Central Park Dresden Quilt: A Finish

I am so happy to share this finish with you!  This dresden quilt is one of the largest quilts I've made.  Luckily he week of Christmas was spent on the beach in California and I took advantage of the scenery to shoot the pictures.

I fell in love with Kate Spain's Central Park Line right from the beginning and was itching to get my hands on some.  I found a half yard bundle for a steal and then took months to figure out which pattern I wanted.  After seeing some beautiful Dresden plates from Alison Harris of Cluck Cluck Sew and Amy Smart of Diary of a Quilter, I was inspired.

With one minor alteration, I used Oh Frannson's tutorial for the Dresden plate.  I felt the center was a bit bigger than I desired and so used one my kitchen bowls to create a smaller template.

The plates are appliqued on Kona White and the border is a Moda Bella solid (can't remember the name - must start to label solids!).  I used the extra pieces of Central Park to piece the border.  I couldn't help myself and took the plunge to use the cobblestone print for both the backing (in light brown) and binding (yellow).

Once again, my LQS provided the quilting services and did a fabulous job!

I snagged a picture just as I finished the binding :)

As a part of the festivities, this quilt was raffled off to my in-laws and my brother-in-law won it!

Oh, and just because I didn't have enough WIPs, I decided to join The 2014 Sugar Block Club from Stitchery Dickory Dock. 

Anyone care to join me?

Linking up to Crazy Mom Quilts' Finish it Up Friday.

Christmas Scrappy Dresden Pillow

Over Thanksgiving, I ended up with the flu and stayed home under the covers instead of joining my family out of town.  It was rough to be away, but I'm glad the sickness ended with our home (my poor husband had it after I did).

So by the end of the weekend, I was feeling home-sick for the holidays and needed some Christmas cheer.  Instead of "singing loud for all to hear" (the movie: "Elf") I broke out my red and green scraps and my handy dresden template.

I strip-pieced the reds together and added a strip of white.  I did the same with the greens and then cut them into dresden pieces.

Out comes my piece of linen I had been hoarding (found it at Joann Fabrics for a steal!) and followed instructions from my friend Kelsey over at Everday Fray.  She has some great tips on sewing with linen  and is definitely worth the read for both her experience and the gorgeous quilts she and her cousin Amanda create.

I appliqued the half dresden on the linen and turned it into a a slip cover for a pillow.

Quilting mirrors along the outside of the dresden, mirroring the shape, but I was not confident enough to use red thread.  The white thread I used simply disappears, although in person the texture is lovely.  I recommend red whole-heartedly for next time.

Thank you all for letting me share my Christmas Cheer with you.  

I'll be honest, I do not like the month of December.  I lost my Dad in a accident just days before Christmas (it's been five years now) and I still can't quite enjoy the holidays.  I'm thankful for friends and family who understand why I don't like the holiday season.  Little projects like this help me remember my cherished holiday memories.

Happy Holidays to you and yours!