I
have wanted to make a denim quilt for a long, long time. A few years
back, I started saving any worn out jeans we went through, but let's
face it, little boy's jeans with tears in the knees don't lend
themselves well to making quilts. The quilt would have to wait.
Then last month, everything changed.
We
spent a Saturday morning at the I-127 yard sale, the longest yard sale
in the United States (and, I assume, the world, because who else does
yard sales?). We came across a woman who was selling clothes by the bag .
. . as much clothing as you could fit into a large bag for $5.00, and
she had oodles of VERY large jeans. Stayc shoved more jeans in that bag
than I would have believed possible, and a quilt was born.
I
looked online for denim quilt ideas and, since I've never actually made
a quilt, tutorials. There are tons of versions of denim quilts out
there, let me tell you. I finally settled on
this general design,
which fit with my neat and orderly sensibilities, although I didn't
bind it the same way, nor did I quilt the top of it. Is it actually a
quilt if you don't stitch the top of it? I'm not sure.
I
backed it with a lovely medium blue flannel sheet that I purchased from
jcpenny.com's clearance section for just $12.00 (for the whole set!).
In fact, their flannel sheets got such rave reviews online that I
purchased a king set for our bed, and later, another twin set for
ANOTHER denim quilt. I am extremely pleased with the sheets. They are
very high quality for a fantastic price. JC Penny is once again on my
radar.
I
am tremendously pleased with the result, which of course, was a
birthday present for my little boy, who loves the feel of a HEAVY
blanket. It's a little warm for these late summer days, but it will be
perfect when Fall really hits. And as you can see, the shark pillow that
Lutece made goes with it perfectly . . . almost as if the shark were
swimming in the ocean (which, of course, is the effect we were going
for).
After
making Phoenix's quilt, I looked at my pile of leftover denim and
thought, "I'll bet there is enough to make a second quilt." I laid
everything out, and sure enough, there was ample denim, so I got to
sewing. My denim selection was a bit more limited this time around, and I
wanted to try something different, so I chose a more random design,
which I still like very much. (The picture is somewhat misleading as the
lighter patches of denim don't stand out quite so much in the real
quilt.)
I
backed it with a more wintery flannel sheet so that Lutece can use the
leftover fitted sheet and pillowcase on her bed come Fall/Winter (the
red matches her room . . . and also by this time, the selection was also
limited on jcpenny.com :).
Look
at that awesome heavy denim quilt, sitting in the family room, just
waiting to be wrapped up in. Do you have a preference? Which quilt do
you like better? Or do you think both of them are tacky and uncouth?
(Tasteless heathens.)
