Mission: Memory Quilt

I know.. I know.. I haven't posted in FOREVER!!! But, it's with very good reason. I have been up to A LOT of sneakiness and considering that I'm not a good liar or secret keeper, I had to just refrain from posting at all. I assure you, though, I have been a VERY BUSY little bee. I will start out with explaining the quilts I have been diligently working on since December. Yes, December!!! Have any of you ever kept a secret that long from someone you see nearly every week?!?! Know how hard that is?!?! I should get a medal for that one reason alone. I swear... I can't keep a secret... well... I guess I can't say that anymore. :)

So this all started in November. My friend Gunilla and I decided to take a quilting class together. After our second week, she found out her husband needed open heart surgery. She didn't get to finish the class. Not long after, Jesus called her husband home. It was a very very sad day. It was very hard to watch my very strong friend, fall to pieces. She and her husband had been married for over 30 years! In this day and age, that's a testimony in itself! They had met at the hospital where she was a nurse and he was a OB/GYN physician. They were expecting their first grandchild this February. In his eulogy, his son spoke of how excited his dad was over their first grandchild. He also spoke of how much his dad loved to wear scrubs. His dad had scrubs for everything: working out, sleeping, going out, hanging out, and of course working in. So the idea was born... I would make a memory quilt for the baby which could be passed down to subsequent grandchildren. Then comes the task of how to design it! But more than that.... how was I going to get his scrubs without her being curious. I told you... I'm  not a good liar. So I asked her one day, "I'm going to ask you for something, but you can just tell me yes or no. No questions. Just trust me. Can I have Ramzi's scrubs?" She agreed. I was expecting about 2-3 pieces of clothing. I was given a very large bag full! And the best part was there were plenty of colors!!! I gave a set to a friend of mine, Kara (my crafty partner in crime), who's mom made a set of scrubs for the baby using Ramzi's scrubs. Can't wait to see those. So I prayed for God to give me some inspiration. My inspiration came from two of the many quilting blogs I read: Crazy Mom Quilts, Sew Inspired and Cut to Pieces.

My inspirational piece for the baby quilt:

This is a 9-patch quilt from Amanda Jean on Crazy Mom Quilts.
Amanda actually does a quilt-along with this pattern.
Vicki on Sew Inspired has also been working diligently on cute 9-patch quilts.

So I got working 

Cutting up some pants

Into 2x? strips

Made strip sets

And cut my rows

My pile of 9-patches

Ready for basting

All quilted. I quilted it just the way Amanda Jean did on hers. It's so clean and a change from the stippling.

This quilt was 42x50. I do not have a "full" finished photo.

When I was done with this quilt, I had so many scrubs left over that I decided to make a memory quilt for my friend too.

My inspirational piece for her quilt:

Color Play Quilt by Angela from Cut to Pieces

In Angela's quilt, she made 1x1 squares. I was not that ambitious and I made mine 2x2. I also cheated and made long rows rather than a row of just white 2x2's. In retrospect, I should've done it the way she did, because matching up the rows and columns was a little tricky for someone symmetrical and particular like me.

All of my 2x2 squares.

I assure you they are all different colors. My camera is horrible.

In the reveal picture that my friend Heather took shows all the different colors correctly.

All planned out on my floor. AKA "Design Board"

I selected a beautiful batik for the backing that incoporated all the shades of blue, green, and purple. I also used a Moda fabric for the binding and I forgot the name. I want to say "Crazy Eights". The white in the quilt is a Kona solid.

All quilted. I used a Hera Marker and my ruler to make the lines.

I read about it on another blog right when I was trying to figure out how to make the straight lines.

Normally I would use painters tape, but that's a lot of tape. Thank you Lord for directing me to that posting.

The only "full" finished photo I have.

The size of this quilt is 62x52.

 I need to get better at taking pics.

 I always get so excited in giving the quilts away I forget to take pics!

Then came the day of the big reveal. A group of us went out to dinner. After we finished eating and paying, I fumbled for words to say, but I couldn't say anything without crying! I'm such a sap! Even if I had a camera (which I left in my car), I probably would've been too emotional to take pics. After we all wiped our tears, my friend Heather took the following pictures:

It was a very emotional and rewarding night. I thank God for giving me inspiration through the blogs mentioned above and for guiding my hands through all the sewing and hand-stitching process. Many prayers of comfort, peace, and joy that only He could provide were lifted up in the process. It was my little token to say "I love you and I'm here for you".

God gives us all kinds of talents. None of them too small or too unimportant. He prepares us for all walks of life. Everyday, we are placed in situations for such a time as that. When God puts something in your heart, He will provide and guide you until His mission is completed. Mission "Memory Quilt" completed. May the Botros family always be comforted in their husband/dad/granddad's love. In loving memory of Ramzi Botros.

LOVE,