Wonderlust II Cushion

Every time I have walked into my sewing room since I made the Wonderlust I cushion (and that's every day, multiple times a day), I have seen Wonderlust II looking at me, waiting patiently. She started tapping her foot this past week at me, and so before I start my mini-love project for Island Batik, I thought I need to finish her. She wants to be by her big sister, hmm, or rather, her slightly older twin.

Bella was fine with me not finishing her; this is what I walked in on the other day:

She thought it the perfect size for her fine furry form; I thought otherwise and unceremoniously, in her not-so-humble opinion, placed her on her own cushion, which she promptly stalked off of. You can see that I had started the quilting.

I did some ruler-work without a ruler, ha, because I don't have a ruler foot for my Bernina (note to self: need to rectify this situation), so I just did it with a walking foot and a little bit of chalk marking.  Then I did a bunch of FMQ:

It wasn't really that long before I was finished. Actually, I had to make myself stop; I was having such fun! I cannot sing the praises of both my beloved Bernina 180 Artista, who turns 15 this year, and Sulky threads. The three of us play so well together.

Hot off, or out from under, the Bernina needle in early morning sunlight. Note how wavy it appears. Then take a look at the first photo again, and compare. Isn't it fabulous what a little spritz of water and blocking will do? (even when, ahem, a cat bum is placed upon the blocked quilt and said cat has pulled out two pins with her teeth, grrr!)

That photo gives you a pretty good idea of the beauty of the metallic thread on the red-orange Marbella from Paula Nadelstern's Wonderlust line by Benartex. The Holoshimmer thread in the print areas is harder to capture on camera but glints and glitters in such a breathtaking way in person.

Here's the back:

And my inside 'label':

She has matching backing to her older twin:

This is the Good Vibrations print of the Line. I didn't have enough to be able to line up the back properly, darn.

Stuffed!

I love a simple envelope-style backing. I always turn half an inch twice under and topstitch down along the edge of the double-fold. I overlap 4" so even with fat pillow form inside, there's no chance of 'plumber's crack', ha!

Okay enough about bums and backsides; here's a front view:

Afternoon sun, trying to show the texture and that elusive shimmery thread:

The centre:

I'm pretty happy with the print matching along the seams!

Here are all the threads but one; I forgot the purple Sulky rayon 40 wt I also used. I used the Isacord red polyester in both the top in places as well as in the bobbin when I used the orange Holoshimmer in the top. I used the gold Sulky rayon 40 wt in the bobbin with the gold Holoshimmer. The Aurifil pale yellow (think I may need to watch for a sale on a cone, as I'm loving this one so much, so versatile in piecing and quilting) was also used in the bobbin with the gold Holoshimmer when the rayon ran out and I was too into things to wind more thread! Both stitched out equally well with the Holoshimmer.

Here she is with her twin sister:

I thought the variegated ginger plants and green grass makes a nice complementary backdrop! You can get an idea of the texture here with the sun behind the cushions.

With the sun behind me, and on the cushions:

Spot the Bella photo bomb?!

These fabrics are to die for. A little foreshadowing teaser: I'm going to be sewing with them again in the near future in an upcoming quilt along I'm hosting. Think late Spring/early Summer...

One more for texture and to get a closer look at the dot to dot I did in the corners on that gorgeous Marbella fabric. If you'd like to read the post about the purple cushion, click here.

Quilt Stats:
Pattern:  original design
Size: 19.25" square
Fabric:  Benartex 'Wonderlust' by Paula Nadelstern
Batting: Fairfield Soft 'n Crafty 80/20
Quilted: on my Bernina
Threads:  pieced with Gütermann cotton; quilted with Sulky Holoshimmer, Sulky Metallic and Sulky rayon. Ditch-stitched with Sulky rayon in purple, and with Isacord polyester in red.

Both the purple and the orange cushions were one goal on my Q1FAL List which is here.

Two quick things:
1. I am absolutely blown away by the response to my Postcard from Sweden QAL!! I owe thanks to Kelly of Jeli Quilts for posting on Instagram about it, and to Tanya of Tanya Quilts in Colorado for writing about it on her blog. Then getting three unsolicited sponsors who have also mentioned it on their Instagram feeds has helped spread the word, and today, I have a fourth sponsor, thanks to Kelly, mentioning that kits could be purchased here too:

I've updated the last post as well as a previous one on Postcard from Sweden to reflect Janey's sponsorship. The Tartan Reel is owned by Janey, a terrific name, btw--my middle name is Jane, after my maternal nana, who was a seamstress and knitter extraordinaire; I've always been told that I take after her in that as well as in appearance; like me, she was small in stature, 5'2", and had curly hair. Anyhow, Janey's store is online only at present, fairly young, started in 2016, and is in the UK. She is offering a wonderful prize: an Elizabeth Hartman pattern, a bundle of Kona and a Kona colour chart!  You can purchase kits from her (no, it's not too late; the link up for getting your HSTs all cut and paired up, NOT sewn, is Feb. 28) for a great price, £70, with free shipping within the UK. What I love about her kit is that she includes a sheet of printed stickers to label your paired HSTs. Brilliant!

I hope you will show my sponsors some quilty love. Check out all four on my sidebar.

2. Connecting Threads (affiliate link) has a great sale on their Essential thread. I love this thread, especially for quilting with my Avanté. It's already a terrific price, but it's on sale for 30% off that price right now. This is when I like to stock up. Their 1000m cotton spools are $1.95 (you read that right) and their variegated $2.79. The sale is on until March 19. It might be a thought to pick some up for your Postcard from Sweden quilt, just sayin'...  They have excellent shipping rates, free to US, Canada, UK and Australia at a certain spend amount. Scroll to the bottom of the page once you click the link and you'll see shipping info. If you want to see a recent quilt I quilted with Essential, click here to see Float, where I used Parchment, which blended beautifully, not as harsh as a white would have been.

Linking up
Crazy Mom Quilts
Confessions of A Fabric Addict
TGIFF at Lisa in Port Hope
Busy Hands Quilts
Q1FAL Linky when it opens at Dizzy Quilts