Two years in the making

I interrupt this long blog break to show a huge finished project!

I started this navy and white zig-zag quilt about two years ago. The cutting and piecing went very quickly, but I stalled out on the quilting. Life got really busy for a while, but luckily things have slowed down so I was able to concentrate on finishing this.

I'm so pleased with the end result!



The quilt is queen sized and composed of navy and white rectangles sewn together in a zig-zag pattern.



After failed attempts at free-motion machine quilting, and machine quilting in the ditch, I finally decided to hand quilt 3" circles in each square. I used matching thread on the front, so it alternates on the back.



The back is a very simple color block that I think could look pretty good on its own.



I originally wanted yellow binding, but this cheery blue caught my eye, and adds to the nautical look of the design.

I have to say, I was really intimidated by the idea of hand-quilting a queen sized quilt, especially since I had never hand-quilted anything. It did take quite a number of hours (and days and weeks) but I actually enjoyed it. It definitely adds something special and makes the quilt look handmade.