Deadline Met

 Here it is September already. I don't have a clue where the month of August went. The old saying that time speeds up as you get older seems to be very true right now.  I suppose when I get old (older?) and retire, I will feel like time drags on. But right now there is so much going on and so much to do that I just can't seem to fit it all in.

I did get Harper's baby quilt completed and delivered at the beginning of August.  He is such a happy little guy and so even tempered. (I may be a little biased but only a little.) I was so very happy with the end result of the quilt. I think Harper likes it. I'm pretty sure that his Mom and Dad like it.  Plus there was a sweet serendipitous connection to his older sister.  Alice, who is 12, had a Winnie the Pooh blanket that she was brought home from the hospital in.  I could not have known that. That little fact made my choices with the quilt all the more special to me. 

I learned a lot with this quilt. One, it was the first time I did any fussy cutting. This fabric needed to be fussy cut. I love the simple primary color frames that I chose. No, I did not have a pattern for this, I just picked the fabric and let it determine the design. It is simple but effective. I did try to plan a more complicated pattern but it wouldn't come together in my mind. So in the end I kept it simple and I am really glad I did.

Two, it was the first quilt since the new upgrade on Quilt Path. I struggled a bit with it at first.  I think I may need to upgrade my Surface tablet.  But I figured out how to quilt in zones. That means I don't have to try and quilt a quilt all at once. I also figured out placement marking so I can make minor adjustments as I quilt. And I am getting good at importing patterns as well. 

Three, the binding is the best I have ever done. The black just frames it perfectly.  I am learning that I like a little bit wider binding. And if I trim the quilt a little bit bigger, I get a full binding I am especially proud of the neat miters at the corner. I figured out that by cutting out the batting and backing at corners, I can get that nice, neat miter on both sides.

The only thing I wish I had done differently is the thread choice. Originally, I was going to stitch it in black. But I wimped out and used yellow.  The stitching design doesn't stand out as well as I would have liked. Maybe as I get better at the quilting part, I will get more bold with thread colors.

Now to put his cousin's quilt on the long arm. Same pattern, same fabric, but backed in the red fabric. I just may stitch it in red. Depending on how brave I feel at the time. 

What have you learned lately?  Did you finish something this month? What do you wish you were brave enough to do differently?