Quilting for Kenya

I finished my lap blanket/quilt. It took a bit longer than I was planning but it is done! It took longer because I didn't have enough of my desired fabric and had to try different colour combinations with fabrics I had on hand.

I have a lot of fabric in my stash but not quite enough of the colours I need.  Originally I was going to use only the turquoise and gold colours predominantly but didn't have quite enough of the gold toned fabrics.  Despite that,  I am pleased with how it turned out. The black now becomes the high contrast colour.

I've laid the quilt on the floor to get a good look at it. The fabrics are all pre-washed cotton.  The turquoise binding around the edges is made of batik  which is machine stitched to the top and hand stitched to the bottom. All fabrics are new, not recycled.  The batting inside the quilt is needled cotton batting by Warm & Natural.

This is the backside made of muslin. It is machine quilted to secure the top to the back.

Folded in half it sits nicely on the ottoman.

Stretched full length, the blanket is long enough to cover my torso and legs.

I was in a hurry to post it (so I can go to sleep) that I didn't take time to brush off all the stray threads and fuzz but that will be done soon, as will the pressing.

I'm not sure whether I will gift this little blanket or try to sell it.  I'm hoping to make more quilts for sale to raise funds for the mission field in Kenya.  Once I use up my yardage, I'm also hoping to buy some quilting pre-cuts. It will help to streamline some of the decisions about colour and appropriate yardage.

Let me know if you are interested in this little blanket and and I can send the details as to size.

Trip to the South On Chuckanut Drive

I mentioned a few days ago that I had taken my first trip south of the border in many years.  I've been wanting get away from the usual spots and see some "new-to-me" scenery. but I did not want to go too far.

I thought if I went south I would have some good scenic views of the ocean to share with you.  I chose, Whidbey Island off Washington State's west coast.  I'd never been to Whidbey Island before but read on line that it wouldn't take more than 1.5- 2 hours to get there not counting potential delays at the border. I packed an overnight bag just in case I decided to spend the night.

Here is a map to show you that we are heading south on Highway 99 through Richmond, Surrey and White Rock in British Columbia,  just before reaching the Peace Arch Border Crossing (north side of Blaine, Washington).  From Blaine we will be on Highway 5, known in the USA as I-5 (Interstate 5) which takes you all the way to California. The highway is 1381 miles (2222 kilometres long).

As we get near the border, this is what we see.  The Nexus lane is for people who travel frequently to the USA.  You must apply to become a Nexus card holder and get quicker processing times at the border crossings.

The line up at the border looks deceptively short. Once you pass by the buildings in the far left, you will come across the scene in the next photo.

 

This is the Peace Arch Border Crossing into Washington State. There is a lovely park area here. I wonder how many people actually use it. 

Online, I read that the Chuckanut Drive route (Highway 11 on the map below) was a scenic route so that is the route we decided to take.  All the photos below are taken along Chuckanut Drive.  There were few places to stop to take photos but I managed to get some good drive bys.  We did stop but once or twice also.  There are many places where one could turn westward and go on hiking trails but that was not on the agenda for the day.

Click the photos to enlarge.

 

 

Come back soon for more photos from Washington State.

I'm linking up with Our World Tuesday this week.