KEFI - the Quilt

Kefi was born during the summer of 2022 in Lynne's New Hampshire quilt studio.  

Kefi is a Greek noun meaning "the spirit of joy, enthusiasm, high spirits in which good times and passion [for life] are expressed with an abundance of excitement, happiness, and fun."

My first blog post for Kefi with the back story of its beginnings is HERE.

Two of the update blog posts with photos and more fabric stories are HERE and HERE.  

(you can find others using the KEFI label at the end of this post)

Kefi's quilt top blog "reveal" post is HERE.

I really don't know why Kefi then moved into my 'waiting to be quilted' closet aside from the fact that I only had 3 yards of the floral backing I planned to use and I wasn't keen on piecing the scrappy panels to border it. 

Based on that decision, in early 2023 I purchased an additional 3 yards of the same backing fabric; but still Kefi continued to wait.

In October 2025, I realized that the leftover piano key border pieces/segments from Young Man's Dragon Fyre quilt would make an excellent insert strip for Kefi's still-unsewn backing.

I guess that was the reason why Kefi hadn't been finished - the back was stalling, waiting for me to figure it out.  (hint - always listen to your quilts!)

And now, Kefi is finished.  This group of crumpled photos was taken at my sewing machine as I added the binding.  I couldn't resist when the morning sun made the scrappiness practically sparkle with joy.

I finally put on my coat and took the quilt outdoors . . . 

[Inspired by Lynne's series of Scrap Slab Triangle quilts.  Quilted with Glide thread in Pink Rose using my free motion unmarked nested spiral fans.  The tossed teacups/flowers border and binding fabric is by Loralei Designs.]

It was 29 degrees (before wind chill) and windy so I didn't spend a lot of time fussing to get the "ideal" shot (I'll try again later in the week when it is warmer and less windy).

Sadly the wind was sucking the lower part of the quilt tight against the fence so it looks bowed.  In reality it lays wonderfully flat.

This is absolutely another quilt I will use and enjoy, revisiting all sorts of memories via its many, many fabrics.

Quiltdivajulie

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"Art is not a handicraft, it is the transmission of feeling the artist has experienced."

Leo Tolstoy

Placemats No More - Introducing Razzle-Dazzle

Back in January, I cut strips from a lot of brights on blacks because my resource box was overflowing (you can read that post HERE).

Nothing had happened with that project so when I started making scrap slabs at Lynne's house, the first thing I thought of was "I can use those already-cut strips of brights on blacks!"

And so, instead of continuing with Kefi's dark green blocks, I took a detour and spent much of Saturday power sewing slabs.  

Totally . . . in . . . love . . . with these.  

I had cut three test triangles early on to be sure - there was NO question that I would keep going.

After making 20 slabs that will yield 3 or 4 triangles each, I realized I needed more strips.

These were cut on Sunday, again from the resource box that had mysteriously re-filled itself plus a few from the almost-gone pieces of yardage.

(the strips at the top are short and will be sewn end-to-end before being cut into lengths like the others, most of which are WOF)

Be still my heart!

I just HAD to cut one more set of triangles so I could consider what I might want to use for the sides.  

I have decided but you'll see those later.  There are a lot more slabs to make and a lot more triangles to cut out - in between working on KEFI's blocks.

 . . . And yes, I really do struggle with ADQD (Attention Deficit Quilting Disorder).  

SO many possibilities!

Quiltdivajulie

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“What an utter disgrace it would be to find something truly magic and spend any time at all pretending and trying to convince yourself it is all just an unbelievably orchestrated illusion.”

Tyler Knott Gregson

Kefi Continues to Grow

Friday was a good day for stitching.

Here are the nine scrap slab triangle blocks in yellow-orange.

(reminder:  the center and side triangles are a combination of pieces cut from the scrap bins at Lynne's house and from my own stash)

One commenter mentioned that I am using a lot of color in my side triangles.  

Yes, I am.  

Initially I was unsure but with the first few rows done, I can see that by trusting my eclectic scrappy nature, Kefi will be full of things to investigate.  

Just this one group of side triangles includes fabrics from some of my gift bags, Millie's winter tent, Lynne's bra and cat scraps, typewriter fabric from eons ago that we both have in our stashes, and a few of Lynne's flying pigs that were part of a many-years-ago story.  

The yellow blocks are also sewn, pressed, and squared.

And so are the yellow-green blocks.  

Of the three photos above, this one has the most accurate color.  All three were taken in the same place under the same lights but at different times of day (meaning the natural light influenced the first two while the third was taken after dark without any natural light from the window).

Oh, yes - I am definitely liking this happy scrappy vibe.

(Reminder: Kefi is being laid out on its side on the design wall)

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You can read previous posts for this project by using the KEFI label at the end of this post.

There is a permanent link in the sidebar for Lynne's Etsy shop and her Scrap Slab Triangles tutorial.

And for those in the USA (or US folks abroad), have a safe and fun Fourth of July weekend.  Our long-weekend's festive menu includes grilled steaks, fried chicken, catfish with hushpuppies, and finally DH's infamous deep dish pizza. What's on your menu?

Quiltdivajulie

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“There is no magic to achievement.  It’s really about hard work, choices, and persistence.”

Michelle Obama