Old Books - a New Quilt Begins

Audrey's recent post (CLICK HERE) sent me scurrying to the stash.

In 2004, when I was a very new quilt maker, I made a quilt named Decadent Dreaming for our chocolate-loving oldest son and his also-a-chocolate-loving fiancé (gifted Christmas 2005).

The remains from a few of those gorgeous browns are still in my stash, and when I saw Audrey's Folksy Baskets quilt top I knew exactly what I wanted/needed to do -- use them to create another "two-color" Macnas-inspired quilt.  

But what to name this project?  When I asked DH and YS, they suggested Chocolate Cream (as in pie) and Waffle Cone (as in ice cream).  Hmmmm . . . good but not quite the vibe I was feeling.

(photos above are from unknown online sources)

That evening I went to put something on my art table and noticed  a pile of vintage books waiting to be put away . . . .  and the quilt-to-be instantly named itself.

OLD BOOKS (updated to VELLICHOR - "the strange romance evoked by the scent of old books and paper."

No time table for Vellichor beyond getting the strips cut and the stacks of yardage and scraps off my cutting table so I can pin baste Spoondrift.  In the meantime, I am going to re-read this book.  I loved it the first time so I'm looking forward to another visit.

Quiltdivajulie

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"The principle of true art is not to portray, but to evoke."

Jerzy Kosinski

Almost Nine Years Years Later

In mid-2004, I was a very new quilter.

I'd taken a couple of classes locally and

Catherine's "Fun With Triangles" week-long course

at John C. Campbell Folk School.

I was still stitching with my mother's old Singer

in a corner of our bonus room.

And I realized I could make a special quilt

as a Christmas gift for

our older son and his fiancé.

Actually, he proposed and she accepted

within the same December week

as our gifting of Decadent Dreaming.

* * *

I've posted about the quilt before.

The full backstory was shared here.

(on my Contemplate Then Wait blog)

Last week, the quilt came to visit our house for two reasons:

1.  Back when DD was created,

I was very new at taking digital photos and

hadn't yet discovered the joy of my "photo shoots"

[all photos will supersize for greater detail]

and

2.  Our washer and dryer can handle a generous king quilt.

Here's a closeup of the back . . .

Decadent Dreaming was quilted by Bonnie Hunter ~

back before she started traveling / teaching full time.

I'm still thrilled at my accomplishments that summer and fall,

and I enjoyed re-visiting DD's stories-beneath-the-surface.

Decadent Dreaming is safely home again with DS and DDIL ~

softer, more crinkled, and far less formal-feeling than when it arrived.

It was good to visit with an old friend.

Quiltdivajulie

Reflection II

This is another quilt from Christmas 2005 ~ Decadent Dreaming ~ made for our oldest son and his fiance (now our dear daughter-in-law). Since EVERYTHING in life goes better with chocolate, I chose a controlled scrappy dark chocolate/white chocolate approach...

The oversize king quilt was quilted by Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville ~ Decadent Dreaming earned a ribbon at the 2006 Mid-South Fair in the bed quilt category. Here it is shown hanging over the fence in our back yard, shortly before it was gifted.

And then, there is the back... Bonnie did not deliberately plan for the two-color thread design to work out this way, but it did and the resulting look on the "black forest" back thrilled us all.

The sun is out again today and the leaves continue to rain down through the slanted shafts of autumn sunlight. The effect is spectacular ~ I surely did NOT want to come back to the office after my lunch hour!

Quiltdivajulie