Celestial Dream

I wanted to share a spectacular quilt that was unveiled at the bring-and-brag at our Jones Mansion retreat.


Meet Celestial Dream, the work of my friend Flo. I met Flo through the old Quilt Bee list years ago and ours is one of the weirder internet friendship stories: through emails back and forth, we discovered that we had lived in the very same Milwaukee apartment at different times. In fact, Flo and her friends appear to have moved in right after my friends and I moved out, back in the 70s. Quite the coincidence. We even slept in the same bedroom. Amazing.

Anyway--Celestial Dream. This pattern was offered by Summer House, now apparently out of business, back in the mid-90s. The designer is Susan Powell. Flo bought the full kit for this quilt and has been plugging away on it for nine long years, with time out for burn-out (she said the windows and mullions and shutters on the house in the bottom panel nearly killed her), a graduate degree, travel, and various family events. Flo does masterful hand appliqué and this quilt is just so impressive.


The punch line for this quilt is that it was always intended as a gift for Flo's daughter, who didn't want it quilted. She wanted it to be TIED. Fortunately, the daughter eventually came to her senses and the finished quilt is an exuberant and glorious sight.



Looking around online, it looks like many people bought the pattern for this quilt but that only a fortunate few have had the time, energy, and stick-to-it-ive-ness to see it through to completion.

Saluting you, Flo! Maybe if I hang out with her more often, I could get my Sue Spargo quilt off the ground. I need someone with her discipline and drive to rein me in and get me going on that one!