Who needs Houston when you have BQF?

Yeah yeah yeah blahbity blah blah. We know, we know. Houston is where it is at this week. But for those of us who are stuck at home, this is truly the best way to spend our time: Blogger's Quilt Festival!

So I'm taking a little break from your next installment of the mystery quilt project to participate. Thank you to Amy from Amy's Creative Side for organizing it once again this Market-tide. And welcome to anyone who has never been here to QHH. Fingers crossed that you enjoy your time here and are inspired to come back, or at the very least don't leave screaming.

I really have been struggling with what quilt to enter in this year's event. On the one hand, I'd love to enter Kickin' Stash because I feel like it could be in the running for "best scrap quilt" (not that I am biased), but we're all way sick of hearing about it on this blog. Plus you would all think I have done NOTHING else this year, and that would only partially be true. There are plenty of things in the mix, but that rule of Amy's that it must be a completed project is killing me here.

So we're going back. Back three years, to the fall of 2009, those pre-Quilting Hottie Haven days, when I was writing "Once Upon a Time" and ignoring most other aspects of my life, and creating this quilt, "Rapunzel's Hideaway", which in going back through the blog I don't believe I have ever shown, discussed, written about, etc. Although some of the detail is in the photos section, I now realize. Anyway, it's hands down my favorite quilt from the book and it's time to give it some love as my entry into the "Favorite Wall Quilt" category.

One would think that having featured this quilt in my book for the love of Pete that I would have a decent photo of it right here at my fingertips. One would be wrong. One should also take into account the numerous computer crashes we have had around here since then, so it was easier to just to throw it up on the side of my garage as per ushe than wade through all of my external drives to find a photo.


Machine applique and embellishment combined with a scrappy castle shape - Oh. Em. Gee. It's my two favorite styles all wrapped up in each other happily ever after and for all eternity. Check out the different peaches that make up the castle. And the background is all different bluey lavenders for sky. So sweet, so easy, so scrap cleany-outie!

But then came the fun part. The embellishing possibilities of this castle were endless, and I loved playing around with all sorts of materials. Every one always loves the braid the best. And why not - it's way fun, and it's my favorite part too. All it is is a wad o' embroidery floss braided and tied with a ribbon and stuck on there with - oh yeah - Jewel-it. Please ignore the fact that the braid up close can look freakishly disembodied.

Here's an even more close up photo to show off those windowboxes and trailing vines. They were really fun to create using both ribbon and fabric flower trims and then adding the vines with machine quilting. Three guesses what material is holding all the flowers in the window.

I may have lied a few paragraphs back. Actually, I think my favorite part is the portcullis, because not only is it awesome but it may teach some new vocabulary. The door shape is smacked on and appliqued down, then I simply cross-hatched 1/8" satin ribbon and sewed it down, which let me tell you hotties was way easier said than done. All of you who do miniature quilts, remind me to bow down to you when we meet in person. To cover up the little ends of ribbon, I sewed a strip of flower ribbon in an arch, and then diverted your eyes to the flower garden made of green grosgrain ribbon grass and ribbon flowers.

To add to the princessy fun, there are several other blocks to applique and embellish, and I had lots of fun personalizing it for Paige, one of my three favorite princesses and the one who insisted this was to be her quilt in the end. So she got to pick out which appliques we used at the bottom.

All things the well dressed princess needs and all.

To make it official, I even was required to quilt her name into one corner, because Eva's name appears on the quilt on the cover of the book. Fairness is key.

Twins are so much fun.

The finished quilt measures 24" x 36" and not only did I quilt that fabulous name up there which I am now told "looks kind of messy, Mom", I did quilt the rest of the quilt as well. 

Thank you for stopping by! I hope to see you back again soon.