June's Quilt

I FINALLY FINISHED June's quilt. I pieced all the blocks and rows together in Portland, OR on the 18th of May. I missed most of Quilt Market because of my poor planning. Thank God I brought my sewing machine - definitely used it for the good. I actually had to redo the rows because in my haste to get it done, I was not careful and allowed the quilt to hang off the sewing table which caused the rows to get progressively uneven. Anyhow, another blessing was that Sarah was there and she explained what went wrong and after I unsewed it, repinned it, and began again; she held the bulky quilt up while I resewed the rows.

I have learned a ton with this quilt. So, after getting the binding on, I planned to handsew it on the drive through Washington, Montana and North Dakota. Unfortunately, I succumbed to problem of dizziness while trying to focus on such small stitches (my hand quilting is not so small) so I put it aside until we arrived in Minnesota on the 2oth. I then hand bound the quilt over the next four nights and on Saturday morning, I sewed the label on. I had it gift wrapped (another story) and put it on June's entertainment center for the party on Sunday.

McDonell Family Reunion - May 25, 2008

Grandchildren and Jim & June

McDonell Family Reunion - May 25, 2008
The entire clan

June looking at her quilt.

This was the only picture I was able to take because I ended up crying like a baby! I never realized how much of my life was in that quilt. Almost my entire Alaskan experience and for some of you, you know how that has been. I meant to get out the quilt later to photograph it but between all the family obligations and the bad weather, next thing I knew, it was time to hit the road for Fort Knox, KY. I will definitely photograph it on my next trip.

For now, here's some shots from Portland.