big log cabin quilt

I know. I am posting two quilts in one week. It’s kind of obnoxious, right?

I picked my brother and his wife this year in our Christmas pick way back in the summer, so I had lots of time to think about what I wanted to make them.  At first I thought I would make them an advent calendar and send a bunch of little gifts and chocolate to fill the pockets.  But then they moved from Montana to the beautiful seaside city of Portland, Maine and that’s when I decided that the theme for their gift was going to be warmth. I solicited them for info on colors that they like/hate and they responded that they like all the colors but that they weren’t too crazy about white. I felt a little bit of pressure with this quilt because my brother is an artist in his own right and a very creative person.  I wanted to make something that felt like “them” and I also wanted the quilt design to be original. I really didn’t want to follow someone else’s pattern because I am pretty sure that if my brother were to ever make a quilt of his own, he wouldn’t follow a pattern either. {He is also an architect, so he knows how to design.}

I picked a bunch of solid colors that to me say “warmth,” added a small bit of prints, and worked on an oversized log cabin block. When I was piecing the top of the quilt together, I tore the fabric rather than cut it with a rotary cutter.  It’s amazing how nicely good quality fabric tears in a straight line. My favorite little bit in this one is a tiny rectangle of an orange print that blends into one of the solid orange “logs” of fabric. The straight line quilting is in the shape of long rectangles and, just like the last one I posted, it is a throw-sized quilt. This one was really fun to make because I came up with my own design and just went with what felt right.  I think I need to do that more often.

I think they were really happy to receive this quilt.  My brother commented that he likes that it has a modern feel. His wife said that her favorite part was a sailboat print, which I used because they now live in a port city.  I was glad she mentioned it because it was the one print in the whole quilt that I wasn’t so sure about.  I am so pleased that they like it and that it is going to a good home.  {Lots of love, you guys!}

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