Wheelin' and Dealin' (yaiAnn)

Overdue baby quilt #1, done!

Pattern: Cartwheel Improv Quilt

Notes:
I fell in love with this whimsical cartwheel block the minute I first saw it on flickr and had been dying to use it. One of my good college friends "recently" had a baby and just like me, she's not so much a girly girl (read: hates pink, loves practical). I wanted to give her new daughter something that she'd would love just as well and this fabric paired with the solids were just the perfect thing, feminine but not sticky sweet.

I decided to do some improvisational piecing for the back and I had the most fun with this. Is it bad to say that I think I like this side better. I just took scraps from the front and pieced them every which way.. squared them up and put them together. I had an extra pink cartwheel and used that in the back just to tie it together (but mostly so it wouldn't go to waste).

I bound it with the orange fabric and in retrospect I think I should have cut the fabric on the bias just to give it more visual appeal. But it didn't occur to me after I started ironing the strips. I'm definitely not killing myself over it, but just something to keep in my head for next time I use a somewhat directional fabric for the binding.

The most difficult part about this quilt was the layout an color choice. What these photos don't show you here was that I originally had 5 colors picked out for the cartwheels. As I was in the process of constructing the blocks and preliminarily started laying them out, one of the "kids" just looked like it didn't belong and I just couldn't figure out which one should go. Thanks to the advice of my flickr friends, the tan was on the outs. I <3 flickr.

Now that this is finally done, I can pack it up and send it along while I plan the next baby quilt and continue to long for my own. But no worries, I've got two planned and in the works for myself. More details to come. For now, I leave you with the full front and back shots of the quilt. Have a great week folks!

Comments (20)

That turned out so beautifully!! I love that it is just girly enough!! Awesome job!

Posted by Leah | March 23, 2009 9:51 AM

beautiful!!!

great job and love the freehand/improvisational back. makes it work well both sided / more versatile! :)

Posted by carolyn | March 23, 2009 11:02 AM

GORGEOUS!!!!!!

Posted by adrienne | March 23, 2009 1:36 PM

That is such a great quilt! I love the colors/design. I am not a girly girl so I thought my girls would be too. Nope. The first loves trendy clothes and the second sure loves her pink. They are begging me to paint their rooms pink and orange.

Posted by tiennie | March 23, 2009 1:36 PM

I love it! Both sides are fab, for different moods. Did you freemotion quilt this one too? I'm in awe of how even the stitches are.

Posted by Steph | March 23, 2009 2:14 PM

I love this! I recently completed a cartwheel baby quilt and mine is mostly pink/orange/red but I love your addition of brown. Makes it really warm!

Posted by Mal* | March 23, 2009 2:30 PM

It's awesome! I love the pattern and the colors/fabrics you used.

Posted by Stephanie | March 23, 2009 2:39 PM

you finished it! it came out so great! you know I love the color combo and getting rid of the tan was definitely the way to go.
I think I'm like you, I'm loving the back a little more than the other side. all that stitching looks so pretty and fun. can't wait to see quilts that are finally for you!

Posted by yahaira | March 23, 2009 4:27 PM

this turned out so beautifully! HOORAY! and i like the orange a lot more than i thought i would. i thought that the fact that it's not a true solid would be obvious, but i really like it!

Posted by mai | March 23, 2009 4:46 PM

Absolutely gorgeous! Love the front and the back! You didn't mention how you went about quilting it - free-form?

Posted by grumperina | March 23, 2009 4:51 PM

No way. I don't register the orange as a non-solid. I think it adds a nice texture! I'm also interested in the quilting process...

Posted by Mal* | March 23, 2009 6:10 PM

Both sides of this quilt are gorgeous! The color combination is perfect and I am becoming quite obsessed with cartwheel quilts and this only adds to the addiction. =]

Posted by Hermione J. Schwartz | March 24, 2009 5:33 AM

Damn, you are now a stipling afficionado!
Love these tilted pinwheels, they seem so whimsical (and a little tipsy, hee!).

Posted by Veronique | March 24, 2009 8:05 AM

Oohh beautiful! I'm been waiting to see the finished piece. I love the mix of colors and patterns

Posted by Marn | March 24, 2009 3:07 PM

Your work is simply stunning. Beautiful.

Posted by Jennie | March 25, 2009 12:34 PM

Done and gorgeous! I love the bright orange and pink tempered by the brown. I'm sure Mom and Baby won't mind it's overdue!

Posted by MJ | March 26, 2009 2:17 AM

Beautiful! I love the colors and shapes!

Posted by Melissa | March 26, 2009 8:15 AM

Seriously gorgeous! I love the color combo you went with! And the back...is amazing!