On a Picnic at the Fairgrounds over the Hill with Katie and Aunt Grace

There is nothing that pulls me more than the changing of the seasons.  I could never imagine living in a climate that was not temperate.  My current sewing projects have been largely influenced by the seasons, as I consider this to be my first “sewing year”.  My original goal was to have made at least four sets of cloth napkins that we would change with each solstice or equinox.  Ever the overachiever, I now find myself also making a quilt in time for each change as well.

My spring quilt and napkins, pictured below, were from Denyse Schmidt‘s Hope Valley line.  I sleep under the quilt every night and I love the acid colors.

For summer, I pulled from a few of Ms. Schmidt’s collections, but primarily her newest line that was released under the DS Quilts label at JoAnn Fabrics.  The fabrics are amazing; I love the retro-style and they feel quite nice, with a lovely hand.  My napkins are still in progress, but here are a few pictures of our new picnic quilt.  If you are a huge DS fan, you know that the title of this post is the clue to the lines that I used.  For those who aren’t so familiar, I used Picnic and Fairgrounds from the DS Quilts line, Greenfield Hill, Katie Jump Rope, and a few prints by another 1930s reproduction line called Aunt Grace.

I love these fabrics for summer.  I love the nod to, “red, white, and blue” without being overly patriotic and literal.  The green is *just* the right shade, a bring summer green.  I just ripped strips of fabric and sewed them together to make wonky log-cabin and court-house step type blocks.The quilt is made of 25 12″ finished blocks, with a 6″ sashing all around (finished it is 72″ square).  The back is just large pieces of DS fabrics that I had left over.

I think this quilt will get tremendous use over the summer and beyond.  I love the idea of taking so many hours to make something by hand that is MEANT to be used and abused.  I am sure that it will get stained by grass, strawberries, chocolate, and wine.  That is my most ardent wish, in fact, because that would mean we are living in the moment and being carefree.

Make something beautiful and use it every chance you get.  Don’t let it sit there unused waiting for the perfect moment, because every moment IS perfect.