The wise response to intolerance is not more intolerance or self-righteousness; it is a coming together across the ideological spectrum of people who want to make democracies more effective.
We should remember that the heroes we cherish
- Lincoln, King, Gandhi, Mandela - spoke to the best within us.
~Madeleine Albright
Quilting
A few years ago it seemed time to make something with a white background for our summer bed. I recalled the Shadow Star quilt my great-aunt made and found the newspaper clipping my cousin sent. The first step was to redraft the pattern, an eight-pointed star variation. Next I wanted a border even though the original had none. It took several years to get everything together and I wisely sent it to Peg Collins for quilting.
She completed just it and mailed it back!
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| Shadow Star quilt |
Peg free-motion quilted everything. The border quilting is simple but...
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| Vase detail on Shadow Star quilt |
she went to town on the center. Each star, indeed, each point has its own design. Lots of swirls...
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| Shadow Star quilting detail |
and spirals...
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| Shadow Star quilting detail |
and circles...
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| Shadow Star quilting detail |
and blades...
and feathers. Even some arrows. Peg's free-flowing designs move across the white, helping the star points and the background blend even more. That was always my favorite part of this design and I think it's why I remember it all these years later.
The back is an extra-wide blue and white print.
Despite being a traditional border, it updates this quilt tremendously. The stripes are "hand-drawn" in several shades of blue on white. There was nothing in my stash that worked so I purchased yardage online which wasn't the right shade. Then I found this. Online, too. Gathering my courage, I bought it. Success.
My dear friend, Gayle, gifted me a yard of her green fabric which gave me enough clear but quiet green for the leaves. The stems are a plaid cut on the bias. And the charming vases are fussy cut from to show off the rabbits. {Unfortunately there wasn't room for the ears.
This angled view gives me an idea of how it will look on the bed. {But we are still awaiting the bed frames which need repairs after the movers tossed them around.}
Quilt Specifics
Size: 112" x 112"
Design: Shadow Star with Vessel, Vine, and Floral border
Batting: cotton
Thread: white polyester thread
Quilting: FMQ by Peg Collins
Approximate yardage: 22 yds
Previous posts:
2. Fabric pull
22. More leaves
23. Leaves and buds
24. Applique flowers
26. Adding circles
Perhaps this blog should be renamed Shadow Stars since they have been the subject of so many, many posts.