The Carp Fair Raffle Quilt

I have been meaning to post about this quilt since the spring but for some reason it keeps getting lost in the ether.

Remember last spring/summer Betty and I were helping our friend Jean work through the details of what the Carp Fair was going to do for their annual quilt block competition? Well, the fair was held in late September, as usual, and by all accounts was a raring success - the best attendance ever. We didn't make it this year but I did help Jean with pulling together all of last year's blocks into this year's raffle quilt.

It was an interesting process because I tend not to make sampler quilts, but I was up for the challenge.

There were 25 blocks so I landed on placing them all on point creating a little more interest. I needed more blue for the border but was working on assembly a good six month after we'd bought the fabrics for the blocks. Fortunately, was able to pick more up at the same shop.

This was Betty's block.

And this was mine. Until I saw these pics again I'd forgotten that I'd use the narrow grey sashing and dark blue cornerstones to set the blocks.

I think that this was the only block to include a bit of applique.

And this beehive block was a lovely homage to the blue bee print included in the fabric package. Sweet. I think that those bees were included in everyone's block.

Roberta generously donated her time to quilt it, along with the backing, and she nailed it with rows and rows of beautiful feathers, a lovely nod to this handmade tradition.

It looked equally nice on the check that we used for the backing which had a nice agricultural feel to it. 

Jean was thrilled. Red, black and white are the fair's colours so many of the previous raffle quilts were made using this palette but she wanted something a little different and this fit the bill nicely. 

In the spring Jean took it to a few agricultural/seed shows as a way to sell tickets and generate interest in the fair, and it looked beautiful when it was hung. This pic makes it look square but it isn't - I made the top and bottom borders deeper than those on the sides.

She  asked if I could also make a lap quilt using the same fabrics to accompany the fair quilt in the hopes of encouraging folks to sit for a bit and quilt a few stitches.

I landed on the 54-40 or Fight pattern. Roberta has long had a beautiful version of this quilt on a wall in her quilting studio and it has always appealed to me. 

It was a great pattern to work on and I would definitely make it again.

Jean is not a quilter so I drafted a suggested quilting pattern and sent her ideas for items to include in a sewing kit that could travel with the quilt, which she really appreciated. Last I heard, there weren't as many takers as they would have liked; I'll have to check and see where things ended up with it.

These two quilts were a big project and consumed a fair bit of last fall/early winter, but I was happy to help a friend out....M