AIW Quilt

I started the quilt.

I had hoped a friend of the family would help me make some verses on squares to place stratigically next to the characters who say them. The deal was, they were to be embroidered. I cannot embroider tho. Duh! My family friend has an embroidery sewing machine.

Anyway. She is gone on vacation and what I had in mind would cost around twenty bucks or more per square if I have it done professionally. I cannot afford that cost and she cannot afford the time to help me. C'est la vie.

So. I was standing inside a quilting store today called the Quilter's Cocoon and the very nice owner asked if I was looking for anything specific or could he help me find something. I told him, "I've lost my inspiration".

Then after explaining what had happened with the non-existant embroidered verses, he shows me the most magnificent product called Printed Treasures. It turns out you can use your computer printer to add lettering, photos, whatever!!! to these 8 1/2 by 11 inch sheets of fabric paper that go directly into your printer! And it was only $17.95 for a packet of five! I could actually cut them in half and sew a border around them. WOW.

Therefore....

'The time has come', the Walrus said, 'To talk of many things:

Of shoes- and ships- and sealing wax-

Of cabbages - and kings-

And why the sea is boiling hot-

And whether pigs have wings.'

Alice in Wonderland - new project

My niece T is turning forty in July and I love her heaps. She's my favorite and she knows it. She is really freaking out about being forty, I don't know why. You're only as old as you feel. And she looks pretty damn good for entering the summer of her life.

Her favorite book of all time is Alice in Wonderland. Or is it her favorite animated movie? Or movie? I don't know. I do know she is gaga over Alice.

I quilt. It is a hobby. I am ambitious and creative even if I am not an expert quilter. I am going to make her an Alice in Wonderland quilt for her birthday.

I have had a design in mind for twenty years. I had intended to make one for myself. Alice is not really my thing, altho I love the book and the illustrations. I am more a Wizard of Oz junkie than an Alice devotee.

So. I've been searching for tea cup or teapot fabrics for the backing. In doing so, I have hit upon blocks that could be made into tea cups or pots and a lot of very nice blogs about teapots and quilting.

My plan for the front is.... Alice in an oval in the center. The seven unequal size blocks around the oval will be devoted to the characters:

Mad Hatter,

White Rabbit,

Caterpiller,

Cheshire Cat,

Walrus,

Tweedle Dee and Twiddle Dum,

Queen of Hearts.

The borders are going to be hearts, diamonds, clubs and spades. The frames for the blocks will either be embroidered lines from the book or the card suits. If that is the case, the borders will be changed to trees with white roses being painted red.

I also want to work in the pig baby somehow or Alice with Dinah her cat.

I have until July to get this project finished. It took twenty years to plan it. Can I make it in two short months? We'll see