Southwestern Quilt Finish!

Joy, from Calico Point, did a lovely job of long arm quilting the southwestern quilt. I had decided I wanted a more 'manly' quilting design for this quilt since our son-in-law will be using this quilt too.

I selected this dragonfly design which shows nicely on the backing. But are there dragonflies in Arizona? I googled it and this is what pulled up. 

I used the zigzag fabric for binding which I machine stitched.. Our daughter will be visiting in a few weeks, I'll see if I can cram this 71" by 100" quilt into her suitcase to take back with her. This quilt will see use this winter when Phoenix cools down and air conditioner season is past.

Here is the quilt roll.

When I purchased the fabrics for this quilt so many years ago, they put it in this nice shopping bag. The fabric lived in this bag for years but I could always see this orange bag. I always knew where the fabric was. If I can't get the quilt into her suitcase, maybe she can have a carry on?

Updated 9-29-20 Our daughter has been visiting for the past 10 days. She flew back to Phoenix this afternoon and was able to fit the quilt in her suitcase. She slept under it while she was here.

Linking to Peacock Party, Put Your Foot  Down, Whoop Whoop Party, TGIFF!, Finished Or Not Friday, Brag About Your Beauties, UFO Busting

The Southwestern Quilt

Five or six years ago or maybe it's even 7 by now, our daughter and her husband moved to Tempe (a suburb of Phoenix) Arizona so he could attend ASU. The plan was that after he finished his schooling, they would probably move back to Indiana. And they did, for one year.

Our daughter said, "the sun doesn't shine in Indiana in the winter" which, unfortunately, is very true, unless it is a very cold and very snowy winter. So they moved to Phoenix.

The first time I visited them in Tempe, we went to the 3 Dudes Quilting Store (which I can't find online) and I purchased a fat quarter bundle. The fabrics had designs and colors from the southwest US, something you definitely don't find in the great lakes region. I told her I would make them a special quilt to commemorate their years in Arizona.

Even though they've moved back to Phoenix, I've made them their quilt. I loved the fabric designs and didn't want to cut them into teeny tiny pieces. I wanted to display the designs.

A couple years after the fabrics were purchased, while browsing through the vendors at a quilt show, I found one who sold iron on motifs. This lizard looks like the lizards I saw running around while we were hiking in the dessert. He has been top stitched to the background. I had to cut his background block a little larger than the other blocks so the sashing on his block is more narrow than the rest of the sashing.

I was able to cut each fat quarter into four pieces, 9" by 10".  I had bought extra fabric and some of that was cut into squares too.

The finished flimsy is 75" by 104" and is presently at a long arm quilter. 

Linking to To Do Tuesday, Midweek Makers, Clever Chameleon, Wednesday Wait Loss, Needle & Thread Thursday, Put Your Foot Down