comfort quilts for donation

Yes, it's been a while. A long while.

And I've missed writing updates and sharing photos. So I'm going to try to get back in the habit of spending time here :)

My wonderful quilt guild continues to support a local breast cancer care facility with donations of comfort quilts for patients in the surgery phase of their treatment plan.  I set a personal goal for 2017 to donate five quilts, and the first two are finished and on the way to patients.

16-patch quilts are so simple, but the result is always beautiful. The fuchsia, orange, and yellow batiks in this 56" x 70" quilt remind me of a summer sunset. You only need 20 fat quarters to make this large throw sized quilt.  First I cut four strips measuring 4" x 18" from each fat quarter, took two of those strips and paired them with two strips from a different fat quarter, and used this construction method to create one 14" finished block. Repeat nineteen more times and you've got 20 quilt blocks!! This is a great project to take along to a retreat or sew-in because it can be chain pieced without needing to constantly refer to a pattern or directions :)

Fellow guild member Judy C did the freehand longarm quilting on both of the quilts I'm showing you today. She did a marvelous job!

The second quilt was made with fabrics I purchased from another guild member who was destashing fabrics and kits, and it's tough for me to resist a pile of bright, beautiful fabrics at a bargain price! The fabrics were part of a kit to make an entirely different quilt, but I had a new half-hexagon template from Missouri Star Quilt Company begging to be used.  The template is designed to be used with 10" fabric squares (layer cake squares), but you can also use it with fat quarters or yardage.

After cutting all of the half hexagons it took me a few tries to find a layout I liked, but once that was settled the sewing was easy! The sky blue borders are cut from my stash fabric and bring the final size to 55" x 65".

The flowers Judy quilted in the center of each hexagon are the perfect finish :)

The kit even had enough fabric to cobble together a backing and scrappy rainbow binding! Who wouldn't like a quilt backing covered in zinnias?!

In October 2016 our guild members made 31 donation quilts for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and a few of us were lucky enough to deliver the quilts and receive a tour of the facility.  The nurses, doctors, and administrators provide such excellent care to their patients - both physically and emotionally.

Since our 45 member guild began supporting this local care center we've donated over 100 quilts to local women battling breast cancer :)