desert dreaming (and that whole queasy feeling gift giving thing…)

My most recent quilt finish has found it’s way to it’s new home, so I can now officially share it! And share how once again, sending one of my quilts off has been slightly vomit inducing.

I am slightly obsessed with this backing fabric, and I insist that you get yourself thoroughly obsessed with it as well. I mean, look at it! Woodland animals? GOLD TREES? I fell over when it arrived. And then I thought about vomiting. I’ll tell you why.

This quilt was a bit of an oops! baby. Totally unplanned, but incredibly loved just the same. Just like me! 🙂

All of the fabric was actually cut to go into a different quilt, but after a slight temper tantrum ensued with a bit of foot stomping and naughty words, I had to admit to myself that it just did not work for the quilt I had in mind. So all those lovely triangles sat in a sad and lonely pile. And then I had a day off. And I pulled them out and started putting them together with the few solid pieces I had leftover from the original quilt. And I quickly started discovering this was how this quilt was always supposed to be.

As I was assembling this quilt, a thought was slowly forming in my mind. I tried dismissing it, as it seemed sort of crazy. But I just couldn’t quite shake it. And then, one day while I was working on it, hubby asked me what my plans for the quilt were. And I voiced my crazy idea.

“Wellllllll, this is going to sound crazy, but there is this girl on facebook. I’ve never actually met her. I think this quilt is supposed to be hers.”

This was met with a slightly blank stare from hubby. So I plugged on, hoping I could make sense.

“I find her incredibly inspiring. She makes me think, and is brave and bold and helps so many people and “fights the good fight” and she has suffered loss and then was met with a great joy and she just helped this family that really needed help and I saw on Pinterest that she liked this line of nursery stuff that was made with this exact fabric line and what are the chances of that?! and I just for some reason really think that she should have this quilt.”

I looked at hubby, unsure. I mean, who gives a quilt to someone they’ve never even met? What if she didn’t even like it?!

“I think that’s a great idea.” He said. Done. This quilt would go to someone I had never met, but who truly inspires me on a regular basis. And so I carried on with finishing it up, trying to decide how to get this quilt to her. And then I posted a picture of it on facebook, sharing it’s near completion. And the first comment came from it’s unsuspecting new owner, asking if I ever sell my quilts. And that is when I knew for sure, she had to have this quilt.

So that settled that. This quilt was hers. As I started finishing it, I suddenly became paralyzed with fear. I still had to choose backing fabric, and binding fabric, and what if she didn’t like any of it???? OH THE PRESSURE!!! And then I found the perfect fabric. It made me giddy the moment I saw it. This quilt was made for this backing. And it wasn’t released yet. Wouldn’t be for awhile. *sigh* I signed up to be emailed as soon as the fabric line was released, and then sat around, biting my nails. And realized I couldn’t sit around waiting for this fabric. It was going to be almost two months! I needed to finish her. So I started looking more. And I found this backing. And fell. in. love. Gold trees? SOLD. Then I found the perfect binding, with a hint of gold as well, perfectly tying everything in.

And then, once again. I panicked. Gold? GOLD? What if she hates gold? Is it too much? Will this quilt be hidden in a closet? But it was too late. I was staring at yardage of gold goodness, and I needed to trust myself. I finished the quilt. I fell in love with the quilt. I sent the quilt off. And I patiently waited. And she loved it. And her baby crib? It’s gold people. Her baby’s crib is freaking GOLD. Yup. She was supposed to have this quilt.

 

the details:

name: desert dreams
size: 46 x 59
creation: Jan. 2015- Feb. 2015
fabric: April Rhodes “Arizona” and some Kona solids
backing: Brambleberry Ridge by Violet  Craft, “Timber Valley”
binding:  Brambleberry Ridge by Violet  Craft, “Trading Post”
quilting: me!

giving the gift of your creativity…and how it makes you want to vomit.

I’m not one to have a whole lot of confidence in what I do. I never really have been. At times, I am able to acknowledge that I can do something well(ish). But to think I am great at something is a foreign concept. And to think that anything I do is worthy of another is just downright insanity! So the sudden idea I had to make quilts for a family member? Completely unsolicited? ABSURD!

What if they hated them? What if they went straight to the re-gift pile? What if What if What if?!?!?! My confidence issues added to my good old fashioned anxiety was about to equal vomit-inducing fears of rejection. Who knew quilting could be so high-stress, right?!?!

I have barely made anything for myself, let alone for someone else (which is exactly why I expertly deflect every suggestion/request I get to create a quilt for anyone 😉 ). But I had this grand idea to make a quilt for the children of our Aunts Sue & Karina. We love these women so much, and Sue has made such an impact on so many of our lives. One day I was thinking about them and trying to figure out something we could do for them. They have a new baby and a toddler, and I suddenly knew that I should use this new hobby of mine to gift them something special.

I sent out a sneaky text simply asking for nursery colors for him, and her favorite colors. The response? Her favorite color is rainbow, and we don’t have a color theme for him. SIGH! Come on people! Help an indecisive girl out. Obviously, this response induced all sorts of anxiety. Now what?!?! I knew that these environmentally conscious chicks would appreciate if I could somehow incorporate that into this gift, so I took to the internet and narrowed down my choices by deciding to use organic cotton only. I quickly decided I wanted their quilts to coordinate, and I wanted a simple design (because this girl is a slooooooooooow poke crafter!). I settled on my new obsession- orange, and then worked around that theme. I knew I was taking a risk with the bold colors- I feel like most baby quilts I see are much more subdued, but that word doesn’t really exist in my vocabulary, and really, these kids are Cool Kids. They needed Cool Quilts. I only had to hope that Moms agreed!

In the end, I am in loooove with these quilts, but still, I might have gone into a cold sweat as I packaged these up to send off to California. Again, what if? what if? what if? And then? And then I got the most beautiful text, along with a video, that made me realize sometimes it is worth taking a risk and sharing your craft with others. Even if it does make you want to vomit.

And so…my first gift quilts…

Hers:

I am slightly obsessed with the backs of both of these quilts. The patterns are so sweet ♥

With each quilt I make, I add a tag to the back. I covet some of the custom tags I have seen out there and at times I toy with the idea of ordering some. But in the end, I enjoy using the fabric from each quilt to make a unique tag.

And his…

product love

Sometimes I come across products that I love. And when I love something, I want to share it!

So let’s talk about Fetching Tags. These tags for your dog are handmade, super lightweight, and just awesome. I have been eyeing them for awhile, and finally decided to order.

I have dealt with the owners of the company through their other company, By & By Memorials, and loved their customer service. They were awesome to deal with and incredibly patient with me, and this experience with ordering a tag was no different.

Tinsley’s new Fetching Tag:

It’s Pug Tinsley on the water booooowl!!! Who can guess how that tag line came about???