Let the Quilting Journey Begin!

For those of you who don't know me, my name is Jenny and I am a new quilter! (Click on my name on the right side of this page to read more about me). This is my first post and I am excited to be joining the blogland of quilters. Today I just want to share how my interest in quilting began and show you the very first quilts I pieced (they are not actually quilted yet, but that is my next goal!). About a month ago, I decided I was going to give quilting a shot. My Mom has been sewing since she was a child, but she just got into quilting about a year ago. Ever since then, she has been trying to persuade me to join the quilting bandwagon. Keep in mind that at this point I did not even know how to sew. To be honest, I always thought quilting was for old ladies. The words "modern" and "quilt" are not words that I associated with one another. But, I started avidly reading blogs about quilting (such as Diary of a Quilter, Cluck Cluck Sew, and  Red Pepper Quilts) and discovered just how modern and fresh quilting can be. So, I spent a week this summer with my Mom and learned how to quilt!


This is the very first quilt that I pieced during the week that I spent with my Mom.

This quilt was made with Riley Blake's Sweet Nothings line of fabric. I immediately fell in love with this fabric line- it is very girly and I liked how all of the bright colors worked together. This quilt is baby-quilt sized (perfect size for starting out) and is a very simple design (also perfect for starting out). With this quilt, I learned the basics of quilting- rotary cutting, 1/4 inch seam allowance, and matching seams. By no means is this quilt perfect. But I have since learned that quilting is not about being perfect. I recently read a blog that said the imperfections of a quilt are what give it character. I loved this comment, and will try to keep it in mind with each quilt that I make (for those of you who don't know me, I am a huge perfectionist). I have also learned the importance of naming your quilts, so this one I am naming "Whimsy Garden."

Here are a few more baby quilts that I pieced on my own.

This one I am calling "Sweet Tooth." It is a coin strip quilt (although I didn't know that's what it was called until after I made it!) I used the Sugar and Spice fabric line by The Quilted Fish for Riley Blake. It just reminds me of candy!

This is another coin strip quilt made with the same line, Sugar and Spice, in a different colorway. I did a pieced back, which is on the left in the picture. I have found that I absolutely love pieced backs. Even though they take more time, they are a lot of fun and I think they are also very fresh and modern. They are also a great way to use up extra scraps from the quilt top! This quilt I am naming "Picnic in the Park." By the way, did I mention that I love red polka dots? Well, I do!


I realize this blog is getting exceedingly long, so time to wrap it up. I hope you enjoyed reading about my first quilts. My next goal is to actually start quilting these- a process that I am very nervous about but excited to learn also. I am going to start with straight line quilting and see how it goes. Free motion quilting is something that I would eventually love to learn how to do, but it seems a little overwhelming at this point. Stay tuned for more of my quilting journey!