On the 12th Day of Christmas...I gave myself another Cottage Block Quilt! (And since it is the 12th day of Christmas it means you can FINALLY take down your Christmas decorations...oh who am I kidding - I know you've all done that already...not me...not for another week - what's the rush?!!?) Back to the matter at hand...my new quilt...I now have TWO cottage block quilts - or will have as soon as this one is quilted! The cottage block exchange that I participated in a year ago sponsored by Freda's Hive netted each participant 12 different cottage blocks. Unbeknownst to me, Dawn, my friend, neighbor and member of my quilt group, was also participating in the cottage block exchange. Last February when our quilt group was busy putting together the American Hero Quilt Show, Dawn dropped off some things to sell at our show and one of the things she handed me was a Zip-lock bag with her 12 cottage blocks! She was up to her eyeballs with things and said she just knew she'd never make a quilt out of them so she was going to donate the blocks for our sale. Well....what could I do?!? I'm sure you'll agree that I had NO CHOICE! I had to buy the blocks for myself! So, I considered what price we could realistically sell 12 cottage blocks for and I determined that $50 would probably be the top price...I know, that just doesn't seem right but picture yourself at a quilt show, standing in front of the grab-bag table of orphaned fabric and blocks and you tell me what you'd expect to pay for 12 cottage blocks...and if it's more than $50 then I'll cough up the difference to American Hero Quilts pronto!
At first I had contemplated using all 24 blocks in one quilt (the ones I received and Dawn's pile). Actually I had 30 blocks total because both Dawn and I had made extras. But 30 seemed like overkill so I separated them into two groups. The first cottage block quilt has been posted on here a couple of times - just scroll down and you'll see it. This is smaller than the first quilt - and a much simpler design. The trees are hand appliqued, mostly made from vintage fabrics. I loved the green Merry Christmas fabric from the moment I saw it and thought it made for a great border; it's called "Aunt Grace Ties One On For The Holidays" from the collection of Judie Rothermel by Marcus Fabrics.
Listed below are the names I have for the quilters who made the wonderful cottages that were used in this quilt...thank you so much! Check out their blogs - they are very creative women!
Corn, Bread, and Beans Quilting
And, of course, Freda's Hive! Along with the above, there were blocks made by Pratima, Elaine, Allison and Flora and they do not have blogs, but I want them to know I loved their blocks! I'm missing two names but after a year's time I consider myself lucky that I only lost two! So whoever made the other two blocks - thanks!
This quilt measures 55x65-inches...the perfect size for Baby Max to wrap up in NEXT Christmas - when I hope to have it finished!
