Friday, March 5, 2010

Sweet Button Quilts

Inspired by a photo on Barbara's blog, I made this sweet little quilt. I used lots of reproduction fabrics, all pulled from my scrap piles. The squares were cut 2" x 2" so the final quilt measures ~10 1/2" x 22 1/2". I had a jar of lovely old shell buttons so I stitched them on the darker alternate squares to quilt this. Look closely and you'll see a tiny shell I found in California stitched to the center of one square....

I liked it so much (and had cut so many squares) that I made another of these for our guild's upcoming mini-quilt auction. Then I made a slightly larger one for my Mom.

This project was well underway when I noticed how similar it is to a sweet little quilt Linda Brannock gave me a few years ago. Those squares are slightly larger than mine and the quilter tied this one in every square to quilt it. It measures about 12" x 14". And look at the back!




9 comments:

  1. I love your button quilt, I am sitting by a big bowl of old shell buttons, maybe I need to do something with them!

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  2. Oh goodness! Those are wonderful. I will have to stitch one. It is amazing how simple things can be so enjoyable. Karmen

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  3. Just beautiful,really love it too! Saw a quilt along the same line as this at a quilt show in St Charles, MO.several years ago. It was very very old, had that wrinkly, well loved, well washed look. It was cradle size and I could just see it lovingly covering some cuddly little baby sleeping in an old handmade cradle.

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  4. I love your little button quilt! The one small shell makes it even more charming.

    I was just sewing buttons to a wool applique quilt last night, and realizing I have hundreds of small white buttons from all the thrift store shirts I've cut up. What a great idea to use them for quilting ties!

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  5. oh this little quilt is adorable, do you mind if I make one for my wall of little quilts I am working on?
    love the odd button, a shell! I love finding surprises on quilts, what a great backing fabric, I am now on a mission to collect fun backings
    thanks for sharing this one with us.
    some of the little quilts I made these past few months I made two one to donate as well.
    Kathie

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  6. Buy fabrics as shirts at the thrift market, and you too can have lots of buttons. FUN quilts! Thanks.
    Also maybe an idea on how I can use the beach glass, I picked up in the San Juan Islands in January.

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  7. So fun, love the little squares and buttons! Inspiring!

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  8. Kathie, definitely make one of these for your wall o quilts. what a fun concept. but beware, making these is addictive, it is hard to stop at just one.....

    Buffy - we should compare button collections. I have MANY and still save the buttons from every thrift shop shirt.....

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