Sparkling Diamond

Sparkling Diamond...that's the name that popped into my head the second I got the idea for this quilt. I finished up the top fairly quickly and then stowed it in the closet for a few years. It was going to be a quilt for me, like all the quilts I ever start. Only...I don't feel that way anymore. Now instead of keeping all my quilts, I feel like giving some away to friends and family. I want to send them out into the world to new homes, to be loved by other families.

This quilt went to live at my friend Jen's house. She's one of my best friends and also my best quilting friend. We talk about quilts a lot! Before her, I never knew how amazing it is to have a friend who understands this huge part of my life. I mean, Ian will listen to me talking about quilts as long as I'm willing to keep talking...and he does have certain opinions on things like fussy cutting and Dresden plates...but it's not the same as talking to someone who actually quilts. Someone who has made a quilt before...who knows how fun it is to cut up fabric and then sew it back together.

And so, it felt really good to finish this quilt and send it to my lovely friend. Ian is jealous...he really liked this one, unlike most of the quilts I make (just so you know, he does NOT like the Velvet Petals quilt...the nerve!). I tried echo quilting for the first time. I also tried using a bone folder to mark the quilt (similar to a hera marker) and it worked really well.

It'll be another month before I have another finished quilt to show you. I'm hoping to finish and baste one of the Liberty 4-patch tops this weekend (the other will be on hold for a while...I'm a little 4-patched out). I just bought some aqua Liberty fabric to use for binding but I have no idea what to do for backing. I need to figure it out soon if I want to stay on schedule. What would you use? I was thinking of using actual Liberty fabric but that would be SUPER expensive.