Meadow Lake Promise

It's snowing right now. Just think about that for a second, all you people posting photos of your magnolia trees in bloom.  My daughter thinks tulips and daffodils come up through the snow by way of the fake flower section at Michael's. Trowel? Please, gardening is all about the wire cutters over here.

Like many New Englanders, my mind is never far from the season I have been robbed of, so it's flowers, flowers, flowers up in the sewing room. The first finish of Spring 2015 is my Lizzie House Meadow Quilt. The original version looks like this:

By LH, at Gather Here where I took the class. Check here if you want to take it too!

I wanted to try it with solids, and I actually cut a bunch out before throwing them in the corner last September. So it was very rewarding to finish piecing my top at Quilt Camp last week - nothing motivates me like a gym full of quilters who stand and clap whenever I finish something.  I managed to keep the momentum going at home and quilted Japanese water all over it - this seems to be my go-to free motion pattern, the only one I can do without messing it up. So now it's a Meadow Lake Quilt.

This is an auction item for the Mass Promise Fellowship, a local organization that places AmeriCorps Fellows with non-profit organizations and state/local government agencies to focus on meeting the needs of our youth. I like how concrete they are in defining the "needs of our youth": every kid needs a caring adult, a safe place, a healthy start, a marketable skill, and an opportunity to give back. Seems more manageable when you break it down like that, right? If you can get behind that, feel free to donate here, or come to Pass the Wagon with me!

With Snowy Wind Effect

When I worked with the juvenile defenders our Mass Promise Fellows were a really important link to the community, helping our clients find jobs and volunteer opportunities and reaching out to local organizations so they could use our services too. This year's party is especially meaningful to me since one of our old Fellows is the program manager at MPF now and another is being honored with the Red Wagon Award. Yay Katie! Yay Eli! I like an organization that recognizes and rewards the people who embody their message. All proceeds from the auction go to youth worker training and a living wage stipend for the 40 Fellows.

But back to my pretty, pretty quilt. It's perfectly designed for the seasonal transition - just right for snuggling up under as you watch another episode of Broad City, waiting for those two days of New England Spring that should arrive any month now AND the right size and color for a picnic blanket (nothing hides those ketchup stains like Nightfall Blue) should the weather ever choose to cooperate.

I'm happy with how it came out, and even happier with where it's going!