Can I do it? Yes, I can!

Happiness

 66" x 66"
Began - August 21, 2022

Completed & Delivered - September 3, 2022
For Char Andrews

Happiness's story began before it began...

In my enthusiasm of blessing those close to me, I offered to make a quilt for Sheila and for Kayla, two of my co-workers at LivingWell. I finished the two quilts in February 2021 just in time for both of their birthdays.  Shortly thereafter, I asked another of my friends/co-workers if she would like to have a quilt as well. Char's exuberant reply was, "I've been waiting for you to ask!"

Char and I set up a Pinterest board where she would add different ideas of quilts she liked. Over the months, I would ask her at different times if we might go shopping to pick out the perfect fabrics. With her busy schedule, the shopping excursion never happened.

For a year and a half, making a special quilt for Char was always in the back of my mind as an unfinished project that I had yet to even start.

Char made the decision to move to another position in Auburn (August). I was sad that I wouldn't see her on a daily basis after working together at LivingWell for 14 years. Yet, I felt confident that this was not the end of our friendship, and we would continue to see each other occasionally. 

The time had finally arrived! Char's quilt must be completed before she left LivingWell. "Can I do it? Yes, I can!" This phrase rang through my head multiple times in the upcoming days.

I know Char likes florals so I brought all of my floral fabrics (scraps and all) for her to look at. I think that it was a bit overwhelming for her to have so many options. However, I was determined to finish the mission of starting and completing Char's quilt.

Her gaze rested on a jelly roll of bright and cheery colors. Hurray! Step one of picking out fabric was completed! The making of the quilt was now in motion.

Next, came the choice of a pattern. I gave Char several options, and we settled on the "antique lace" design that I had previously made (Tranquility Quilt) for myself.

Wait! There was a slight setback... Char had seen Ambrosia (another of my quilts) where I had used newspaper fabric and wanted this fabric in her quilt. I didn't have enough of the newspaper in my fabric stash, so an order was placed for more fabric. Okay, the fabric has been ordered, we just have to wait for it to arrive.

Saturday night, August 20, the newspaper fabric finally arrived. Hurray! Let the quilting project resume.

The next day, "Operation - The Quilt Must be Finished ASAP!" began. I began cutting, sewing, and making my plan for how to finish the quilt before Char's departure from LivingWell two weeks later.

For Tranquility, I had kept the colors in the "master block" all together. Based upon what Char wanted, I knew Happiness called for a "scrappy" look with the colors spread throughout the quilt.

Tranquility

For 2 weeks, I worked on the quilt for an hour before leaving for work in the morning and then an hour or so each evening. The quilt was slowly coming together.

Even though I was under a "self-imposed" deadline of finishing the quilt before Char's last day, I still wanted the quilt to be perfect for her. It was worth taking the time to FMQ, SID, tie off threads, and hand-bind. All was done with as much care as possible. After all, Char was a special person to me and deserved a special quilt made with love and care.

Originally, I was going to do a meander stitch across the entire quilt which would send the quilt off to its destination faster.  However, I wanted the colors & design to pop. So, I FMQ in all the white space and SID around each triangle. With each stitch, the design came into the forefront.

I had purchased a floral fabric for the back of Tranquility, but I found the colors were too bold for the subdued pattern. For Happiness, the colors matched perfectly. Yay! The choice for backing fabric was an easy decision.

Next, what to do for the binding? I really wanted to do a "scrappy binding" to match the scrappy feel of the quilt itself. With fabric bins overflowing, I have been on a mission to limit my fabric purchases and use up what I have whenever possible. Yay! I have some peach, coral, and yellow that matches Happiness's colors. A special bonus, I didn't have to make a trip to the store. Another win for Operation Finish the Quilt ASAP.

So, why name this quilt Happiness? Seeing the bright colors as I sewed and worked on this, one word came to mind - Happiness! Char is a person who exudes love and care for everyone. Such a warm, genuine, and loving person needed a Happy Quilt. As I gift this quilt to Char, I wish her all the happiness possible in her new job and in the next step on her journey.

After 14 days of working on it (and 1-1/2 years of carrying the gift of the quilt in my heart), the quilt was completed and delivered! Triple Hurray! Happiness belongs to Char now.

Every quilt tells a story. This is the story of a quilt named Happiness and making a quilt from start to finish in 14 days. Could I do it? YES, I DID!

Every Quilt Tells A Story
Whether it is the fabrics chosen, the design, the colors, the occasion, the recipient, or the people I quilt with, every quilt tells a story. This blog captures in images and words what has been created for others and for my own home through the hum and stitching of my sewing machine.