Still Enjoying Autumn Leaves This Winter

I am happy to report that I am ready to sew the borders onto this leaf quilt. It has been a long time coming. Lots of distractions, everyday life, bouts with illness, etc. that have kept me from getting it done. It's funny, but there is nothing hard about creating a quilt like this one. Expecially if you already know how to use your embroidery functions on your sewing machine. But it seems this quilt is taking quite some time to be completed. Most of the designs are from Anita Goodesign. They sew out beautifully. It was fun to pair different thread colors together. Sewing the same design using different colors added enough variety so that none of the leaves are exactly alike. Just as in nature, no two are alike. It reminds me of a cool autumn day in the country with leaves that have just fluttered down from an overhead tree branch. I can just imagine spreading a quilt out and laying back to enjoy the last of a warm autumn day. The warm sun, a cool breeze comes along, then the delight of a light covering of leaves as they rustle overhead and come fluttering down.

At this point I am considering quilting it together using the stitch-in-the-ditch method. I toyed with the idea of a simple stipple or meandering quilting method. Now I have made up my mind to keep it really simple, and plain, looking. Stitching in the ditch along the seams of the blocks and the between the logs should be a good way to go. This simple treatment for the actual quilting will allow the leaves to steal the show as the focal feature, not the quilting itself.

I am in love with this quilt - very pleased with it. My friends agree this one is special. Don't you just love all the lovely colors? It contains lots of scraps from my stash. Even that makes me happy . . . to use up a good chunk of those scraps. This quilt will look beautiful draped across the back of our couch as a seasonal quilt for late summer and fall. Even though I look forward to spring - cannot wait till life in the Dakotas warms up - I look at this reminder of fall with favor.