Triple Irish Chain in Pink Finished

I suppose it is fitting that I finished my Triple Irish Chain quilt on St. Patrick's Day weekend. If there was ever a quilt sitting in my sewing room saying, "You're never going to finish me, are you?", this is it. Makes the finish all the more fulfilling.

The design of this quilt was figured out along the way. The intention was to experiment with Triple Irish Chain blocks while using up some stash. When the center was finished it seemed too skinny. Never fear, half square triangles here! Keep in mind that I pieced this quilt many, many years ago and am only now getting around to finishing it. I didn't even think through the size of the half square triangles. So when it came time to attach them to the sides of the quilt, I just whacked them off to match the length, leaving a tiny triangle in two corners.

I would handle that differently now, though it adds a bit of character to this quilt, I think. The quilting on this project was fun in that it was a great combination of free motion and straight line quilting.

The Triple Irish Chain has diagonal lines going in both directions through the off-white background squares for a pretty cross-hatch look.

The centers offered a good place to practice free motion flowers. When I finished quilting the main body of the quilt, it looked odd having the centers as the only area with free motion quilting.

To complement those centers and add balance between the straight line and free motion quilting, both borders were treated as one and smaller versions of the same flower were quilted all the way around the outer edge. I love the way the flowers really stand out against the darker fabric.

Sometimes I don't realize how much an unfinished project weighs on me. This finish has really set me free. I'm about to go put this quilt in the wash to give it even more of that soft, comfy, old fashioned quilt feel. This one will eventually be given away but for now I might just snuggle up under it for a bit
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