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Monday, July 19, 2010

Basket Border DONE!



I did end up keeping the inner border. It did reflect the gold baskets in the center, and there was not a whole awful lot of gold in the pieced piano key border....I didn't want something that stood out too much on its own, but was distinct enough from the brown to float the center a bit.



In the mornings, the best place for a photo shoot is off the 2nd story deck at the back of the house! Shade trees prevent too much light from coming in, and colors just look really great when I take pics out there. I ended up cutting half square triangles from the left over lengths of border, sewing them into 1/2 square triangle corners, and inserting them as a mitred border. It took less border length to do it this way than the traditional way which can leave a lot of waste. I didn't want to have to piece MORE border just to get those corners mitered the other way, you know?

Several have asked for the pattern for this quilt. I don't have it. What I had from lucy was a piece of paper with the size of pieces to cut and a little plastic template thing to use as a guide for drawing the line on the background for handle placement. Oct 2004? That's about 6 years ago folks. I have moved since then, I don't know where it is, but I know there are lots of mini basket patterns out there.

If you know someone that has EQ..you can easily print a basket block or draw one..in any size you like.

I set these baskets 12 X 15...so there are 180 baskets in this little ditty that turned out not so little! I think it is going to be too big to fly with, but it could go on driving trips with me....just need to get it backed and basted!



Right now I'm typing on my knees because someone has stolen my chair and won't give it back! Oscar has never been one to play with cat toys...you try to get him to play and he just looks at you like "WHHATTT!?" But a length of ribbon..he goes nuts!

46 comments:

  1. The inner border and the mitered corners make this quilt! A job well done and beautifully photographed.

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  2. The quilt turned out perfect and the mitered corners are just right.

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  3. The quilt is beautiful! Love it, love it, love it! The borders are just right and the mitered corners the perfect solution. I must remember your trick for the mitered look, using half square triangles. Genius!

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  4. Lovely, just lovely. Would never have thought that the brown would accent those baskets and make them sparkle.

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  5. I think the borders are perfect! Love the miters!!! And Oscar is adorable!

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  6. Alex Anderson had a show about making baskets like that and the pattern is in one of her books.
    Yours is GORGEOUS. I LOVE that. I am working on baskets, but it is slow.
    Thank you for the GENIOUS tip on HST for the corners! I'd NEVER have thought of that!
    EXCELLENT post...SO helpful.
    (pretty toes too...I LOVE the sitting photo of you in Sisters...so happy)
    Lucy (in IN)

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  7. Absolutely gorgeous!!! I love the piano key border!

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  8. I love the border and using half square triangles to do the mitered corners is great, especially in pieced borders such as this. I will have to remember that. Thanks for sharing.

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  9. dear bonnie ,your basket quilt looks fantastic with that border,have a nice day,susi

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  10. I like your baskets and the border does work. Nice to fake the mitered corner. Looks real to me. Oscar has yo right where he wants you...home!

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  11. Turns out very nice with the inner border and the piano keys. I like it a lot!

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  12. Beautiful! The border looks just right to me!

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  13. How freakin lazy are people? Really? Cute quilt.

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  14. Clever way of mitering the corner,I have learned so much from you. Love the border/quilt.

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  15. Very pretty top! What pops out at me is blue! Love it!
    Lola

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  16. Hi Bonnie:
    Your border looks great! It is perfect! How clever to use half square triangle blocks in the corners!
    I started making baskets like those a number of years ago and the pattern was called Postage Stamp from Alex Anderson's book "Quilts for Fabric Lovers". The baskets are 4 1/2".

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  17. what a beautiful quilt!! Love everything about it!

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  18. The borders look great!Oscar must be related to my cats,one of them crawls under my quilts as soon as I lay them to baste/pin..the other likes to play with my strings/strips..Bonnie I have been going to your site for a few yrs and following your blog, I like you as a quilter for your talent, please do not be so politicly correct.YOU do NOT owe explanations to anyone.keep up the good work.

