Kat Quilt - Blocks 9, 10, 11, 12

Slowly but surely, my quilt blocks are coming together.  Today I'm excited to share 4 blocks with you.  These all have a special story -- probably too long to tell here -- about why the shape, color and fabrics are all so important to me.  As I've told a few people already, this quilt will not win any awards for technique or color selection, but each and every shape, color and fabric means something very, very special to me.  I really can't think of any more perfect way to make a quilt.

During and since the race where Shelly passed away, there have been two absolutely amazing teams providing an overwhelming amount of love and support.  One of them is "Gabby's Purple Maniacs," who happened to be the only other team we knew prior to the race.  They are the running team for the Gabby Rocco Let It Shine Foundation, which I've mentioned on my blog before.  Their symbol is a purple butterfly, so it only seemed fitting to make a purple butterfly block.  The fabric in the top portion of the wings is from the very first dress I ever made my daughter, Rachel.

The second team is from Toronto, Canada.  I did not know them before the race but their helpfulness, support and generosity has literally changed my life.  This team -- who did not know us or Shelly -- held a fundraiser in Canada to raise money for Shelly's son's education.  They raised close to $3,000... for someone they never knew, just because she was a runner like them.  I don't have words to express how this has touched my heart.  In their honor, I decided to add a red maple leaf, representative of the Canadian flag. My maternal grandmother (who passed away 2 years ago) was also Canadian, and the two floral prints in this block were given to me by my mom, so this block will also remind me of my mother and grandmother.

The layout for my "HOPE" and "LOVE" blocks was inspired by a quilt Sarah from Confessions of a Fabric Addict shared on her blog a little while back.  The blue fabric in "HOPE" is very special to me.  It was given to me by my mother and used in a quilt she started 12+ years ago and I finished a few months back for my brother.  (More on that quilt here.)  I chose to go intentionally dark with this block, to show that even when HOPE may be hard to see, it's always there if you look.

Last but certainly not least, is "LOVE."  The color is a little off in this photo, the fabrics are more "red wine" color than "purple" in real life.  I chose these colors because they are similar to the color of the bridesmaid dresses from my wedding.  I am happy that I selected 4 different fabrics, and I won't tell if you won't that upper left fabric had Tinkerbell on it before I ever-so-strategically placed it under the "L."  :-)

If you've made it this far, thank you!  Just one more thing before I wrap up this long-winded post... my older daughter (Rachel) has just started her own blog.  She's 9 and it's about the life of a 9-year-old... but if you are so included, I'm sure she'd love a little bloggy love in the form of a comment.  You can find her here, at Roo's Room.

~*~ May your day be full of Love and Ladybug Hugs ~*~ 

Thanks for stopping by!

~ Kat ~