Sweet 16ing a Vintage Quilt Top

You remember Pete and Katie don't you?

My nephew Pete asked me to make this for his girlfriend Katie a few years ago.

Now who wouldn't say "Yes" to a guy like that when he asked her to marry him a little while later?

Their wedding is in a few days...and it has been the perfect opportunity for me to not only make them a quilt, but also to try some experiments with my Sweet 16.

I have been saving a vintage quilt top for just the right occasion, and this was it.  I wanted to keep it true to its 1930's to 1940's time frame, but also really personalize it for Pete and Katie.  So this is what I did....

 I decided to try to quilt their names into the top, and began to lay them out.

Then I thought, why not make the letters raised up a bit, like in trapunto?

So I bought some craft fleece and cut out my letters.

 

I used some Sulky KK 2000 Temporary Spray Adhesive to stick them to the back of the quilt top.

Then I pin basted the top into a sandwich, with Quilters' Dream Cotton Batting (which I REALLY liked) in the middle and a piece of wide muslin for the backing.  In the picture you can see the Sweet 16 just waiting!

I outlined the letters in red thread, and then meander-quilted all around them, continuing on to quilt the entire surface.  I hoped the letters would be subtle but still easy to read.  (And by the way, doesn't everyone quilt while chatting on their phone?)

Well, they didn't show up quite enough.  So then I got drastically creative.

 

As you can see, the "and" here is ok but just a bit too faint.

Better, don't you think?  I do.

It's faux stitching!

I think of them as "Sharpie Stitches".

I did test this ink out thoroughly to make sure it was water fast, and it almost is...it bled a little.  But not enough for me to care.

I wasn't willing to do actual blanket stitching on the machine because I didn't want to squish the letters, and wasn't sure I could pull it off technically anyways.

I admit, I do feel just a little smug about this, and think it is pretty funny.

To carry on with the theme of fake blanket stitching, I quilted a "blanket stitch" into the border.

Here are their names from the back....

 

...and here is the finished quilt from the front.

The quilt is still vintage looking but there is this very personalized twist to it, which I enjoy a lot.

I hope they do too.  And may they have a long and happy life together!