far far away 2 quilt (with the registered holsteins)

I’m really really happy with this quilt.

(really happy)

I started it right after I finished my Flea Market Fancy lattice quilts, and it was that quilt that inspired this design – the reverse of the lattice quilt. I used Heather Ross’s new Far Far Away II line — I wanted to see larger pieces of each design, and this quilt design worked well for that. I cut each square on the bias so that the pattern design would be oriented correctly when I set it on point.

For the backing I used Kona Artichoke paired with the Kona Snow used for the sashing with strips of the remaining Far Far Away II prints (of course!).

I wasn’t quite sure how I wanted to quilt this one – it’s on the larger size so I wasn’t really relishing the idea of straight lines, but in the end I really felt that’s what it needed. And then to make it take even longer, I decided it also needed double quilting lines… But now that it’s finished I’m really happy I went for it. You don’t notice the quilting as much on the front side, but it really stands out and makes a great pattern on the backing.

Have I told you about one of my favorite parts of quilting? Taking photos of the finished quilts. (I think that’s partly what pushes me to finish quilts quickly!). I love driving around and looking for fun locations. This weekend we went to a tiny little town in New York to visit my grandmother for her birthday. During the two hour drive I worked on the binding of this quilt and kept looking up periodically looking for a spot to photograph this partially finished quilt.

We passed this barn on the way to NY and I was totally in love with the color, the weathered look, and that sign, but we had already driven by and I didn’t want to annoy anyone in the car. But of course then I couldn’t stop thinking about it. Luckily it was still light out on our way back home later that day (and by that time the binding was done) so we were able to stop for a brief little photo shoot. There was a house nearby where I’m sure the owner of this barn lived  — I wonder if they were in there watching us and wondering what we were up to, or if perhaps we were so fast that they didn’t even notice us. In any case, thank you to the owner of this barn! If only it was located closer to my home – I’d be using it as a backdrop quite often!

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Notes:

Original post about this quilt can be found here.

Looking to buy some Far Far Away II? Hawthorne Threads just received a few more of these prints, with more arriving in August. Fabricworm & Pink Chalk Fabrics also have some of these prints available at this time.

Oh, and for those who asked, I think this line is great for quilting, even though it’s a cotton/linen blend. I like the contrast in textures, and I really like the extra weight that the linen provides, especially in a quilt this size. It gets cold here in VT, so I’m happy to have a heavier weight quilt!