Squirrel or Opportunity?

Just two weeks ago I set out my meager list of goals for the year, suspecting knowing full well that major disruptions to that little list would upend those goals, at least temporarily.  But really, just two weeks from that time?  And two projects, both with short deadlines?   Some would called these squirrels.  Not flattering, but that's the way we think of them, right?  Well, on my 17 in 2017 worksheet the first project was added to the original goals list since it involves a quilt-loving granddaughter.  I'll blog about that in a few days. But, rather than add the second to a list of personal goals, I flipped the sheet over and labeled it Opportunity Quilts.  Truly, this one had to be considered an opportunity.

The Sunday following Christmas we learned of a young family who had barely escaped from the second floor of their burning home in the middle of the night.  This occurred a couple days after Christmas.  Their pets and all their possessions were lost in the blaze.  The family includes a preschool boy and a toddler girl.  Our quilt ministry jumped into action, and donated blankets, fleece afghans, and are making quilts for each of the children.   Here is the one I just completed for the toddler girl.

Machine pieced using one of my favorite patterns for kids quilts, the blocks are 4-1/2 inch squares with 1-1/2 inch sashings.  I love the slightly wonky effect of alternating the direction and color of the sashing strips.

A closer look

The block fabrics came from my scrap totes, and the the sweet circus parade borders and most of the backing fabrics are part of an extremely generous fabric donation recently received by our group from an anonymous angel.  A pieced back, simple ditch quilting around the blocks, with free motion meandering loops and circles in the outer border completed the quilt.  Finished size is approximately 58x64 inches.

Closeup of the back

It's good to know this little quilt will soon be in its new home and hopefully will provide lots of warmth and cuddles for a sweet little girl.  An opportunity I'm glad came my way.

Now I'm hoping to make some progress on cutting a few of those tiny baskets for my 'lifetime' quilt tomorrow. And, if all goes well, get a backing pieced for the large basket quilt that has been hanging patiently in the closet awaiting its turn for quilting.   That would be this one:

The hoop has been empty far too long!