Wednesday, October 28, 2015

my christmas quilt

I finished my Christmas quilt over the weekend and what better time to show it off than few days before Halloween, right ? :)


I know I say it a lot, but I really, really love how this quilt turned out. Especially considering I had no clear plan when I started making it. It all started with these sawtooth star blocks I made way back in August. And then I didn't feel like making more of these blocks, so I decided to make a few tree blocks using AmandaJean's Trees! pattern. And then I sort of improv added whatever needed to be filled in :).


 My main inspiration for this quilt was this beauty made by Mary (Molly Flanders). Such an adorable, perfectly perfect little Christmas quilt, isn't it?


I really loved how Mary hand quilted hers, but I was not really in a mood for a major hand quilting project. So, I copied yet another one of Mary's fantastic ideas and combined machine quilting with just little touches of hand quilting. I can't even begin to tell you how very much I enjoyed this part. Pure joy, I'm telling you :). It's like putting sprinkles on a beautiful cupcake.


This, by the way, is my set up for hand quilting. I don't use any frames or hoops, I just spread the quilt on this large table and go for it (but I do try to remove the cats before I start quilting :)). Oh, and yes, I did the hand quilting once the binding was finished. It wasn't planned like that, but in my rush to see how binding would look with the whole layout I totally spaced out and forgot about hand quilting.


I used red and white perle cotton #8 for these lovely chunky stitches and did some randomly spaced long rows of white stitching plus some red stitching around christmas tress.


Oh, and minky backing, of course. To make it all nice and warm and super cozy. (I'm hoping my post on backing quilts with minky will be ready next week).


The quilt finished at 52" x 68", so a nice throw size. Now just to patiently wait for Christmas to come so we can enjoy lots of snuggles under this cozy pile of loveliness.

Thanks for reading, friends. Svetlana

Ooops, I almost forgot. I'm adding my Christmas quilt to Blogger's Quilt Festival - small quilts category over at Amy's creative side.

60 comments:

  1. Such a beautiful quilt. I'm not a great fan of Xmas in general, but your quilt is so pretty, nordic-like that I could almost start making one. Really, really lovely

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  2. Great quilt, different but so nice.

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  3. Absolutely GORGEOUS! I wish I could blink my eyes and have this quilt on my couch :) Beautiful!

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  4. So beautiful - very peaceful and Christmasy. Love it!

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  5. This quilt has a wonderful Scandinavia feel to it. I like it a lot.

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  6. Very pretty, it looks like it is cat approved.

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  7. Oh Svetlana, it's THE nicest Christmas quilt I've seen. So crisp and fresh; it reminds me of snow (not that I've ever had a white Christmas, but.......!)

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  8. Your style is so awesome! I love this because it's not overly Christmas. I love the black, white and gray instead of the typical red and green. Fantastic!

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  9. Ahoj Svetlanko! Mas muj obdiv - jednak jsi strasne rychla, jednak quilt se opravdu moc povedl. Krasne! J.

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  10. This is lovely! I'm also not usually a fan of Christmas-themed quilts, but this one makes me want to start piecing red and white right away! And I love the slight touches of light gray. What is the finished size?

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  11. Now that's a Christmas quilt I wouldn't mind leaving out well after Christmas! Fresh and modern, beautiful! Jxo

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  12. It turned out stellar. I need to learn how to hand quilt...

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  13. This is the best Christmas quilt I've ever seen!

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  14. Re your table set-up: do you baste the quilt before putting it on the table? Do you start in the middle? Can we see what the table looks like? I'm wondering why it doesn't get needle nicks.
    Thanks!

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  15. I don't know what it is, but I adore everything you make!! I want to make a Christmas quilt now! ;-) This is precious and I especially love your combination quilting. My daughter does that sometimes and I love the effect. Another winner, Svetlana!

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  16. Even though in Australia a quilt is the lat thing we need in the Christmas heat, this looks wonderful and cool to me! Last year I made Christmas tree potholders and everyone loved them. I might try a light-weight quilt too in the future.

    I love this version - modern and abstract.

