Wandering quilt – Lara’s Field Study quilt + an update on the honey bee quilt

Just in case you are not familiar with traveling quilts here is the idea: Each member of your group creates a starter block and usually writes a journal with details, theme and style they would like their quilt to end up. You send your starter block to another member in your group (usually there is a list, and you send it to the next lady on the list), they have a month to add on to your starter block and get your quilt going. Then, they send it to the next woman on the list and so on and so on until your quilt arrives back to you. In the meantime, as your quilt is traveling to each member of your group, their quilts are as well, so you will be adding to their quilts.

We have 10 women in our group. That means that 9 ladies besides me will be working on my quilt and I will be working on 9 different quilts. All themed.

Our group runs January 2017 – October 2017.

My honey bee quilt is currently visiting in Arkansas and as you can see it’s gotten bigger  and prettier.

on to Lara’s quilt

Lara’s quilt is called Field Study.  Her inspiration images included a notebook filled with drawings or pressed flowers. Anything someone might find while wandering about in the forest.

I love the idea of this one. I keep a little notebook with me at all time and everywhere I go I’ll pick up some pretty bloom or unusual plant and peer into the pages of the notebook and write a few details about where it was found. So this idea of a quilt in this manner really resonates with me.

I had many sweet little ideas similar to the ones the other ladies included already on this quilt top, but being just recently home from a trip to the Rockies and after a read through of Lara’s journal, I decided to go with a mountain range that would cover the top portion of the quilt.

I also decided to make my own pattern. Paper pieced. In EQ7. Whew!

To be honest, I ended up making the pattern three different times. I divided the range in three different sections. In the first draft the second two mountain sections were too much shorter and squattier than the first mountains. And then I redid it again, BECAUSE I forgot to break up my pattern into sections.   And then again, to make things fit better.

But I’m happy to say now that the pattern is completed and ready for me to paper piece. I have the first section done.

Lara sent along the batik fabric for backgroun. She also wants only batiks used in her quilt. And guess what?  I own absolutely no batik fabrics. Unless you count Alison Glass?  Even then, I had no where near enough variety or the right colors. So Lara and several other ladies sent me some in the mail.

I also ended up with the sweetest little honey bee mini too from Lara. How sweet is that?  Oh you need fabric?  Well here, I’ll send you some and while I’m at it here is a mini for your wall.

I am very grateful to be in this group. It has been lovely.

I can’t wait to get the mountain range completed and show you the whole thing.