A Very Special Gift

I was so happy to share the butterfly quilt with all of you. 

 It is all quilted up now and actually gifted. 

 I can now share some more information with you about this fabulous quilt. 

 One of my oldest and bestest friends has cancer. 

 She has had 2 surgeries and will be starting radiation therapy very soon.  

This quilt was made for her. 

 I wanted her to have something to take with her during the treatments to keep her warm, wrapped in love and hopefully a little cheered up.  

Two of my co-workers and I made all the butterflies for the quilt and I put it all together. 

 I had to wait for the fabric, as you know, to actually finish it up.  

What you don't know is that I hand embroidered a label and I love how it came out.

The saying was soooo appropriate for her!

My friend, and an amazing quilter, Liz, did the flower/butterfly quilting and it was perfect!

I got a sun dappled photo but that's all I had time for.

 I love love love the back.  

This rainbow fabric is to die for!!

I had one extra butterfly so I put it on the back and it made the perfect setting for the label.

I had to decide how to wrap it up for the gifting and this is what I did. 

 I think it was perfect!

I gave it to my friend on Monday night and I think she was thrilled.  

We have been friends so long that when I asked her if she could pick out the butterflies that I had made she got every one of them right!

Not a single wrong guess!  

She said it was my fabric choices.  

The one made out of blue dragonflies was the first one she guessed.  

I really hope she knows how much she is loved and how much her friendship means to me. 

I am a better person for having he in my life!

This quilt was a true joy to make and to gift.

~XOP~

Beautiful and Strong

I have been working on a quilt with a couple of my friends. 

 I am not normally much of a butterfly person, although I do find them beautiful.  

I just don't do much quilt or fabric wise with them.  

Cats? yes please! 

 Butterflies..meh.  

Notice I say not normally.

  I recently found some fabric by Tamara Kate at Michael Miller called Flight Patterns,

 you can see it here at the Fat Quarter Shop.  

I fell in love with the multi dappled migration, 

and the multi patio lights as well as the glee in multi. 

 I stalked shops for MONTHS waiting for it to be available.  

My friends and I are making a butterfly quilt and I *needed* these fabrics for them. 

 End of July is when they were due out.  

Finally, on July 31st they were listed and darn it all if the glee was sold out!!!  

WTH??!! 

I did manage to snag the dappled migration and the patio lights, but just barely.

 I found the glee in multi on ETSY and bought what I needed of it for the back.  

I can't show you the back yet, because it was late at night when I finished it.

Then I brought it to the quilter. 

Also it is a gift.

I incorporated the label into the back so you will have to wait until I gift it to see that.

BUT

Here's the top.

In all it's butterfly beauty!

Close up of the borders.

I just love how the side borders go all the way down in a line. 

 So cool!!!

I also found this saying that I thought was so cool:

"You never know how strong you are,

Until being strong 

is the only choice you have!"

It made me think of this butterfly quilt. 

 Butterflies are so delicate looking but are so strong.  

Some even fly all the way to Mexico from the northern US and Canada.  

The Monarch migration is amazing!

Beautiful and strong.

Great combination don't you think?

~XOP~

Butterflies and Weddings

I have been trying for what seems like forever to get to this wedding quilt. 

 Then a really good friend of mine learned that after one surgery 

she will have to undergo a second surgery and chemotherapy.  

So you *know* that means she needs a chemo quilt.  

OK no worries, I can do this! 

 I spoke with the 2 women I work with that I taught to quilt and we came up with this quilt. 

 (photo from the Clothworks website)

 It is a free pattern from Clothworks, made up of butterflies.  

We each had to make 6 butterflies.  

Here are mine all done and waiting to go into the quilt.

I also had to work on the wedding quilt and here is a quick shot of my progress on that too.

I have a quilting retreat next weekend so these 2 and 

the dolly quilt tops will all be done by the time I get home!

How was your weekend?

~XOP~