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  17. PS I forgot to mention the kitty-cat - good to see that other quilters have some cat-love on their quilts! :)

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  18. This is the kind of Christmas quilt I would like, it reminds me of peppermint candy! It's just simply happy, I can't think of any other way to describe it! Such a great finish! :)

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  19. I am totally in love! Every thing you do is totally amazing!

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  20. That minky looks like fur, so luxurious... and I do love the top.

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  21. Love the way you've set the blocks in this quilt - just right!!!

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  22. Delightful Svetlana! it is perfect in every way. How do you make everything so cute ?? Janita

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  23. Absolutely delightful!! I love everything about it- from the clean red and white palette, to the hand quilting and minki backing! I also combine both hand and machine quilting because it seems to add something extra to the finish! I wonder if Mary has seen it?

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  24. Che spettacolo ....bellissimo lavoro!!
    Un saluto
    La Sportina

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  25. Che spettacolo ....bellissimo lavoro!!
    Un saluto
    La Sportina

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  26. a real beauty for Christmas time. The minky backing will make it extra cosy to snuggle under

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  27. superbe, j'adore et tellement original.
    Bravo

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  28. a lovely quilt, those trees are fab!

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  29. Oh Svetlana, it's BEAUTIFUL!!! Deceptively simple-looking and so peaceful. A true classic. Congratulations and thank you for sharing it with us.

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  30. What a wonderful, bautiful quilt! So cheerful. Love it very much.

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  31. I love the simplicity of this. I have to say I would use it all year round. x

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  32. Hi Svetlana! This is my favourite Christmas quilt and not only for the Christmas! I have tried to avoid red because didn't ever consider it my colour but lately it's popping out all the time and I decided to give up. Thank you for inspiration! Red/white quilt will be my next project - I hope nothing comes between. x Teje
    www.nerospost.wordpress.com

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  33. Your style, your color and design placement, your craftsmanship - everything you make, makes my heart go pitter patter. But THIS one.....I'm absolutely swooning. Can't stop looking at every little thing about it. And can't wait to hear what you have to say about minky backings since I've never tried one. So so lovely beyond words, Svetlana.

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  34. Very beautiful! The hand stitching is such a nice touch! And the Minky backing will make it totally snuggly for the winter.

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  35. I love love love this! And I don't usually like Christmas quilts, so that really is saying a lot! It's beautiful!

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  36. I love it. It is stunning and so you, and the handstitching is a perfect last touch.

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  37. I really love your quilt. You did a fantastic job!

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  38. I can't even describe how much I love this.

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  39. Amazing quilt! And, I look forward to the minky post! I am ready to make a quilt with that as a backing and know I can learn a ton from your experience.

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  40. Svetlana! I love it, love it, love it! Really perfect! Write your article please soon. I was thinking about minky as backing for some time now. :) Thank you very much for sharing and have a good day :) Nina

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  41. I love this!! It's unlike any other Christmas quilt, just wonderful :)

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  42. I love this quilt! The handstitching is the perfect touch. Good job!

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  43. Oh my, this is gorgeous! I adore every single stitch.

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  44. What kind of batting do you use when you back with Minky? I've used wool, but I haven't tried hand quilting it with Minky.

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  45. I think this might be the most perfect Christmas quilt. Ever. I want to copy it exactly. Love love LOVE!!

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  46. I love everything about this! I am a BIG Christmas fan and am always looking to update the look of my holiday decorations. This is modern and charming. The hand stitching is beautiful (the white in particular is a great effect). Just lovely!

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  47. This quilt is just beautiful- I love everything about it!! I too want to copy it and make it....right....now!!!!:)

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  48. Love this! A perfect combination of all things red, white, improve, quilting. Amazing and inspiring for sure.

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  49. It's utterly fantastic! Well done, Svetlana, well done!

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  50. This is inspiring for the holidays! I love your fabrics and that you hand quilted this through the minky backing? Impressive.

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  51. I love, love, love this quilt! I have kept your web site up on my computer all day so I can keep looking at this quilt!!! It is so modern and amazing! What I wouldn't give for a pattern!!!! Beautiful!!

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  52. This is beautiful! Gorgeous really.

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  53. This is beautiful! Gorgeous really.

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  54. I just finished up this same quilt! I'll post a picture after I've quilted it, onto Facebook.

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