Friday, May 18, 2012

May Baskets


Hello everyone, and happy spring! Mother's Day! Mine was filled with simple pleasures but felt very special
It wasn't our son''s visit or the pancakes and bacon he fixed for breakfast. And it wasn't the phone call from our other son and daughter-in-law. Naturally there were big smiles for those things, but this particular grin came later... with!


A refreshing walk was my surprise, and I welcomed the opportunity to soak up as much springtime as I could. The cloudless blue sky and lilac-scented breeze were accompanied by a peaceful quietude uncharacteristic of our family neighborhood (Where was everyone; church, brunch, Grandma's house?). There were flowers to enjoy in every yard--big bushes of lilacs, red climbing roses, deep purple iris with golden beards, cheerful clumps of white daisies, each one prettier than any bouquet I could have wished for. All in all, it was a glorious stroll! 

 

We even found a spot to photograph my "May Baskets" quilt. It’s one of three quilts made from blocks swapped by Piecemaker friends (and generously shared with me). Although we started with the same 3" baskets, look how different our quilts turned out.


Mine is set in a block-to-block arrangement with baskets alternating direction in every other row. I like this simple layout and the subtle interest it creates.



Originally, I added a muslin spacer between the baskets and sawtooth border. It gave the baskets some "breathing room" but friends convinced me otherwise. Now, I wish I'd left it in. The final layout looks a bit cramped to me.



Oh well... all the more reason to keep the quilting simple.



"May Baskets"

30” X 39”


Sheila Lewis patterned her quilt after one in the collection of the New England Quilt Museum. The solid red alternate blocks make a striking setting, don't they? Can you spot where the baskets change direction? Right down the center of the quilt!



Barb Vedder grouped her blocks by color, then arranged them into four-basket sets.



It reminds me of a popular U.S. postage stamp from the late 1970s. Remember these? 


Barb enlarged her quilt with bold sashing and generous borders. You can read more about it here.


Thank you, my friends, for including me in this swap and for helping me get my quilt together!

8 comments:

  1. What a great day for you.(Good). love the basket quilts. Wig.

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  2. Your post brought tears to my eyes..Going outside on a beautiful day. My mother has Parkinson's. She feels like that too and when I am able to take her out, I see life thru her eyes and it is sweeter. Thank you for a lovely post.

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  3. glad you got to spend some time with your son and the sun too! beautiful quilts.

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  4. Sounds like the perfect mother's day. The basket quilts are gorgeous!

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  5. What a lovely Mother's Day
    It was so fun to see the quilt that Sheila finished - it looks terrific.
    It was fun to see them all together too!

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  6. Your smile is as radiant as the day! What a lovely Mother's Day indeed. Glad you had the chance to soak up some sun and nature and love!

    The baskets are wonderful in all their settings. Thanks for sharing!

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  7. it's always fun to see how similar blocks can be put together in completely different ways.

    i'm glad to hear that your mother's day was a good one and that you were able to do a bit of sun worshiping.
    that breakfast didn't sound half bad either~!

    :-)
    libbyQ

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  8. I love your basket quilt! Their tiny size makes it so cute!

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