Sweet Heart Quilt

Ahh... that has a nice ring to it, doesn't it?  If you have no idea what I might be talking about, you can get up to speed by going here, here, and here.

Have you caught up yet?  Good.

Because the Sweet Heart quilt is finished.

Yes, you read it correctly.  It's finished.  All done.  Finito.

I could not be more proud of myself.  

I mean, not to toot my own horn, but I did a pretty darn good job for someone who is essentially self-taught in the art of quilt-making.

So, without further ado....

Ta-da!

Isn't it purdy?  I happen to think so.  There are so many bright colors.  I knew it was cute when I was making it, but once the entire thing was actually completed, it took my breath away.  I may or may not have shed a couple of tears when I snipped the last thread.

Here's why...

The the dark pink/coral binding?

I made that.  I measured out the strips, sewed them together, and folded them with an irritating little tool that I will probably never use again.

And then I sewed it on.  Did you know that binding is often hand-sewed on the front part of the quilt?  I'm not sure when I first became aware of that fact, but it sounds daunting.  

But I did it.  I stitched and stitched, wondering why thimbles aren't a bit more comfortable.

Oh, and here's the beautiful fabric I used for the back...

A nice, light blue.  I think it looks fantastic with the white.

Oh, and in case you didn't notice, the fabric I chose for the back and for the binding are also two of the colors of the striping on the front.

Even better, the only thing I had to purchase for this quilt was the white.  All of the hearts were made from fat quarters I have collected over the last couple of years and the stripes were fabric I already had in my stash.

So there you have it.  The first quilt I have made from start to finish that is machine-quilted with hand-sewn binding.  No more yarn tacking and no more satin blanket binding.