Delectable Mountain Finish Line

 The Delectable Mountain Variation quilt top is finished: Yeah!

I pressed it thoroughly and bundled it up along with the backing (cut about 6" wider all around) and cotton batting and took it to the Long-armer Lori. We talked about designs and chose a slightly variegated off-white thread and I left 'my baby' with her. In a couple of weeks she called to say it was done. Oh My Gosh!!! She did an amazing job on the quilting: very detailed into every little piece of those Delectable Mountains and everywhere else in-between!!! I am so pleased and happy with the results. I darkened the photo to make it easier to see the stitching on the white fabric.

But now it's time to stitch the binding on. I chose a paisley fabric from my stash that is one of the blocks with a tan background that goes with the tan corner points of the Mountains. While waiting for the quilting to be done I prepared the on-grain binding: 2.5" strips sewn together, folded in half and pressed, then wound onto a blue plastic 'card' to stay neat. Sewing the binding to the pieced side was easy on my oldest Featherweight. 

A closeup of the quilting and binding being sewn on....

Then comes the 'hard part' but fun part since I know the quilt will be finished soon. The binding was pressed away from the quilt front, then folded over and pinned to the quilt back. Each corner was mitered as I stitched. 

My goal was to slip stitch one side a day thereby completely finishing the quilt in four days, but I managed to complete it in three days!

The completed Delectable Mountain Variation Quilt (my 5th full size quilt since Covid began)! I love the colors. Each fabric is a memory. Some were fabrics I used to make smocked Bishop dresses for my now-grown daughter. Others are from my Purse Reticule Class that I taught nationwide. Others are from Sewing Machine Mats (another one of my classes I taught) that I sewed as raffle baskets for Sewing at the Beach and Smocking Arts Guild National Conventions. So much fun to stitch after I figured out the written instructions's glitch, and I used up some of my stash: a win-win!