Baby Quilt Friday!: Rick Rack Cuddler

Oh dear, I've done it again. A Baby Quilt Friday on a NOT FRIDAY. As one of a bazillion-gillion bloggers--of which a full bazillion are mama/craft bloggers--it probably doesn't matter much that my Friday is on a Monday. But still, I like to keep my word when I can. So, please accept this apology. Very sorry.

So, this week is all about the little quilt below, from The Little Box of Baby Quilts. In fact, this quilt is the littlest quilt in the bunch, called "Rick Rack Cuddler." 

 
From The Little Box of Baby Quilts, copyright 2007 Jenny Wilding Cardon/That Patchwork Place. Machine quilted by Cheryl Brown.

Baby size, baby pastels, baby squiggles. Perhaps the baby-est of the baby quilts in the bunch of twenty from the "little box." Some of the "little box" quilts come with a story about life, others come with a story about a specific quilt block or design. This one was inspired by only one thing--that big fat rick-rack that Moda makes. Saw it. Loved it. Had to have it. Then didn't know what the heck to make with it.

Ain't that how it goes with impulse buying of any kind, be it fabric, rick-rack, or otherwise? Can I get an Amen? Anyone? I love how this kind of quilter consumerism has a very official-sounding name--stash building. You know, like, "I just bought two yards of this fabric and I have no idea why. It just called to me. No, I have no one to make a quilt for... no projects on the immediate horizon... no design I want to dive into. NO, I'm not a shopaholic or a fabricaholic or a holic of any kind. I'm STASH BUILDING."

I have only one rule about stash building. Don't take it to the grave with you. Use it all before your last breath. Helps a little with those iffy purchases. A little. You know, one yard instead of two kind of help. Any help helps.

Anyhoo, back to the quilt. I decided to use my favorite new rick-rack purchase in a variation on my favorite quilt-block design. Love the Log Cabin. Get your press-cut-sew station just right and you can wander into a hypnotic trance for hours. And who doesn't need a little hypnotic trance every now and then?

This quilt certainly won't take hours upon hours to create. If you've built a Log Cabin, you'll find the design simple enough. Sixteen units, four blocks. What will add or take away from your sewing time is how you decide to sew the rick-rack. I sewed along both sides of the rick-rack instead of straight down the center, which is more common. That added time at the machine for sure. But I like the effect. And when the quilt gets washed and dried, the rick-rack won't curl up--it will lie flat for all eternity. Nice perk for the recipient. All you need to decide is whether or not the baby you're stitching for will care. Pretty likely they'll love it either way.

You can view more quilts from the "little box" here, watch a video about it here, and read more about each quilt here.

Hope to see you back here in just four short days for another edition of Baby Quilt Friday. Only four days? Sheesh--better start a new post now.