Friday, October 25, 2013

Blogger's Quilt Festival: Sea Glass

It was all a part of being trustworthy—of being a piece of sea glass. High tides, low tides, storms, sand and mistakes all contributed to the polishing process. Though difficult to endure at the time, the demanding elements helped smooth the surface, transforming one into a better person, not worse. A person who learned from the harsh environment, who knew the storm would end, and who felt confident she would still be in one piece.
–Maria V. Snyder, Sea Glass


I'm really excited to participate in Blogger's Quilt Festival again! I hope you're enjoying the show. Thanks to Amy for hosting and welcome to visitors! {For those of you who've been here recently, I hope you won't mind if I show off this quilt one more time.}

Blogger’s Quilt Festival Stats
Quilt Name: Sea Glass
Finished quilt measures: 65” x 71”
Quilted by: Melissa Kelley at Sew Shabby Quilting
Blogger's Quilt Festival Category: Quilt Photographer


I made this quilt for a dear friend for her birthday recently. She was going through a difficult time with some health issues and I wanted to do something special for her. As I worked on choosing fabrics, colors and a pattern for this quilt, it was with a prayer in my heart that I would make something that would be special to her and let her know how much I respect, admire and care for her and her family. Step by step, the quilt came together. The colors reminded me of the sea. The batiks framed in dark brown reminded me of stained glass. I did a little research and decided to call the quilt Sea Glass. The name seemed to fit.

When I took the quilt to my friend on her birthday, I told her why I decided to call the quilt Sea Glass and what I know of it. She told me that she and her family loved to vacation at the beach and that the quilt reminded her of a trip to Catalina Island when she and her family had taken a tour in a glass-bottomed boat and the sun had illuminated the water and sea-life below. At that point, I knew I'd been guided in the making of this quilt. But when I was looking for a quote to go with this post it just underlined how much everything about this quilt was the right for my friend. Even though she's been through a really difficult time, I see her with a smile on her face quietly and faithfully going about her duties.

The photo above is my official entry for the Blogger's Quilt Festival, but I wanted to share a couple more pictures. The top left photo was taken when I took the quilt to my friend on her birthday. She's on the right.

And this is the back. I like to include an embroidered label with the name of the quilt and details about it. I'd originally planned on quilting this myself, but ran out of time. My first label is in the bottom left corner. When I asked Melissa to do the quilting {she was so great to work with and squeezed in a rush order for me}, I made a new label, the one you see in the quilt back. Unfortunately, her last name will forever be spelled wrong on this quilt. {I'm sorry!}.

Read more about this quilt:
Fabric selection & partial assembly
Finished quilt top {and why this quilt is a Palindrome}
Almost finished
Finished and delivered

Today's post brought to you by:
AmysCreativeSide

15 comments:

BillieBee (billiemick) said...

What a wonderful quilt.

Lonci said...

Lovely colours and so beautifully coordinating:))))

Mary said...

It's a story worth repeating! Your Friend is lucky to have you. Quilting and Friendship go together well. Glad you shared it again.

Cille said...

Beautiful quilt. The colors are amazing.

Seams Sew Together said...

I'm sure your friend will treasure this quilt, its lovely!!

Teresa Duryea Wong said...

Thanks for sharing this story! And what a beautiful quilt... even love the tag and the backing.

sonia said...

Beautiful quilt! And great gift. Congrats

Paulette said...

Neat photo of the quilt with the sun beaming above it. Sea Glass is a shimmering beauty of a quilt!

Shay said...

I love this quilt E. It really does remind me of sea glass wrapped in a stained glass window. Beautiful!

CitricSugar said...

Gorgeous! And such a beautiful way to show your friend how much you care!

Tami @ Lemon Tree Tales said...

I love the sun shining behind the quilt! It just lights it up and really helps with the illusion that the little colored squares are from the sea.

Unknown said...

The quilt is beautiful but I fell inlove with the reason and the story behind it. You are such a sweet and special friend and anyone will be lucky to have you.

-http://seaglass.us/

Anonymous said...

The colours are so peaceful! Great job!
Esther
esthersipatchandquilt at yahoo dot com

Sarcastic Quilter said...

beautiful and peaceful. I hope your friend is doing better.

jelly andrews said...

Wow! That’s really one beautiful quilt. I really love it. And this made me wish I knew how to quilt. Thanks a lot for sharing it.