Bloggers Quilt Festival

I really enjoyed last years Blogger's Quilt Festival, from an observers and voters point of view.  The brainchild of Amy from Amyscreativeside,  it's a wonderful chance to show off share your favourite quilt with everyone, and be up for a chance to get some awesome prizes too...
This year, I'm going to be brave and actually enter something...  I dont know why I find it so hard to like things that *I* make, but I generally do.  I say 'generally' because there is one quilt I will never tire of saying I love, and that is my first ever bee quilt.

 These are the fabulous and diverse blocks I received from my "do anything" instructions, and the weird mix of blue & black fabrics I sent out.
As much as I loved them, I'll be honest, I didnt have a clue what to do with them all to get them into one cohesive quilt top....  They sat in a bag for 6 months...

Spurred on by the thought of meeting all my bee in London, I became obsessed with having a finished quilt to show them.  As an extra push, I dipped into my piggy bank and booked my "quilt" in to get professionally quilted...

As the days ran out I tried all sorts of different layouts, thought about all sorts of sashings etc.  I started to panic.  It just seemed like two quilts - traditional blocks, and modern, free scrappy blocks.  Maybe it was a reflection on my state of panic, but two blocks in particular caught my eye - Ceri's block, and the random piece and slash/slash and piece section my mum did for me. I saw a lightening flash and a tornado and somehow they just whipped all the blocks up together!

5 days and nights of manic, scrappy piecing to build mums block up to 24" square, and individually enlarge each block up to 14" - in some cases making one block 14" x 16" and the one next to it 14" x 12", whatever was needed to link them - I got the top done in time.

It was wonderfully, professionally quilted by Christine Marriage, (who is so, so lovely!) in a "square dance" pattern, which I think really suits the quilt top as its so random and angular.  I used Moda's extra wide dottie grey to back it, and I bound it in the same kona black so that the edges disappear.  It measures approximately 81" x 95".  Its a bit of a beast.... my Blue Beeast....  and I love it.

Its too big for the "patio" and the sliver of sun we get....

Quite a few people may remember seeing this quilt in person, as I took it with me to the Fat Quarterly Retreat 2012 thinking my bee friends might like to see it, and it seemed to have a life of its own!

Lynne and Lauli helped with the modelling

This photo is a snapshot of what is possibly one of my warmest, snuggliest, happy memories, I still can hardly believe it; when one of my absolute favourite bloggers - Lynne of Lilys Quilts - genuinely really liked my quilt!

I can lie and stare at my quilt for ages, I always notice something new.  I love every single bit of it. But I do have some favourite bits...  Like how Susans Broken Window block sat so nicely with Fionas Paw Prints Postage Stamps block...  looks like Elliecat has been really naughty...
My man loves the Saltire, and the  "starwars bit"....

Thanks for letting me show it off again, I'm sorry, I just cant help myself, I bloody love it!  Thank you so much to all of Brit Bee for the awesome blocks that make my Blue Beeast such a special quilt  xxx

Blogger's Quilt Festival stats

Quilt - The Blue Beeast

Size - approx 81" x 95" 

Quilted by Longarm Chris

Special techniques used - just about everything!  There's applique, foundation paper piecing, english paper piecing, "wonky" piecing, traditional block patterns, free scrappy piecing...

Best Categories - Group/Bee quilt, Bed quilt

Thank you for reading, and please go and have a good nosey at all the amazing quilts being entered in The Blogger's Quilt Festival 2012