Matt's cousin contacted me a few months ago regarding a custom. She had a bridesmaid dress from a friend's wedding, and now the friend was having a baby. She found an idea on Pinterest and wanted a baby quilt made from the dress she wore in the wedding.
I must admit, I've seen these quilts and they aren't really my style. But it was a small, simple project, so I figured I would challenge myself.
I knew that I wanted to add quilting cotton to the mix, and she mentioned that the dress was blue. I pulled some fabrics, but WOW was I surprised at how the very bright blue color of the dress! I added and subtracted fabrics until I had a nice mix of greys to go with the blue.
For the quilt design, I was looking for something simple. I decided on isosceles triangles, so I picked up a few new rulers and chopped up my fabrics! The dress was short, so there wasn't very much usable fabric. I cut as many triangles as I could, and then I pieced the blue and greys randomly. Nothing planned, just grab some pieces and stitch them together!
I quilted the piece with a simple swirly meander. I wanted to keep the layers from shifting around, but also keep the quilt soft.
For the backing I chose 2 fun prints - the kite print is also in the quilt top and I like that it brings a bit of red and purple into the design. The binding is a brighter blue, one of my favorite prints! I remember being unsure of the brighter blue, but as soon as the quilt was finished I LOVED it.
In the end, I actually love this entire quilt. The blue color really pops, and the shine of the satin is a fun touch. I've heard that the mom absolutely loves it, and Matt's cousin was really happy with what I created for her friend.
Notes:
*If I remember correctly, quilt finished at about 36" x 42".
*I did not stabilize the satin. It was very easy to work with, and had very little fraying!
*Because of the bulk of the satin, I pressed all seams to the cotton fabric. Ironing did not damage the satin, but I tried to iron only on the cotton and barely touch the seams to flatten them a bit.
*I used the same needles and thread in my long arm that I would have used if the quilt had been all cotton.
*I used Quilter's Dream Poly batting in Select loft.
