This quilt top was really a drag to quilt. On a doll quilt, I try to get my quilting stitches as small as possible so they fit the scale of the piece, but it’s hard on a top with this many tiny seams. The same thing happened when I originally quilted the Mariner’s Compass doll quilt, and I was so unhappy with that one, I ripped out all the quilting stitches. Fortunately, I wasn’t nearly that disappointed in this one. Because the quilt is so busy, it’s difficult to see the quilting pattern, so I took a photo of the back which shows the design a little better.
Once again I used a piece of cotton flannel for the batting which I’ve decided works very well for doll quilts. The back is a thin vintage muslin from Belfast Mills, and the binding is an antique double-pink. Usually I have to use some new fabric in my quilts (even doll quilts), but this time everything you can see is very old. I really like that.
Cross Variation Doll Quilt
machine pieced, hand quilted
Martha Dellasega Gray, 2010
20″ x 20″
This little quilt turned out fabulous! Isn’t it fun that everything is vintage? You have a brand new..vintage quilt.
Your quilting stitches look tiny to me! 🙂
Well done Martha!
It’s WONDERFUL, Martha! Your stitches look great and also seem tiny to me! It is so fun to look at! Never having seen a miniature quilt come together before, I don’t believe I truly appreciated the amount of detail put into one. It is a VERY special quilt and something to be so proud of!
This is great, Martha – the quilting is gorgeous. I don’t think my eyes would let me quilt that tiny!
Well, it may have been a drag, but it looks great! So much to see in such a tiny quilt!
Truly a wonder. And flannel for batting. I wouldn’t have thought of that, but it makes so much sense.
Love your little quilt, Martha. The quilting design is so beautiful in your tiny stitches!
This is beautiful – love all the different fabrics you used. And your tiny stitches!
So glad you linked to Taryn’s mini quilts party! This one is wonderful! I love it!
Precious little quilt and love that you used vintage fabrics and hand quilted it!
This little quilt has a very vintage look! Love it.
This is a remarkable quilt! Have you tried the flannel on a larger quilt? I have an old piece I was thinking about trying on an old (very old!) top I bought. I want to try to get those tiny stitches you see on the antique quilts but you just cannot do that with today’s batting.