Love Boldly in Red, White, and Blue / Beauties Pageant 138

Earlier this summer I organized a quilt-along for my Love Boldly pattern. The motivation was purely selfish: I figured the event would be a great way to get my own patriotic-themed quilt finished.

The beauty you see pictured here was quilted in May and then sat, just waiting for the binding, as Memorial Day, Flag Day, and the Fourth of July—three legitimate flag-loving holidays came and went. It wasn’t until this week, however, that this project made it to the top of my to-do list. Now it is done, in time for a string of pseudo-holidays that have nothing to do with flags. Will anyone else be celebrating National Potato Day on August 19 or National Bow Tie Day on August 28? Yeah, me neither, but I’ve got a beautiful flag quilt on hand for both.

I opened a bundle of Basic Grey’s Biscuits and Gravy to sew this top, using Kona Silver in the background to provide some contrast with the white stripes. The pieced backing features more Biscuits and Gravy as well as strips of a print from Basic Grey’s Nova collection.

My recent predilection for finishing bindings in chunky 12-weight thread continues. I just can’t get enough of it! I think the chunky stitches add a little personality to a binding. As you can see in the picture below, I also used two different fabrics in this binding, but really, it’s those handmade stitches that make it sing.

The quilting was done by Maz Q’s Sewing and Quilting Studio, one of the three Longarm League quilters who supported the quilt-along. (The others were Morning Song Quilting Co. and Mist Flower Quilts.) If you have a Love Boldly project to quilt—even if you sewed it apart from the quilt-along—Maz Q’s, Morning Song Quilting Co., and Mist Flower Quilts are all offering 20% off an edge-to-edge panto. This offer expires on August 31, however, so contact one of those talented longarmers soon! (To learn more about this pattern, click here. To purchase your own copy, click here.)

I have a bunch of other projects that are waiting in the wings for a few finishing touches, but my productivity has been seriously hampered of late, and it’s all the fur baby’s fault! There are days when my top priority is to get a nap—or two—and do my best to act like a human being. My cognitive functioning hasn’t been this poor since my boys were infants!

 

Gracie and her big sister, Rose, are getting along really well, though. At first there was a lot of Wrestle Mania, but now the interactions we’re seeing are more along the lines of Fight Club. Heaven help me! Both girls instigate the puppy play, but it’s Gracie who’s interested in cuddling. : )

I am not getting much sewing and quilting accomplished these days—I hope you are! Dazzle me with your recent finishes—add them to the linky below!

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