The dog ate my quilt...

Late one night last week I got a phone call from Keith, who was in London, to say India had texted him with this message; "Alfie accidentally chewed a hole in your quilt. What should I do? Mummy is going to be so mad."



When I saw what he had done I was mad and sad. I made this quilt when I was deep in the quilting phase of my sewing life. Before kids - should probably have been out doing something more exciting, but oh well! It represents hours of work and now there is a big hole slap bang in the middle of it.

However, if I'm honest, I've never really loved this quilt. The dark green print was brought back for me from the USA by my parents (long before we moved to live there) and I do love that fabric, but the large scale floral print that was all I could find in the local fabric store to pair with it never really did it for me.


Apparently Alfie didn't like that print either as that was what he chose to remove from the design.
For most of it's life this quilt has been folded up in a closet, because although I was pleased with how it turned out technically it never really reflected my style. By modern quilting standards it certainly looks dated. It was only on the bed because Alfie had chewed the corner off a different quilt we had there. Which now means he has bitten a chunk out of all four quilts currently on a bed in the house. So, if you're a quilter reading this I'd love your advice on how I should go about repairing the quilt and if you're a dog whisperer - advice please on how to stop our almost five year old dog chewing his (and my) bedding!


"Sorry I accidentally chewed your quilt!"
When I first saw the damage to the quilt I was, I'll admit unreasonably upset. I'm tired and lonely when Keith's travelling and something like this brings out the, "It wouldn't have happened if we hadn't moved!" reflex more usually yelled voiced by the girls than me. To make myself feel better, I dropped all plans for making a dent in the housework while Florence napped and decided to seek solace in some new sewing. Just one hour (I set the timer) to create something new, or at least make a start. I got out some fabric I'd pre-washed before we left California, pressed it and started putting together a Little Luxuries blanket for Georgia - the second of five I thought I would have completed before we moved - hah!


After an hour the fabric was cut and basted, I'd prepped the bias binding and I felt much better. So much so, in fact, that I realised this is what I need to try and do every day. One hour to do what I can rather than being overwhelmed by not knowing where to start on the many, many projects I have stashed in my sewing room and my mind. Another hour the next day and the voile bias binding was made and attached. Another leisurely evening hand finishing with a movie and my husband (returned from his travels by this point) and it was finished. Something I had been putting off for six months. Done!


I like this simple little blanket so much more than the old quilt. Even though it's super floral, the colours are modern and the fabric feels so soft - but hopefully not good enough to eat! You can't help but feel happy when you're working with Anna Maria Horner's fabrics - stunning in every way. When I've got through the 101 other projects I have planned (one hour at a time!) I'd love to make this quilt for our bed. Basically just a giant version of the Little Luxuries blankets that we all love so much.

Three down, three more to go...
Does crafting cheer you up when you're down? How do you find the time to do the things you love?