Kelly and Pam's Pastel Delight

Today brings a strong whollop of grief, as my beloved cousin Kelly died a year ago - on her mother's birthday - and the third of Pamela's children to leave this life ahead of her.  My aunt is traveling with friends in East Europe, in the hopes that being far away and in the company of good friends, she will be better able to face the day.


I've been going through the quilts in my closet, finding ways to place them out in the house where they'll be seen every day and loved. Most of them are gifts commemorating important days in my life and my children's. One of them is perfect for talking about today.

Kelly loved to sew - all kinds of sewing - and she did a lot of quilting in her short time here. She also loved to give, so making quilts for people for whatever reason she could come up with was a double joy to her. One day years ago, somewhere around 1991, I got a call from Kelly telling me a box was in the mail for me because she'd wanted to make me a quilt. Wow, how cool was that?!  :D   


I was enchanted when it arrived - a queen size lovely confection of pastel sponge-paint prints with wonderful hand quilting in pastel threads. I've used it on our bed a few times through the years, but not too much since we had young children and also cats, and didn't want it to be destroyed (all that white makes me nervous sometimes in regards to keeping a quilt out on a bed constantly).  

Kelly pieced a lovely top using a star block with LeMoyne centers that created a very nice secondary pattern when they were assembled without sashing. I love the sponge-paint fabrics, as they are very typical of fads during the late 80's - early 90's. They're just a little different from today's marbles and washes. 

Between the stars, Kelly alternated quilting motifs in the white squares. She even used different colors of pastel threads for additional subtle interest. There are green crosshatches, yellow tulips, and pink hearts. White ditchwork secures the LeMoynes and other elements. 
















I added a label a few weeks ago so that the quilt's crafters and story would be remembered. I decided to name it Kelly and Pam's Pastel Delight.

The really special thing about sharing this quilt today is that I remember Kelly telling me her mother, my dear aunt Pamela, worked on the quilting with her. And so, it is poignantly apropos to share this quilt with you today that these two special ladies in my family made for me. 


Kelly, I miss you. Pamela, I love you and lift you up in empathy. May you find some ice cream to eat in Kelly's name out there in East Europe!  ;D


Pamela's sister (another terrific aunt) wrote a wonderful tribute this morning that is special to me: "Dear Pamela and Kelly."

Wheee!! Time for some fancy Boots and some dancing!! :D)

I feel like a kid!  Such weight is lifted today, with no more coursework for me until Fall!!!


I can blog again without fretting about the time it steals from history writing! I can SEW again for longer than 15 stolen moments!  


First up is to bind the three Alabama tornado quilts and whip up little totes to go with them.  Then I can stitch down the ONE side of binding left on Charming Love (which is probably going to be re-christened as Romancing the Rose - gotta make up my mind quickly, because I'm printing labels tonight)!  I have never had a quilt so close to being completely finished sit there at that stage for so long. It's been driving me NUTS!!

But for today's post, I just had to share the most fantabulous give-away item that I was so incredibly lucky to win at Em's LOOT IN THE BOOT bonanza. It's a finished quilt!! It arrived on Tuesday and has made me smile every so often when I'd look up from the books and the keyboard. 

It has the funnest back with delightful saddles, hats, and lassos coupled with a very pretty pink horseshoe fabric. (Check her blog out - she always has the funnest things going on.)

We call it "Em's Boots" and it is already loved. 

Doesn't it look nice on the sofa? I just adore everything about it. The fun, but calming colors, the metallic gold highlights on the prints, the wonky stars and patches that I've GOT to try myself, the stars and loops in the quilting. . . Devon likes to cuddle in it while watching a show. Marco . . . well, being Marco, he likes to talk to it.  Yep. He sits there on the sofa and talks to it. I really do wish I knew what the heck that cat keeps saying to that quilt!