Anne's Pickle Dish

Yesterday, I wrote about my favorite quilt as part of the Sew Mama Sew series that has been running all month long.  I'm so sorry I didn't get the memo sooner, so we are squeezing in right under the wire here!  As I was writing my post, I couldn't help but think of my friend's Pickle Dish.  Anne Reinhart is the dear friend who makes her way into so many of my posts.  I've been able to show many of her quilts here, as she has donated them for auction.  But this Pickle Dish deserves a post all its own!  I love it so much and really think it demands being shared with and appreciated by as many as possible.  Since she doesn't have her own blog, I've invited her to share about her "favorite quilt" by completing the Sew Mama Sew interview.  
 

Q: Tell us about your favorite quilt.  When did you make it?  What pattern did you use?  What fabrics?

Truth be told, every time I finish a quilt, I think "THIS ONE is my favorite EVER." But when I finished my Denyse Schmidt pickle dish last month after a pregnancy-mandated quilting hiatus, I knew it wasn't just my favorite, but that it would be a hard one to top.  I started it last fall after seeing so many beautiful examples pop up online.  I debated for some time between using Sarah Fielke's pattern in Material Obsession 2 or Kaffe Fassett's pattern in Quilt Romance.  It was a little like choosing between two evils as both required me to venture outside of my quilting comfort zone!  I ended up choosing Kaffe Fassett's pattern as my starting point since I enjoy paper-piecing.  The fabric choice, however, was never in question.  I have an outlandish supply of Denyse Schmidt prints, and I figured that if I was going to tackle the pickle dish, I might as well go all out and cut into all of those lovely prints that I have been stockpiling!

Q: What memories or people does the quilt make you think of?

This one definitely makes me think of my little guy, Matthew.  I started it unaware that he was on his way and finished the quilting with him tucked in the Baby Bjorn.  And, well, I'll go ahead and blame him for being the hold-up on finishing the binding... he and I have been too busy snuggling for me to do my hand-stitching!

Q: What do you like best about the quilt?

I just love those gorgeous fabrics all playing together so nicely.  I'm not sure I came close to making a dent in my Denyse Schmidt stash, but I love seeing so many different prints from her different lines.  The only fabric that isn't hers is the black and white polka dots.

Q: How did you grow as a quilter while making it?

This quilt was definitely a challenge for me... not so much in execution, but in overcoming my fear of curved piecing and my dislike for templates.  Two new skills in one quilt... what was I thinking?!  Thankfully, I discovered that cutting out all of those center "eyes" with a template was manageable and that curved piecing isn't so bad... although it requires a lot of pinning!  So I survived the process, and amazingly, when all was finished and I unfurled it to show off to my husband, I found myself telling him how much I really want to make another one!

Q: If you could make this quilt again, what (if anything) would you do differently?

I would absolutely make it bigger.  When I started it, the projects seemed so daunting I was worried that if I increased the size, it would end up in my UFO pile.  It was such a relief when I finished the paper-piecing, and then the block assembly, that I convinced myself that it was big enough just the way it was.  In hindsight, one more row would have really made it perfect.

Q: Where is the quilt now?

I'm a quilt-stacker.  What can I say, I love the look of a stack of quilts!  In the weeks since finishing up my Pickle Dish, my husband retired from the Army, we moved most of our belongings into storage, and moved temporarily to the beach.  But no worries, I smuggled most of my quilts to our new locale and have happily stacked them here with us.  Although... this stack is a little bit "to-do" (confession: I have five quilts with bindings to finish!) and a little bit "where-am-I-going-to-put-all-of-these-in-this-tiny-house?!"!


Really... isn't Anne GREAT?!  And don't you think she needs her own blog?  Please join with me by protesting her lack of a blog in the comments section.  All the quilts in the pretty stack need their own airtime.  Want to see the ones I've already blogged?  Surf around by clicking the list below.  And enjoy!

Dolce Quilt
Little Stripes
Mark's Quilt
Classic Rail Fence Quilt