New baby coming . . .

Baby quilt

Curly and Bee are expecting their first child in February and it has become sort of a tradition for me to make baby quilts for all the grandchildren. I thought I would share the one just completed that will go to their new baby. This one had to be gender neutral since they want to be surprised and we won’t find out if it is a boy or a girl until it arrives.

The pieces are from three different patterns of material.

This Maisy pattern fabric is based on the drawings from the children’s book about Maisy the mouse.

Mice and footprints. This is the light contrast fabric.

Colorful toadstool, butterfly and flower pattern used for dark contrast.

The design is a simple 6” nine patch with a “Texas Star” in the center. I was a little worried at first that the dark background on the toadstool pattern would make it too dark for a baby but it turned out bright and cheerful. It is crib size (45” X 60”) and it is filled with extra loft batting. In the picture the quilt is draped over a chair so it is a little wobbly looking compared to the neater straighter edges it has in real life. The reverse side of the quilt is very soft, warm flannel in light blue with yellow moons, stars and suns. All the pieces are machine stitched together and the only handwork is the hemming along the flannel edge. Everything is washable, no fancy quilting stitching required, just tied with yarn. This is the kind of quilt that can be dragged around the house by a toddler and tossed into the washing machine. Typical life of such a quilt (from past experience) is about 7 years. After about 7 years it starts falling apart and has to go to quilt heaven although I have had reports of repeated mending that has extended the life of a quilt for many additional years. Of course, by then the owner is no longer a toddler and is not likely to be dragging it around either so that also would extend the life.