Yes…it is FINISHED! But first, I want to share a little story about the small quilt group of which I am a member. There are only three of us.These are the two ladies who have helped me quilt my king-sized quilt this past year, Carol and Jessica.
I have been quilting with these lovely ladies for several years now, but they have been together for eons! At one time there were four of us, but sadly Barb passed away a few years ago. Every Friday they came to my home and helped me quilt from 9:30 to 3:00. I provided lunch. Now that my quilt is finished, we will go to Jessica’s house to quilt a quilt for her until it is done, then we will be off to Carol’s house for her turn. Then the rotation begins again. They graciously agreed to help me with this huge 116×116″ quilt because I have a king sized bed and wanted an heirloom for my bed. I will be eternally grateful to them. I actually had tears in my eyes as we put the last stitches in the binding! I was so grateful for their help!
We started it on June 27, 2014 and it was just completed, a little over a year later. There were many Fridays when we were unable to quilt due to family fun, illness, or vacations, etc. (35 weeks of actual quilting). I worked on it during the week whenever I could in between our Fridays. We spent about 120 hours quilting together the three of us and I spent another 108 hours quilting on my own.
Carol is our most experienced quilter. Her home is filled with beautiful quilts. She has made so many that she is unable to count them from all the years past! Hand-piecing or hand-quilting was often done while traveling on the road with her husband. Carol has a wonderful color sense. When we have a problem with something Carol always can see the answer first. It is a pleasure to have such expertise knowledge available as she is quite talented. Each week before we quilt we have our tea-time and do a “show and ask.” Truly it’s educational and FUN!
Jessica has been quilting for a long time as well. She likes simple patterns and has made lots of them. A few years ago she began a business making table linens, aprons, quilts, and an assortment of other items. She has a website called Fiber Embellishments. Take a minute to browse her website and see the beautiful things she has made and offers her customers. Jessica is in the process of replicating an antique quilt that she owns. It has seen much love and is in sad need of replacement. So that will be our next quilt to work on when mine is finished.
After we finished the hand quilting….it came off the frame.
Then I spent some time squaring up the edges and trimming off the extra batting and backing.
Once it was all trimmed Carol and Jessica helped with the binding and soon it went into the washing machine and then outside to dry first in the shade of the morning sun…then in the bright sunlight.
It got so windy that even rocks on the corners of the quilt couldn’t hold it down…so I hung it on the line to let the autumn breezes do their thing!
And FINALLY on the bed! It looks so beautiful and the autumn breezes made my whole room as fragrant as the outdoors!
I can vouch that having a hand-quilting group, however small, is wonderful. We have become good friends and enjoy spending the day together. If you are a hand-quilter, you should consider something similar. It is delightful and nice to have some help with hand-quilting! And lots of fun.
Thanks for taking the time to visit. Hope you have enjoyed all of my photos. Lots more finishing photos to come soon. Amities, Averyclaire
Averyclaire 
Nanouanne
Oct 02, 2015 @ 02:01:32
Wahooou!!! This is the best post about quilting I ever read.
You know what? It reminds me of a very good book you offered me (us) for Christmas at the beginning of our friendship so many years ago. It speaks of lovely things, wisdom and well organized way of life. I loved it and still cherish it.
And on top of that you provide us with the photograph of three cute ‘lady bees’. You look wonderful.
You made my day. I shall do something with your advice as I do a lot of hand quilting on large patchworks.
I look forward to read more here.
alwaysquilting
Oct 02, 2015 @ 02:34:24
What a lovely quilt and great story about a shared love of quilting
KerryCan
Oct 02, 2015 @ 06:47:29
The quilt is just fantastic! SO beautiful. But it’s made even more perfect by this story of finishing it with the help of friends. I think the communal tradition of quilting is one of the things I like best about the craft–many loving hands, working together!
Linda V
Oct 02, 2015 @ 08:47:22
What a great story. Thanks so much for sharing your gorgeous quilt! Love the border. Fantastic!
Southpaw Stitcher
Oct 02, 2015 @ 16:33:07
Your quilt is stunning, and I am very happy to get a glimpse of your quilting friends after hearing so much about them! I look forward to seeing this masterpiece in person very soon.
margaret
Oct 02, 2015 @ 19:02:13
Hooray! I’m so happy for you that your quilt is finished. How beautiful it is too! I loved hearing about your quilt group too. We used to have a quilt group once upon a time but it fell by the wayside. Very sad. Anyway, congratulations! Love your quilt!
Elizabeth Janzen
Oct 03, 2015 @ 17:17:39
Your quilt is unbelievably beautiful. Every stitch was placed with care, love and friendship. What an amazing heirloom piece you have created with the help of your friends. The 3 of you are very fortunate to have created such a bond through quilting. Love all the pictures. Thanks.
Jackie
Oct 03, 2015 @ 20:50:10
Congratulations!! It’s a gorgeous quilt and I LOVE that you and your friends quilted it together. I’m not sure how a quilt could be more special. Please keep posting about what your group is working on!
Linda Hubbard
Oct 03, 2015 @ 22:40:56
Your quilt is magnificent! Absolutely stunning! Those borders are so very beautiful. Thank you for sharing with us – sharing the finished quilt and even more so, sharing the story of your friends and the bond you have built around the frame.
Jane
Oct 04, 2015 @ 00:03:17
absolutely stunning, and such wonderful memories tied up in it
Deb @ Frugal Little Bungalow
Oct 04, 2015 @ 14:47:06
I came over from the Facebook group to see this in more detail…it’s beautiful, and what a nice story about you all quilting together. I put my sheets and spreads out on a laundry line in good weather so I know exactly what you mean about the lovely fresh scent! The border on this is amazing…so much intricate work.
Carol
Oct 07, 2015 @ 11:54:48
OH, your quilt is just breathtaking!! I can’t imagine all the love and hard work you put into creating it, but how wonderful to have such good friends to lend a hand! Congratulations on a truly lovely heirloom!
Brigitte
Oct 12, 2015 @ 04:52:54
Oh my, such a terrific quilt. And everything is handquilted. I’m definitely in awe. Your little quilting group is just wonderful, it reminds me of these quilting bees that you sometimes meet when you read a book with a quilting theme.
Sheryl
Oct 19, 2015 @ 12:47:31
What a very beautiful quilt, the colours are lovely and the border design gorgeous. How wonderful to have such friends to share and enjoy your hobby. I wonder how long this quilt would have taken to make if just you had worked on it.