Remembering the Lady in Red

This is a very special quilt.  I made it for me.  And it has a story...

This coming week marks the one-year anniversary of my mother's passing.  Not a day goes by that I don't think of her and feel her presence.

She was a very talented Interior Designer and had her own business for many years.

Several years ago she gave me a bundle of fabric samples.  Most of her fabrics were decorator fabrics, not really suitable for quilting.  But these were 100% cotton - slightly heavier than quilting cotton - but I thought I might be able to do something with them, so I brought them home and added them to my every-growing stash.  They probably date back to the 1990's and the colors are gorgeous.

I started making coasters.

Quilted, hexagon coasters - pairing the cotton samples with Essex Linen.

I love them, and they are addictive to make.

Recently, I spread the samples out on my cutting table, and once I saw all the colors lined up together, I knew that I had to make a quilt.

I planned, sketched, and researched, trying to come up with a design that would really show off these samples.  Then I remembered this quilt that I saw on the Poppyprint blog a few years ago and knew it would be perfect.  (Thanks for the inspiration, Krista!)

I chose this modern gray and white print for the background  Classical Elements by P&B Textiles.  It highlights every color perfectly.

While cutting the samples into squares for the quilt, I decided to omit the brightest red.  It just seemed so much brighter than the rest and I wasn't sure it would work.

But while making the blocks, I suddenly stopped and thought of how much Mom loved RED.  The last time she visited me, I took her shopping and I'll never forget the image of her walking down Main Street in her Red cape, Red hat, Red purse and Red shoes.

She turned heads.

Sure wish I had taken a picture...

So one one red square went back into the quilt and it became the "heart" of the quilt.

I don't think I would have been happy with the quilt without it now that it's done.

Krista quilted her quilt with concentric circles and I chose to quilt mine with one big spiral.

It is quickly becoming my "go-to" quilting design.  I've done it several times (here and here) and it never gets old.  I just love the modern look and the texture it gives.

So that's the story of my quilt,

"Remembering the Lady in Red".

I think Mom would love it.

(and there is still lots left to make more coasters!)