The Fighting Gator Quilt - my WIP...

Well, I've been really busy working on this quilt...but I couldn't show it to you because it was my Christmas gift to the Officer!  In case you didn't know, he went to UF for grad school and we are serious Gator fans.  I've been wanting to make him a Gator quilt for some time now, but I couldn't find any inspiration that I liked.  I don't really care for any of the Gator printed fabric...so I wasn't sure what to do.  Then, while my mom was visiting, she was telling me about a paper-piecing class she and my sister were going to take.   

That inspired me.  

To be able to piece anything that I could draw?!  

Wow, that seemed perfect.

  

Well, let me tell you - it wasn't perfect and it was a lot of work.  

Creating your own pattern for paper piecing can be rewarding, but it is not for the faint of heart.  I had to completely set aside my constant desire for instant gratification sewing, and realize I was in for the long haul.  

I looked at this pic for inspiration:

And here's my original drawing onto several sheets of graph paper I had taped together.

(I just snapped this pic on my phone)

I then had to lay tracing paper over this original, divide it into squares, and then draw each individual piece.  It took 375 pieces to produce the final gator (and he's only 19"x26").

It was worth it though because I'm really happy with the result.  

Here are some up close pics:

 

I appliqued the F onto his jersey.

What you see in this post is just the center panel of the quilt - here's a drawing of the concept for the entire quilt.

  

I still have some work to do :)

It was extra challenging to make this lil' guy because I didn't want the Officer to know what I was doing.  So that meant I had to work on it while he was at work...and I was home with the girls...not such an easy task. :)  But it was a labor of love, and it will certainly be a one-of-a-kind quilt.  

In case you're wondering, I'm not really planning on making any more of these - I'd have to charge $1000.00 to make it worth my while(totally not exaggerating).  Unless Coach Muschamp calls me up and orders one...I might make an exception.  Or Tim Tebow (are you reading this Timmy?).  

In another post I'll share some of my tips for paper piecing - I learned a lot, but am certainly no expert.  So tell me - have you ever paper-pieced anything?  How did it go?  I certainly ripped out many many pieces in order to get it right...

Hope you have a great day!

xoxo

jessica

p.s. Go Gators.