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  19. Hi Bonnie:

    Your border looks great! It is perfect! How clever of you to use the half square triangle blocks for the corners!
    I started making baskets like these a number of years ago. They were called postage stamp baskets from Alex Anderson's book "Quits for Fabric Lovers". The baskets are 4 1/2" square.
    Have a great day!
    Jean

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  20. Love the baskets!!! See you in Hershey!

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  21. I just LOVE how this turned out. I think the piano key border was perfect for it. And what an ingenious method for the mitered corners! I MUST remember that one. Love the picture of Oscar. Once upon a time I used to have a Siamese that was crazy for batting. He would knead and shred it -- even it it was just the edge of a quilt I was quilting!

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  22. **jaw dropping**

    First, LOVE the border
    Second, LOVE the mitering of the border

    Oh Bonnie---this quilt will go down in history, girl!

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  23. Hi Bonnie,
    It is beautiful quilt! What a great way to start the week. I love your piano key border, pedicure and the signature basket block. Of course Oscar enjoying your chair and ribbon is so much fun. Good photos, have a super duper week.

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  24. The basket quilt is beauitful and I love the piano key border! Love it!

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  25. It looks as great as I had imagined it would. The piano keys and the gold inner border were the absolute best choice, but it is always what you do. The binding choice will be alot of fun and you will probably have eight or ten possibilities that you have to again find the very right choice. What fun!

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  26. I love how this turned out. The mitered corners are great! So simple, but doesn't look it. Can hardly wait to see it quilted. Karen in IA.

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  27. Hi Bonnie, you can pass along the fact that on page 162 of "The Farmer's Wife Sampler Quilt" book, there is a 6" basket block pattern. Also on page 42 of the magazine, "Traditional Quiltworks" Aug/Sept. 1990, there is a 6" square basket pattern. Happy sewing!

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  28. The piano key border with the narrow gold border are just perfect. What a beautiful quilt.
    Jeane

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  29. Well congrats on that finish........
    it was quite a process......many hours, days and years to complete!

    Safe travels........
    Happy Sewing

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  30. Bonnie, great choices all the way around for this quilt. Would love to see it in person. Thanks for sharing.

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  31. Anonymous3:05 PM EDT

    The piano key border looks awesome!

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  32. gorgeous basket quilt..just love it...don't know how ya do it girl!!

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  33. I think the piano key border looks great, and I like the mitered corners better than keeping them straight.

    Oscar is a cutie- don't ya just love cats who insist on helping you sew? Why do you think I go by Cattails? =)

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  34. It looks fantastic! I like your mitered corner trick too- thanks for the tip!

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  35. Very, very nice! It's hard to beat baskets and a piano key border!

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  36. Very, very nice! It's hard to beat baskets and a piano key border!

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  37. Those little baskets are just adorable! It's a fantastic quilt! The border is perfect for it.

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  38. Couldn't have a better border. The quilt looks amazing! Great job.

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  39. I really like the mitered look, might have to try your trick.

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  40. gorgeous quilt as usual, bonnie; the piano keys lighten up that gold and make it all but disappear, so good choice to just leave it. it just works now as a place to stop the action from the baskets, which it needed before the scrappy border. wise choice, gal

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  41. gorgeous quilt as usual, bonnie; the piano keys lighten up that gold and make it all but disappear, so good choice to just leave it. it just works now as a place to stop the action from the baskets, which it needed before the scrappy border. wise choice, gal

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  42. Great idea to put the 1/2 squares there and not fuss with the miters. This is one of my favorite quilts that you have made.

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  43. That looks grand, Bonnie! I bet Lucy is thrilled, too!

    Oh...and love that you used wonky and perfect in the same phrase! ;-D

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  44. wow - this quilt is the most stunning I have seen in a long time! What a big job to make all those tiny little baskets

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