I have been working on completing four quilts for my friend, Kim, this week. Here’s the story behind the quilts. Knowing her father’s eightieth birthday was approaching, Kim wanted to create a special quilt that embodied a wonderful memory for him. During his working years, Kim’s father supervised construction crews. Each Christmas he gave each man a bottle of spirits which “was the most expensive and grand gift.”
Kim bought the empty Crown Royal bags on Ebay and recommends purchasing the larger bags because the fabric doesn’t fray as badly. She washed the bags prior to cutting them apart. (I would suggest pressing a lightweight stabilizer on the wrong side of the bags’ embroidered words.) Kim centered a 2 1/2″ wide ruler over the embroidery and cut pieces approximately 2 1/2″ x 4 1/2.” If you include the gold chain stitching, be advised that it melts when pressed.
Kim purchased “Aurora” 2 1/2″ wide strip packs of batiks from Northern Threads; click here for the link. She cut the strips into various lengths and inserted the Crown Royal embroidered pieces. She had fun sprinkling the embroidery throughout the quilt. As per her request, I added a blue border on this quilt and quilted it freehand with a variegated thread. The backing is fleece with a large pineapple motif. The pineapple reminds Kim’s family of the Christmas they lived in Hawaii and used a pineapple plant as their Christmas tree.
When Kim presented her dad with the quilt top several months ago at his “well aged” party, several other friends and relatives, including her husband, begged her to make one for them. Thus, we have been collaborating on four Crown Royal quilts.