My quality control manager, Merlin, turned 1 today! Happy Birthday Merlina! She was busy yesterday keeping an eye on my attempts to hand tie this quilt. This is the first quilt top that I ever made. I was going to hand quilt it, and did quite a bit but I did not like the results I was getting. So I decided to hand tie it instead. I like the look of the hand tying with the vintage-inspired print. So first I pinned, a lot.
Then I used a curved tapestry needle to thread my #5 pearle cotton through the layers.
Then, I hand tied each piece of thread with a surgeon’s knot and clipped off the extra ends.
And finally Merlin inspected the knots to make sure that they were all well tied. Now on to the binding!
A Dilettante of Fruition 
Can’t believe that Merlin is already 1. Happy Birthday, Merlin!
I really like the hand tied look. It goes really well with the fabric patterns. The bright blue color really stands out. So how often did you tie, and how did you decide where to tie? Did you create some type of pattern or just free hand it. Either way it is turning out great. Can’t wait to see it all finished.
Keep up the good work Merlin!!
Erica, I really like the hand tying look with this quilt. I was thinking about Jo, as she always hand tyed her quilts. I think the bright color blue goes well with the pattern. Another wonderful job. Keep up the great work. I can’t wait to see the finished project, but I am sure it will look great. Those blue pillows you just made would go great with this quilt. Happy Birthday to your quality control manager “Merlin”. She is keeping a very close eye on your work to make sure you do it right. I think I need a Merlin to keep a close eye on my work too.
Love You
Grandma
Happy Birthday Merlin! I can’t believe you’ve had her for a year. Time sure does fly. Love the quilt!