It's a Rainbow World

I'm taking a "Baltimore Album" Quilt class. It's a lot of fun so far. There are seemingly endless patterns to choose from, rich with meaning. Here is a sample of a Baltimore Album style quilte. Not mine. They are typically done on white or cream backgrounds and the originals had two main colors - Victoria Green and Turkey Red. Victoria Green was a pea green so named because it was Queen Victoria's favorite color. And Turkey Red? No, it has nothing to do with turkeys or feathers. It was called that because there was a time when fabric dyed red came from Turkey.

There's just one thing. I love color. I love bright colors. I'm likely going to put hundreds of hours into my quilt. You see, each square and the borders are hand-appliqued. With tiny needles and tinier stitches. So I figure I'd better really love the fabric I'm working with. And it turns out that batik is a great fabric to use because it is very tightly woven. So here is my selection of fabrics for my "Baltimore Album" quilt. I'll post pics of the squares as I complete them. I'm working on one right now that is a repeating fleur de lis type design in the bright gold on the red/black background.

And while Valerie was here she gave me a lesson in foundation piecing, which I was quite taken with after seeing the Christmas stocking she made for Sam. I incorporated the technique into a scissor case that Val and I designed for me to use when I go to my quilting classes. Turns out I need at least four different pair of scissors on me... small fabric, large fabric, small paper, large paper, might as well throw the rotary cutter and spare blades in for good measure...

Here's the front up close:

And here it is with the inside liner for organizing and protecting my shears:

I hope my classmates aren't jealous!