Superstar quilt...

     This quilt has been in the planning stages for awhile.  It all began when I bought special fabric (Rocket Age by October Afternoon/Riley Blake Designs) to make quilts for the grandsons.  The minute my dear husband saw the fabric he fell in love with it also.  It reminded him of all the comics he read when he was little when he saw the comic advertisement print.  And then the little boy playing with his toys with his special bear brought back memories of the endless imagination and hours upon hours of playing he did growing up in Northern Minnesota.  So more fabric was bought just for him.  And it sat on the shelf for awhile until I could think of the perfect way of using it in a quilt.

     Then it hit me.  It was all in the fabric.  Stars!  My husband loves watching the night sky.  So I broke out my book from Lori Holt (Farm Girl Vintage) and went straight to the Simply Star block.  Both small and large blocks were used.  Then I started thinking about putting special "things" into the quilt that had meaning to my husband.  He has a favorite number so that is how many big stars I made and put into the quilt.  The small stars were just filler after that.  I then came across fabric that had aged dictionary pages printed on it.  That was absolutely perfect because one of his prized possessions ever is a huge two volume dictionary set that he found years ago.  No one is allowed to touch them.  They are so old that there is a section in the second one about learning different languages including Yiddish.  Very cool indeed.  He loves words.  He loves reading.  He's all about books.  So that had to be the entire back of the quilt.  Then I used some of the extra dictionary fabric to make a cross for the front for his enduring faith.  And in that cross is one small star block in the center to symbolize his Dad in heaven looking down and watching over him and who will always be in my husbands heart.  Even the small star block on the back is up near the top to symbolize the North Star and the North Star State from where he was born and raised.  Once all this symbolism started it was hard to stop.  Even the quilting had meaning to it.  Three lines grouped together for our three children.  After the quilting was finished we both noticed how the came together to make diamonds throughout which could quite possibly stand for stars in the sky again.  The border around the quilt is denim because that is his favorite kind of clothing.  And last buy not least is the scrappy binding, because that is just his favorite.

     It's only been finished two days but it is loved and has been well used already.  Relaxing at the end of the day, with a good book, curled up on the bed, wrapped up in his favorite quilt ever.  It's hard not to smile when you hear things like that from the special people you adore making things for.

     I have to ask, am I the only one that when making special things for others, symbolism must be put into the object you are making for someone.  Just wondering.

~*~

Kar