Wednesday, May 13, 2015

The Teacup Quilt is FINISHED!!

BIG finish this week!!  The Teacup Quilt is bound and done, done, done!! 
It's a reflection of my devotion to a "proper cuppa" and my fascination with English bone china teacups.  My son helped me covert this vintage glass door bookcase to display my collection.
It's filled to capacity so these days if I find an irresistible set, I have to give up a set -- that self-imposed rule always slows me down!!  There are special pieces like the sugar and creamer set at the center of this shelf which came to me from my husband's grandmother's collection.
These little crystal glasses were brought back from Germany by my father after WWII and the little candle holder was a Mother's Day gift from my 30-something son. 
I found these spectacles in my parent's things and I surmise they are from one of my great-grandparents out in Spokane. 
These little glass dishes came from a dear friend who passed last year and I'm sure they were originally pieces from her mother or an aunt. 
I have tea parties every now and then and get out the entire menagerie and let friends enjoy them.  I've collected orphan dessert forks, butter spreaders and tiny spoons to dress up the occasions.
There have been lots of starts and stops on this project over the years.  The blocks were pieced by a friendship swap group in the 90's.  I think the original block pattern came from the classic book, Quilts, Quilts, Quilts.
The setting was inspired by Karla Alexander in her first book, Stack the Deck.  I substituted my tea cup blocks where she used preprinted panels.  The configuration of the blue border is a wonderful idea!
The backing is the last bit of a lovely sweet pea floral design in my stash.  When I can't bear to cut up a beautiful print I use it for a backing.  I certainly don't want it to be in the "BIG" yard sale and leave it for someone else to get to use!!
The quilting doesn't show up a great deal.  There are wreaths of "tea leaves" in the crazy pieced blocks that begin as a spiral at the center.  Each tea cup has a bouquet of three leaves and interestingly the simple straight line quilting on the border shows up the most.  I need to remember that!!
I had quite a time making the binding decision -- the ideal would have been the blue in the border, but that piece is long gone.  I finally settled uneasily on this soft green which looked perfect with the backing, but was just okay with the front.
In the end, it looks fine and it means another 5/8 yard out of the stash!!  Plus I can cross it off the list of goals for the second quarter -- one down, seven to go!?!
 
Take time to stitch today -- it's important!!
 
Mary Huey 
 
Linking up today over at FRESHLY PIECED WIP.
 
Linking up with all the other finishers at the
 
 


 
 
 
 
 
 



8 comments:

  1. Thank you for sharing your wonderful quilt and beautiful china with WIP Wednesdays. Lovely to find your post. The quilt is just brilliant! A tea shop in my home town serves drinks in bone china tea services - all mis-matched, it looks very quaint!

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  2. I remember those blocks! Lovely quilt...so pretty and feminine! Thanks also for showing your quilting designs...I am always looking for different quilting design inspirations.

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  3. What a pretty, feminine quilt! I really love the floral print pieced border - it is the perfect finish!

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  4. teacups! I remember the book they came from, great book. I just adore your collections and how you've displayed them. You are able to enjoy looking at them daily this way. Great job Mary!
    LeeAnna at not afraid of color

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  5. This is such a pretty quilt - I love the teacups and they look great in this setting, especially with that lovely blue border.

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  6. Your teacup quilt is adorable! How fun to collect the cups and saucers, etc., also.

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  7. Love the soft colors in this quilt. Beautifully done!

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  8. This is gorgeous! My daughter used to collect tea sets when she was little so this quilt tugs at my heart strings a little! I love everything about this quilt! I remember the magazine you refer to! Thanks for sharing and participating in the FAL!

    Visiting as a member of the official 2015 Finish-Along cheerleading squad.

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