love the colors and rag quilts.

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  8. Thank you for sharing the beautiful story that goes with the quilt.

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  9. Rag quilts are so cozy! I guess your son wants to use the quilt too? Cute

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  10. Teresa, Your quilt for Cooper is just perfect for a son of a hunter. I think your son will love it too. The flannel on the back is the perfect touch for a baby quilt, IMHO.

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  11. Beautiful quilt. My husband does not hunt, but one of the neighbors does, and we swap venison for stuff I can.

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  12. A very cuddly and manly looking boy baby quilt for Cooper. A very pretty girly quilt for Genevieve Rose. I am sure the recipients will love them. Nice work! ... :)

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  13. Love your baby quilt! and your fabrics are gorgeous (makes me want to go fabric shopping)

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  14. Your Tranquility quilt for baby Cooper is cozy and perfect. Your story is precious. Lovely hand made gift from your heart. Blessing...

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  15. well that quilt turned out to be a perfect one for your new grandson. Congrats!

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  16. What beautiful fabrics! I love, love, love your sweet little baby quilt.

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  17. Beautiful fabrics! Your son and grandson are going to love it. I was just chatting this morning about making a rag quilt.

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  18. I just bought some lovely flannels last week for a raggy quilt. I love your colors, the Kaffe Fassett fabric was a great addition to the mix it really does liven it up:)

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  19. That means two finishes...wow. I'll have to try that sometime....grin. Love the quilt.

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  20. What a fun quilt Teresa and I had to laugh at what could and couldn't be used in your grandson's quilt :) Would you believe I have never made a rag quilt.....maybe I should. I'll have to check out the batting you were talking about. Thanks for sharing.
    Freemotion by the River Linky Party Tuesday

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  21. Love both of the quilts. The greens in tranquillity are very soothing.

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  22. Great baby quilt for a boy. Sometimes it throws us for a loop when the person we are quilting for asks for something we normally would not make. But I have found that I like the challenge of doing something different.

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  23. I really like your Traquility quilt! It's a lovely baby boy quilt. It sort of puts me in the mood to make a rag quilt. I'm sure your son will approve of Cooper's quilt.

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  24. Tranquility is beautiful and perfect for a baby boy! Earlier this year a friend asked me to make her baby's quilt in camouflage. I found nature scenes that I just stripped together and used a mini-camo print for the back. There's always a way to keep the folks happy. :-) I'm stopping in through the NewFO linky party.

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  25. Those kids love to challenge us when they ask us to make things! lol You did a beautiful job choosing fabrics. It really is very tranquil! I love the current "not-cutsie" trend in baby things.

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  26. What a pretty quilt. I love rag quilts, although I've only made one. Love those colors.

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  27. Tranquility is a lovely, but definitely masculine quilt. It is soothing and I can understand your son wanting the natural tones. Congratulations on the new grand baby!

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