Sauder challenge

Over the Labor Day weekend, I worked on my quilt for the 2007 Sauder Challenge. I finished the top Monday, and I marked and pin-basted it for machine quilting. Now I've got eight months to get it quilted and bound! Yikes - I've never been this far ahead before! This is the third time I've entered the Sauder Challenge - maybe "three's a charm" and I'll get lucky this year.

The Sauder Challenge this year is a packet of nine Kona Japanese fabrics - eight fat quarters and one half-yard. The requirements are to use at least six of the nine fabrics and to use curved seams in your piece. Height/width are min 24" and max 36". This year you're allowed to include your own fabrics.

I used all nine fabrics and one solid fabric of my own (a light green for the background of the blocks). I pieced seven baskets with curved seams on the basket and handle - my adaptation of Buds in a Basket design from the Bouquet of quilts book.

I bought Sue Nickels and Pat Holly's new book on raw-edge machine applique and read its "how-to" sections on Saturday. On Sunday after church I went to Joanns and bought Steam-a-Seam to add raw-edge applique to the Sauder quilt top. I ended up sewing on 47 little flowers - fussy-cut from one of the nine fabrics. Six in each basket and five scattered on the sides. The book recommends a blanket stitch for raw-edge, and it worked pretty well using the Steam-a-Seam. I'll have to try it on another project soon. I think that the addition of the flowers really makes the quilt.

I'll post a photo soon!