Finished quilt top

To finish putting together my new quilt top, I un-sewed the strips of squares where necessary, rearranging them until I had 20 rows of squares in the correct pattern. Then I numbered the rows with a pencil on the back of the first square on the left of each row. I pinned the loose squares together and re-sewed where needed. At this point all the seams were pressed in the same direction. I took the odd rows and re-pressed the seams in the opposite direction. This is important (I have learned this the hard way). When you sew the strips of squares together, the seams need to nestle into one another, and so they need to be pressed in the opposite direction. I sewed the 20 strips together, pressing the seams open, and had the center of my quilt. The photo below is the back of the quilt, and you can see the seams in each strip of squares pressed in opposite directions.

I chose 3 of the fabrics for a simple triple border. I have been hoarding the red fabric in the final border, using it sparingly in this and that project. I decided I finally had to use it liberally in a project for myself. My hand quilting will show up on this fabric, since it is less busy than some of the other fabrics in this quilt. I plan to quilt the center in a simple grid pattern (easy to do while traveling), and the border in a braid. See the final quilt top below.

I hand-basted the top, batting and backing together late last night. I will be tired today, but I don't plan to get too far tonight. A new road trip! I do love to travel. I will look for quilt shops and inspiration as I go, blogging “on location” as I can.