The One In Which I Quilt

First, don't let the title fool you.  I did not, in fact, make a quilt, as in a large cozy blanket thing that can cover at least a small person.  No no no.  I made a quilt to cover my filing cabinet.  Seriously.

Ok, so, you remember my prize filing cabinet scored from the dump, right?

Oh, so awesome.  Well, I cleaned it and painted it right away because I didn't want it to become a lost project.  When hubs got home he agreed it was neat, and asked if I sanded it down really well before I painted it so the paint won't chip off.

Um, sand?

Ok, so maybe in my haste I skipped an important step, but really, the thing is going to sit in a corner and hold paper.  It's in very little danger of getting chipped or scratched.

I really hate it when he's right.

In the meantime I had decided that I wanted to put my printer on top of the filing cabinet, so it looked like it was time to make something to cover the top of the cabinet, like a large placemat or table runner.  So first I picked the fabric: DSQuilts Collection, which I won in a giveaway a few months ago.  (Here's a secret about me and fabric: I love to get it and have all kinds of plans for it, but I hate to cut into it and actually use it.)

Because I'm still new at piecing stuff, I made a plan:

I'm still in the hope-and-pray-it's-the-right-size mode.

Cut and pieced and then sandwiched with Warm 'N Natural batting in the middle and coordinating fabric on the bottom:

I quilted up and down the seam lines and then bound it with Wright's double-fold bias tape in slate blue because I am not nearly to the point of making my own bias tape.

 

All the lines are straight, the fabric is laying flat, the bias tape fits properly, and it's the right size.  Amazing.  My printer thinks it's nice and cushy.

I guess I have no excuse not to try that quilt now, and Gus's birthday is rapidly approaching.

What have you been working on lately?

Linking up at 52 Mantels