Wedding Gift

As I mentioned our friends Matt and Candra got married last weekend.  I knew I wanted to make them something as a gift but I didn't know what.  I saw the beautiful McKinley quilt pattern on obsessive crafting disorder and I thought it was perfect!  I modified the pattern to be bigger and instead of using charm packs, I just cut out my own 5x5 squares.  I absolutely love the fabric!

Here's the full quilt, thanks to KC for holding it up for me in the backyard.

A couple of close-ups of the squares and the backing, made with a twin sized brown cotton sheet from Target:

 I hand embroidered their names on the front:

 Used my Stampin' Up Big Shot to makes some 'flowers' to add some appeal:

I made a cute bride and groom card to go with it:

 This was definitely a time consuming project.  I loved how it turned out.  I had hoped to make it bigger.  I just knew that with the late start, I wouldn't have been able to make it bigger and finish on time.  I spent an entire weekend sitting at the kitchen table, just quilting. Matt and Candra loved it, I'm glad that I did it!  Thanks for your advice that you would have loved to receive something like this.  It definitely gave me the motivation to get going on it.

Not bad for a first try. . . .

So I finally finished my first quilt.  Overall, I'm pleased with the results.  It certainly has it's quirks and is kind of small, though I imagine it's a great baby quilt.

I followed the tutorial posted on Moda Bake Shop for Pure Baby Boy by Teaginny Designs. 

I used thee Fandango by Kate Spain Jelly Roll.  I cannot remember the solids though, but I'm pretty sure they were Bella Solids by Moda.

I followed the directions on the post pretty much to the letter.  I did add the extra solid colored strip on the back, but found I didn't really need it. 

 I always have a few lessons learned after a sewing project and this one is no different.

• Don't be afraid to remove some stitches and do it again.  If you look close at some of the blocks you can see some of the seams don't line up perfectly (which honestly, really bothers me)
• Stick to solid backings for a while.  The backing on this is pieced and when I basted it, it was not straight so the top and bottom pieces are not even.  Ah well, live and learn.
• Spray basting is sticky.  I really wasn't happy/impressed with the spray for basting the quilt.  It was sooooo sticky.  When I was doing the binding, my needle ended up covered at the end.
• The edge of the presser foot is definitely bigger than expected, which made the binding a bit more difficult to complete.
• Quilting is lots of work and I need to find a walking foot for the next project.

I think I'll stick this one in my office at work for days when I get cold, plus it'll add a little bit of color.

Overall, I'm calling it a success and a learning opportunity.  On to the next one (I may have started it already).  All recommendations, suggestions and tips welcomed.