It’s not the Kentucky Derby…but a UFQ is C-O-M-P-L-E-T-E!!!!!! My French Roses quilt, UFQ #3, first blogged about last July received the final touches in the last few weeks.

It was started in 2005, for the baby of a friend…who is obviously no longer a baby, and received an entirely different baby gift. And, I certainly won NO race in completing this quilt…but it’s done now! My eldest niece will be delivering her first child, a baby girl, sometime this week. This quilt will go to this newest addition to our family. And I couldn’t be more pleased. Even though it does make a (gulp!) great-aunt. And my big brother, a GRANDPA!

These flowers are all done with raw-edge applique, then quilted in a loose, mirrored flower shape around each layer. This is the quilt I finally mastered free-motion quilting on…a VERY small meander on the white areas in the center of the quilt, and a larger meander pattern in the white border.

Terri asked me if I knew when it just “clicked” for me, I really can’t say I do, other than having your machine in 100% working order is essential to successful free-motion quilting. Finding the right mix of hand speed and foot pedal speed is also very important! I still have a lot of practicing to do to get really good at it, but by the end of this quilt I had greatly improved already!

I love how soft it is and crinkly looking after being washed up!

The backing is a soft “lilac-y” pink, with little Peter Rabbits all over it, a Beatrix Potter fabric that I found on the clearance rack of a local quilt shop. My niece is more of a purple fan than she is a pink-girl, so I really liked the purple cast to this color.

And finally, the label…this will be boxed up and sent to our new addition this week.