This is the second Mermaid Quilt that I have made. I quilted this one as a baby gift for my friend, Ashley. Her baby girl is due in December.
Although, this quilt has the look of an appliqué quilt it is actually a quilt panel from Hawthorne Supply Company. Hawthorne Supply prints digital fabric and can print this panel any time you want one. The backing is also a digital print of tiny mermaids.
Because I knew that I would have to roll this quilt back and forth on my longarm to get the background elements stitched in I basted the quilt first on the longarm. Once I got to the bottom I released the quilt top from the bottom rail and floated it for the rest of the time.
I did all of the stitch in the ditch quilting first. I used Aurifil Monofilament thread on the top so that it would not show and MicroQuilter white thread on the bottom. These have a similar thread weight to them. Once I finished that I went back and filled the elements of the quilt in. I started with the Mermaid's hair. This is my favorite part of the quilt. I pulled the basting out as I went so it would not get stitched down in the back. I left the basting in to the sides where I hadn't quilted and pulled that out as I got there.
For the hair and the rest of the quilt I used Glide thread on top. White for the background, Buttercup and Honey Gold for the hair and Amethyst, Magic Mint, Pink Rose, Celery, Cobalt and Slate for the rest of the elements.
Once I finished quilting the elements I worked on the white background. I wanted it to look like the mermaid was pushing waves of water with her hands. I also wanted waves of water around her tail as she splashed in. I only quilt with 24 inches of the quilt top showing at one time, the rest is rolled up. To make sure that I got a seamless "flow" of the little waves I traced them onto the top first and then just sewed over my markings.
Next, I scattered little flowers all over to mimic the flowers in the quilt top. Then I made sea weed to meander between the flower stalks and petals. I did use a small circle template for part of that. Then I put in the baby's name and then pebbled around everything.
The tension on the back of the quilt where it was pebbled had some eyelashing. Next time I think I will use Glide thread top and bobbin and perhaps tighten the stitch length a bit more. I used 11 but maybe 12 would work better.
I got this quilt finished just in time for Ashley's shower. I hope she enjoys it!
Make sure to pick up a needle and thread and stitch some love into your world❣️
