Vintage Spin is a November Finish

 Earlier this week I finally put the finishing stitches in my version of Kathy Doughty's Vintage Spin (from her book Adding Layers).

I've been waiting for a less dreary rainy day to grab a few photographs, but yesterday finally gave up on that idea and just went for it.  Wet grass, winds gusting to near 35 mph and 40 degree temps and all.  But this morning it's only 32 degrees, and still mostly cloudy so maybe Thanksgiving was the better day after all. 

I hand quilted this one with a light lavender 12 weight Aurifil thread, first outlining each of the black circles and then along the edges of all the light colored wedges.  After taking off the hoop the circles puffed out a lot more than they should have, especially on the back, so after putting the binding on I went back and quilted smaller quarter coin size circles in the middle of each black one, effectively turning them into donut holes as you can see from these photos of the back.

The batting is heirloom wool, which I love for hand quilting and for the softness and light weight of the finished quilt.  This time I had to piece every square of leftover pieces to have (barely) enough to cover the backing.  

The outdoor photos were taken before washing the quilt.  Here it is after the delicate cold wash cycle, and a spin through the dryer on a low setting.  It was still slightly damp from the dryer so it is now resting on the guest bed to finish drying.  After quilting and washing it now measures 76 x 62.5 inches. 

To be honest, when I finished putting the top together I wasn't particularly fond of this quilt, but now after seeing it all soft and puffy in all its finished glory, I've fallen in love with it.  This one may just become our favorite knock-about quilt, and the grands will love snuggling under it on the couch when they visit again.  

I'll try to post an update on my progress with Bramble Blooms I sometime next week.  In the meantime, enjoy all those Thanksgiving leftovers - I know we will!