What do you do when the quilt you just finished is too big for your improvised outdoor home photo studio? You try to photograph it anyway.
Shadow Owes Its Life to Light
Began July 2013 • Finished April 2014
I pieced it, but Cathy Kreter of CJ Designs quilted it.
I’d first seen this in the City Quilter Quilt Shop in New York City, and immediately signed up for the block of the month. It was great fun to have those packages arrive every month for six months. I kept up pretty well. Nancy Rink called it Amish With a Twist–II, as it followed her first quilt design in the Amish style. I blogged sporadically about its progress on this site (and *here* too), as often the work progressed sporadically.
My design wall wasn’t big enough to hold this massive quilt (106″ square) so I pieced it together in sections.
I wrote about the quilting *here* as I really stressed out about which thread to use.
And to make this record complete, here is the back. I used some Jane Sassaman fabric.
I thought about many names. I halfway thought I’d just keep Nancy Rink’s name for the quilt, but wanted something different. Certainly, since it has furrows of light and dark, calling it the oft-used “Sunshine and Shadow” would be a possibility. But I didn’t just want to say it THAT way. So I found this old proverb: Shadow Owes Its Life to Light, indicating the interdependence between light and shadow. Not only did I like it because its allusion to the old cliche, but it also had a nicely poetic rhythm to it.
I vowed after making my son’s king-sized quilt that I’d never make another quilt that large. Well, I did. But next time, please come running over to my house and talk some sense into me if I ever even think about making another big quilt.
This is Quilt #130 of my lifetime quilts.
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OccasionalPiece--Quilt! 
That is lovely! Just got back from the show in Paducah, and saw many wonderful quilts. Yours is equally beautiful in my mind – good job!
Beautiful quilt with a perfect name. I love the designs embedded in the log cabin blocks. They look like celestial bodies–stars, planets, comets, nebulae.
This turned out so wonderful, Elizabeth. I think the big projects are totally worth it, you just have to space them apart. I always see this pattern in the Keepsake Quilting catalog, and I’m so glad I know someone who made it. Great job!
Breathtaking!!! Well done, sister. 🙂
Magnificent finish….congratulations!
It was certainly well worth the effort. Thanks for sharing.
Oh my this is stunning! A feather in your cap my lady ; )
It’s just a beautiful quilt, and I have enjoyed seeing the progress and now the beautiful finish! I’m curious, too, about the origin of the proverb…is it Amish too?
Oh Elizabeth…I don’t know what to say! This quilt is totally amazing. Everything about it is perfect.
A really amazing finish Elizabeth! I LOVE this quilt! And you are so learned! I look for inspiration for my quilt names from pop songs! Not you…. words with such depth and meaning from you!
You are a good woman to photograph this – mine will remain on the bed. Maybe someday I’ll put it on the front lawn and pay someone to photograph it from the air. Love how the turquoise accent binding works with the purple, makes a nice touch. And your backing is just perfect! Job well done.
Made my day!!! Enjoyed seeing close ups of quilting with feathers etc. May now consider a Kaffe Fassett fabric for surprise on back?? liked 2 colors / Bt bias tap edge on front. I am inspired by your label name too! Gotta get back to mine. LOVE YOURS!
Absolutely beautiful Elizabeth. Love the extra touch on the binding too. Just getting that part done must have taken forever as it’s a lot of stitching. You should be very proud. I love your thought process in naming quilts.
This quilt is a triumph! Beautiful piecing. I’ve never made a quilt that large and since I doubt we’ll ever have a king sized bed, hopefully I’ll never have to! I could stare at it for ages. Congratulations!
This is a really beautiful quilt! I LOVE the name you chose! Might be one of my favorite parts.
The colors and their progression are uplifting. I like the light touch with the quilting. The pattern and colors are allowed to step forward. It’s so good to finish something – I know, I know, the journey is supposed to be as important..But really, a complicated AND completed project is pretty wonderful. And kudos on wrestling that thing up into the air for a photograph. Probably as easy as getting a three year old to sit still for a photo.