Blue Ridge Beauty Busts 19.5 Yards

This quilt project has been in the works for over a year. I would run a few pieces through the machine as I felt like it, until it picked up momentum. Finally, it reached the time to sew the blocks together into rows. (there is the momentum!)

And there were so many blocks. I think I counted 224 total. That makes a total of 2,688 pieces. (12 pieces/block X 224 blocks) I love quilts that have many, many pieces, don't you? For more ideas with quilts using many small pieces, check out Bonnie Hunter's books and website at quiltville.com.


So, it is no wonder it grew to be so large! And the borders contributed even more to its size, but I trimmed them down to be slightly narrower than Bonnie's pattern called for. This picture shows how it won't even fit on my design wall.


Once the ordered backing arrived it went off to my long arm quilter. She does such nice work and I am always happy (and anxious) to get it back quilted and ready for binding. 

I really like the quilted design chosen for this quilt. It filled the entire area with lots and lots of swirls. 

The finished size measures 97" x 108" and it fits a queen size bed beautifully. It is quite heavy too. I used Quilter's Dream 70/30 cotton batting. 

If I ever make another quilt this large, I think I will try the new bamboo quilt batting. I've heard it is lighter and would work well for large project. Do you have experience using this recycled material in your quilts?

This Blue Ridge Beauty if ready for covering our bed now for warm and toasty comfort and sweet dreams. I am so happy to report its finish!