Wednesday, June 18, 2014

A Quilt for a Dude: Which Direction? & a Giveaway!

My brother moved to LA about 6 months ago to find a job.  He knew one person.  That kind of leap takes guts, right?  He had actually been living with me for several months before he moved to LA and it was a neat time to get to know him better.  He's 4 years younger than me, but we were 5 grades apart in school so I went to college when he was only in junior high.  

His job prospects weren't the greatest and the whole family is naturally worried about him.  I decided a couple months ago to make him a surprise quilt to hopefully cheer him up, remind him of home, and comfort him when he's down.  I don't think he necessarily needs a blanket for warmth in LA :)  It's hot enough in Austin that people give me crazy looks when they see the piles of quilts all over my house, so I need to send them out in the world!  

I didn't think to take good pictures of the quilt because I was just so excited to mail it to my brother as soon as it was finished, so my apologies.  I call the quilt "Which Direction?" because the triangles point east and west on the front and north and south on the back.  My brother is going through a trial in his life where he's struggling to carve his own identity apart from me or our mom and dad and I know that can be confusing, so I think I subconsciously chose this pattern to fit his current circumstances.  

The pattern is based on "Trail Marker" by Ashley Newcomb (Film in the Fridge) for the Jan/Feb 2014 issue of Quilty magazine.  The pattern called for the blocks to be trimmed to 5.5" wide, but since I'm lazy and my ruler was 6" wide, I cut them 6" wide and added more blocks to make it almost queen size.  I pulled fabrics from my stash that seemed manly.  The quilting is curvy, watery type meandering that softens the sharp angles.  I'm so pleased with how it turned out!  I love the dark binding and the backing fabric is Dear Stella that I absolutely adore.  I mailed it last week and he sent me a text as soon as he got it thanking me.  

I'm so proud that I'm able to make nice things for the people that I love.  I'm usually a selfish quilter and make quilts just for me, but every now and then I make a quilt for someone special.  My brother is a great guy and I hope he knows how much I love and believe in him.  We may be thousands of miles apart, but he can remember his family when he needs to wrap up in something warm.  Sorry for all the sentimental stuff in this post, but isn't that what makes quilting awesome??  



I have a lot of neutral low volume larger scraps left over after making this quilt that I've stuffed into a gallon ziplock bag.  Turns out it's over a pound of fabric!  Do you think the scraps should be your next project?  I feel a giveaway coming on...

Here's how to enter.  Choose as many or as few as you like!
1.  Leave any comment you wish on the blog.
2.  Tell me how you follow me: Bloglovin, Instagram, Flickr, Twitter, Pinterest.  Leave a comment for each way!
3.  Repost and tell me that you did.
4.  Check out my Etsy store and comment below on what's your favorite fabric.
5.  Like my Etsy store on Facebook and leave a comment below.

US entries only please.  Make sure I can contact you through email.  Entries will be accepted until midnight CST Wednesday, June 25.




40 comments:

Kelly @ My Quilt Infatuation said...

This is an awesome quilt! I'm sure he loved it!

:) Kelly @ My Quilt Infatuation

Caroline said...

What a perfect gift for your brother. I love how it turned out, I will have to check out that pattern:)

Helen said...

Wonderful "man" fabrics made into a great quilt.

Helen said...

I follow on Bloglovin

Katie said...

this is a wonderful and beautiful quilt for your brother

Quilting Tangent said...

Nice neutral quilt, he should love it. He will love that you made it special for him.
24Tangent "at" gmail "dot" com

Quilting Tangent said...

Following on bloglovin'.
24Tangent "at" gmail "dot" com

Quilting Tangent said...

Moda V & Co Simply Color Tangerine Sprigs; Moda Happy Howloween Optical Illusion Swirls are my 2 favorites.
24Tangent "at" gmail "dot" com

Deanna said...

Great quilt! I am sure your brother will love it.

Lee said...

What a lucky brother! Your quilt is fabulous!

Lee said...

I follow with Bloglovn~

Lee said...

I love Michael Miller fabric and blues so Shore Thing is lovely to me!

Unknown said...

This is a wonderful quilt. Also, it is special because you made it. I am putting this on my "to do list".

Anonymous said...

Such a beautiful quilt-- I love the triangles pointing all directions (took me a minute to realize the ones pointing N and S were on the back, not hidden on the front!). Thanks for sharing! Sarah: crjandsbj(at)netzero(dot)com

Anonymous said...

Your shop name is perfect- love it! I really like Full Moon Forest. Thanks! Sarah: crjandsbj(at)netzero(dot)com

Valerie said...

Em,
I know Dan had to have loved this! So amazing! He is so lucky to have you as a sister!

Lisa England said...

The quilt looks great! I just love scrappy quilts -- so interesting to look at.

Lisa England said...

Lots of lovely fabrics in your shop! The one that grabbed me today is Michael Miller Heaven and Helsinki Orange Mini Tulip.

Julie said...

Loved your post and what a great sis you are. The quilt is perfect.

Kathleen said...

I follow you via bloglovin. I could use a gallon of low volume scraps!

Kathleen said...

Such a sweet and caring gesture to your brother. I'm sure he could use a quilt in LA . . . he probably has air conditioning, so he can crank it up and cozy up!

Sarah said...

Beautiful quilt! sarah@forrussia.org

Sarah said...

I follow via bloglovin. sarah@forrussia.org

Sarah said...

I follow via pinterest. sarah@forrussia.org

Sarah said...

I really like Michael Miller in your shop. Thanks! sarah@forrussia.org

Unknown said...

Ohhh, would love to add this lovliness to my stash! :)
clc97423@gmail.com

Unknown said...

I already like your FB page! :)
clc97423@gmail.com

Unknown said...

I am already a follower on Bloglovin! :)
clc97423@gmail.com

Unknown said...

Love the quilt by the way!! I am following on Pinterest. :)
clc97423@gmail.com

Unknown said...

The lilac polka dot of the Windham Hankie Club Collection is great! :)
clc97423@gmail.com

charlotte l said...

great colors in the quilt and i really like the arrows! thanks for the chance!

charlotte l said...

I like Dont drool on the fabic on FB

WindyLou said...

I follow on IG I'm a scrapaholic, so I need to win this!

WindyLou said...

Reposted on IG

Cindy said...

What an awesome quilt! I'm sure my husband and sons would love it too. cdahlgren at live dot com

Cindy said...

Following you on bloglovin. cdahlgren on live dot com

Cindy said...

Already following your store on Facebook, and love your fabric store. My husband wants to make a scrap quilt, and we need more masculine scraps. He's not real fond of my fabrics.

Mom C said...

Like your quilt a lot. Very smart and I love the name. Hope for all things good for brother.
Thanks.

Serena said...

I follow you through Bloglovin.

serenap95(at)hotmail(dot)com

SewPsyched! said...

Just came across this post on a link up and wanted to tell you how much I LOVE this quilt! keep us posted onhow your bro is doing... it's always a hard time in life when you first launch out.
XX!
Lori

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