Final Finishes for 2009

I've gotten 3 more small quilts basted today and quilted. So these will be my final finishes for 2009.  I just can't say enough about the quilting ability of my Janome 6600 MC.  I used 8 different threads in the course of quilting all of these quilts, in different combinations between the top and the bobbin, and this machine didn't miss a beat.  The only tension adjustment I had to make, and it was miniscule, was on the Crossed Canoes quilt when I had to use the light peach thread for the top and the dark teal in the bobbin.  Other than that, the machine had perfect tension no matter what thread I used and where I used it, whether it was inexpensive or top of the line. 

Batik Square in Square quilt - this was a sample I made in January 2004 for a beginning paper piecing class. Nothing like taking my time getting this one finished. I did a simple grid pattern with wide spaces so the quilting went pretty fast. This entire quilt was made with batiks, including the backing. I used a Coats and Clark variegated purple thread on the top and a blue 40 wt cotton Mettler thread on the back.

Swim with the Fishes - this was my project for the Quilt Camp in the Pines weekend that I attended in, ahem, May 2002. I don't know what the real name of the pattern is or who designed it, but I call it Swim with the Fishes.  I had the most horrible time with the paper piecing, partly because of my crappy sewing machine at the time, but I was so glad when this top was finally finished. I quilted it with gentle wavy lines that hopefully give the feeling of water. I used King Tut Jewel of the Nile both for the top and in the bobbin. This quilt is also made 100% from batiks. And as you can see, this quilt was thoroughly inspected by the resident Quality Control Manager.

The final completion for 2009 was Tequila Sunrise, a small quilt made with 9 Crossed Canoe blocks and once again, 100% in batiks.  Do you see a pattern here?  I used this block for one month of a paper piecing club I was leading at the time and really liked it so I made some extra and put together this little quilt.  I completed the quilt top in April 2005 and have finally gotten it quilted.  I did some simple outlining in each block, which involved a lot of starting and stopping, but achieved the look I wanted.  I did wavy lines in both borders.  I used Essentials "Teal" in the bobbin, a peach DMC  Embroidery Thread for the narrow peach border, and YLI McKenna Ryan thread in "Brook" for the rest of the quilting.