Turkey Tracks: December 2, 2018
“Bee Warm” Quilt
It’s done!
This quilt is done with Victoria Findlay Wolfe’s herringbone braid method found in her book MODERN QUILT MAGIC. And the fabrics are all Cotton+Steel low volume.
This quilt has been what seems to me a long time in the making—mostly because I had other projects with higher priorities. So, this one became a kind of leader/ender project, which I started back in May 2018 at the Coastal Quilter’s retreat. It took some time to get in the rhythm of this method—it’s not hard, just different. And I had a little trouble figuring out how wide and long the braids would be. I went back and added more length to the braids when I realized the quilt was too wide for the length. Next time…I will know. And I suspect there will be a next time, for I really like the texture of this quilt.
I started by going through all my Cotton+Steel low volume warm fabrics and ironing each one enough to cut the 2 by 8 strips. (I prewash all fabrics when they first come into the house as the chemicals in them bother me.) So I had a big bag of strips and had a great lot of fun choosing which ones to use when as I sewed. I had this kind of selection because I had a monthly C+S club order from Pink Castle Fabrics for about 2 years.
I’m assuming you know by now that C+S will no longer have the 5 original designers who have now moved to Moda and are named the Ruby Star Society. Their first fabric offerings with Moda will be in the spring of 2019. I will also say that some of the new designers under the C+S name are interesting, especially Emi Oka, who is from Tokiname-shi, Aichi-ken, Japan.
Anyway, here is a close up. I used the “Grande Hyancith” pantograph by Patricia Ritter. I’ve been wanting to use thisl pattern again. It’s curvy and dense, and it is adding more lovely texture to this quilt.
I love the bee fabric on the back. Its from the Sarah Watts collection, Magic Forest. Bees are beloved in m;y family. My DIL Tami Enright runs the Bee Cause project that originated in South Carolina and that seeks to save the bees by placing them in places where they can thrive or where people can observe them and learn about them. She now has hives in all 50 states. See thebeecause.org for more information.
The binding and label are done in this lovely pinkish fabric, which is as soft as the quilt and which is giving more texture around the outside of the quilt—as the white slashes play against the pink.
I love this quilt!
I am making a “cool” version, but with a different pattern, with the C+S low volume fabrics in blues, greens, and greys. I’m ironing and cutting fabric now, but have made some trial blocks. I can already see that I will love the “cool” quilt that emerges.
Louisa Enright's Blog 
What a beautiful quilt! Love the bee warm!
And love hearing about DIL Tami and her admirable work with bees!
Do you sell your quilts? I’d love to have one!
I’d think they’d be hard to part with tho.
I love that you love my quilts, cousin May May.
I don’t sell my quilts. I try to practice the Zen notion that “you can have the work but not the fruit of the work” as much as I can. And I do delight in giving them to people who love them so they can have many big warm hugs from me.
I love sharing the work that Tami is doing. She has made and is making a difference.
This is just so pretty! And I too love the back bees and the soft pink binding- perfect! You’ve hit yet another one out of the park! Great work!! Happy holidays!
And Happy Holidays to you, too, Judith!