I am so excited with this finish. A client asked me to make a quilt that showcased both OSU and the Iowa Hawkeyes. He specifically wanted one school on each side so that’s what I did.

Ohio State Buckeyes

I love the OSU side. I found a lot of inspiration on Pinterest and saw several designs I liked. The quilt needed to be big – it’s going to a 6’5″ guy — so I looked for a design that would be easy to add borders to. I couldn’t find a pattern, so I drew everything out using graph paper and colored pencils (old school, I know – but it works!) and just followed the drawing as a pattern. It turned out better than expected and I’m so happy with it.

Using all solids for the OSU side was fun and makes me want to make more solid color quilts. There are 3 reds, 3 greys, and 3 whites in the top.  Hubby wasn’t too sure about the whites; he thought I should just use a single bright white. After a consultation with my sister I decided he was wrong  🙂  I kept the other two whites in and he was out-voted! Poor guy…..

Iowa Hawkeyes

I’m not as crazy about the Iowa side. Even though it looks okay, it’s not great. I had a tough time finding the right colors and I feel like I struggled with it from the very beginning. Let me re-word that. I definitely struggled with this side from the beginning. I might have even said a few words that a girl shouldn’t say. And I’m pretty sure I stomped my foot once while saying one of those words. Like a mini tantrum.  Maybe. Just sayin……. 🙂

Choosing a quilting design and thread color was tricky – I had both sides to consider instead of just the top. Because there are so many squares in the designs, I thought a meandering square design would look nice but when I tested it I really didn’t like it. I ended up doing a large meander and I’m pretty happy with it. I used a grey thread which blends well on both sides.

I like how the bright yellow is an unexpected surprise when you first see the quilt. It was pretty windy when we were taking pictures and the back would flip over while trying to get a shot of the red side.  I wish I had a pic of that – it was super fun to see it against the red.

Piecing a front and a back was an experience – just keeping everything straight and lined up while basting took some effort.

Overall I’m happy and more importantly the client is happy. The quilt will be a gift for his nephew who is a huge Iowa fan.  I’ll be making another one for the same client but just the OSU side so it should work up pretty quickly. And now I can mark one more project off my to do list!

How are you doing on your Christmas sewing?  I have three two more handbags and a mug rug to make and then I’ll be finished. Yay!!

Quilt Stats:

Quilt Name: Team Spirit

Finished Size: 72 x 84

Pattern: N/A

Fabric: Kona Solids, Collegiate print

Batting: Warm & Natural

Thread: Superior So Fine! #408 Silver 50w

Linking up with Link a Finish Friday, Finish it Up Friday and Whoop Whoop Friday.