The Moose is On the Loose

Some of you will remember the Christmas tree quilt I made for my Mom a few years ago. Well.... I love that quilt. It was a total surprise for Mom, and I put a lot of love in it. And I hope she knew just how much.


And I have that quilt here, but our bed is a King instead of a Queen, and I need one that will fit.

Being a creature of habit and knowing that quilt makes up well, I've been working on one for Biggsy and I. This is by far the biggest quilt I have ever made. I started it last spring on that retreat in Round Top and worked on it off and on through the summer and fall. It's been a process, but my goal for this weekend was to get it ready to start quilting.

Where my Mom's quilt had a few duplicate squares, this one doesn't have any. I pieced a total of 75 unique squares and then chose 49 for the quilt. It took me about three years to find all those different Christmas fabrics -- that was a lot of the fun!

And of course, I took the lead from the Amish and my Granny Lloyd. The Amish people always say the only perfect one is God, and they intentionally make a few "mistakes" in their quilts. My Granny Lloyd was the master of "making do" and could make something out of nothing -- or very little.

So when I totally screwed up how I was cutting the fabric, and when I got about a yard too little of the backing, I didn't let it get to me -- too much!! I just pieced it and "made do." And I'm hoping no one notices!! (Of course, now that I've told you, you'll be looking for it -- right??)

I laid it out in the playroom to put it together and it took up every available inch of floor space. Several hours and one achy back later, I have it basted together. I'm anxious to start working on it!!! At least it will keep me warm in the evenings while I work. I've nicknamed it the Moose. And believe me, it is indeed a moose!!

I'll put up pix when it's done -- in about 2020!!


If you've seen the church pew in our playroom, you can get a good idea of the size of this thing!