It's a Finish!

My Double Irish Chain with Shamrocks is finally done. 

Complete with sleeve and label, and in plenty of time for St. Pattie's Day.

Here's a close up of the quilting.  I hope it shows up. 

Diagonals in the chain, stippling around the shamrocks to add emphasis.

I sometimes forget to label my quilts.  But not this time.  I experimented with a machine stitched label, but went back to using Word and my laser jet printer - with fabric pressed to an 8 1/2 x 11" piece of freezer paper.  Works every time!  :)

To see how, go to:  http://quilt-talk.blogspot.com/2010/07/label-making-tutorial.html

Double Irish Chain with Shamrocks

Today's goal was to assemble the center, and lay out some border ideas I've been considering.  This quilt has been a great exercise in adjusting your needle position to get a perfect 1" square.  Even then, it took a bit of "coaxing" to get everything to line up!

I laid out several borders, but none of them had the same impact as a simple dark green frame.   The others seemed to compete with the quilt interior.  I think with a busy quilt, sometimes less is more.  :)

Shamrocks are Done

Finished my applique shamrocks this week. 

Each shamrock square will be trimmed and pieced to make up the alternate blocks.

I took my shamrocks to a crafter's breakfast this morning.  Often my sewing is a solitary affair.  How nice to remove the stabilizer while visiting with friends.  My shamrocks will have to wait a bit now.

I'm bringing my FMQ challenge to the front burner this weekend.  This month's challenge is heart-shaped ivy leaves.  I'm glad its a pattern I've done before.  I don't do it often enough, so I get "rusty" between projects.  Hopefully the challenge will motivate me to practice all year long.  I hope to be more confident and relaxed with FMQ.  Stay tuned for further details.  :)