Thursday, June 5, 2014

A Perfect Picnic Blog Hop


I am going to beg forgiveness up front. I think I have waaaayy too many pictures, but I have had so much fun with this project. I have thought about it every single day! I woke up thinking about it almost every day. You can just scroll down to the picnic if you're in a hurry :) 
My idea was that the quilt would be multi-functional. Not only would it be a quilt, but it would be able to carry the dishes, silverware, napkins, and games. So, I started by drawing......


Two sets of pockets, one set inside the ant panel, then another set inside the Celtic knot panel.





The corners are also pockets


The pockets hold the silverware, napkin rings and game bag.



The games in the pouch are Farkle and Life Stories.




I put handles on the quilt for easy transport.




It has been amazingly hot here....in the 90's....too hot here for us to have fun on a picnic, so we thought maybe we should try to have an after dark picnic! We weren't sure there would be enough light for this idea though, so we had a practice run!


It was so silly! We just piled things on plates and tumbled outside about midnight. Our neighbor, who was walking his dog, thought we were nuts....but there was enough light!


We did throw out the picnic blankie again at night with a little more thought. Here's our basket all packed up. I made the napkins, basket liner and game pouch from Riley Blake fabric. So easy to work with! The napkin rings are made by me as well from polymer clay.


Our menu for this evening adventure was.....wine, fresh mozzerella and heirloom tomatoes, artichoke hearts, olives and marinated mushrooms, also French bread and sharp Irish cheese with some watermelon and blueberries for dessert.



You might notice the red and white polka dot laminate fabric....I put it down to save the quilt from drippage :)




The next picnic was with my 4 year old neighbor, Cassidy and her Momma. We waited until the sun started to go down and it was cooling off. Cassidy made the sandwiches herself and also brought some trail mix. I brought juice, watermelon, blueberries and cookies.


Cass had fun searching out the treasures in the pockets.


The girl makes a mean salami and cheese sandwich! I am thinking of hiring her to make my lunches for school next year!


Even an ant came by....can you see it?




Madame Samm, this was the best idea ever! ...and Mary at I Piece 2-Mary was our ever supportive cheerleader! Thank you to Peterboro Basket Company and Riley Blake Designs!

Here are my picnic friends du jour.....amazing women with super fun picnic ideas! Stop by to see them all.....

Quilting Quietly  ........that's me!










41 comments:

  1. Mary Pat.....wowee....absolutely A.W.E.S.O.M.E.!!!! Truly the PERFECT PICNIC QUILT!!!! Meanwhile...Beauregard is sleeping it off...in the car...perhaps an intervention? xoxox

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  2. Okay, that ant fabric is something. It's making me nervous just looking at it, but it's so perfect. Your colors and design are wonderful. What a good sport your man is. A night picnic, brilliant. Love the game bag too. Looks pretty perfect to me.

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  3. I love that you've already gotten so many picnics under your belt! I laughed at the midnight picnic, but sometimes it really is just the thing to do. I'm inspired, thank you!
    ~Brandy

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  4. A fantastic quilt with all those pockets, and zillions of ants! Love the black and white color scheme with a little green thrown in for accent! I can see you had a perfect picnic both in the test run and in the other events. You did an amazing job!

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  5. What an awesome quilt. I love your color selection. The midnight idea is great, you are making me grin. All is perfect. Thank you for being part of this "Perfect Picnic" hop.

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  6. Love the idea of an evening picnic especially when it is too hot. My DH hates the heat so it would be perfect for him. Love the quilt and the colours especially the ants, much better than the real things. Thanks for sharing. Susie x

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  7. I Love your color selection, so crisp and summery~ Must have been fun having 2 picnics! Thanks for sharing your Beautiful Perfect Picnic Quilt with us, and the matching pieces too!!
    Huggs, Nancy

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  8. Wonderful quilt. Very creative design and I love the colors. I love the ants!

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  9. An evening picnic is the most romantic idea ever! Your picnic quilt is great! That is a clever way to take everything along on one shoulder!

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  10. Ohhhh Mary Pat...I don't even know the right word.....you are an absolute delight...I can see why you and Lynn are such buds...now this quilt wow...the details...love the fabric with the ants...now I needed that...every photo is imaginative, colourful and whimsical at the same time....your hubby even looks like he enjoyed himself...your sweet cuddle bug is adorable too...realllly out of the park on this one....love it all

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  11. Such a creative and beautiful quilt! I love all your photos too!

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  12. Mar Pat I love, love, love this! So clever to put the pockets - I'm wishing I'd done that! I never thought of a night picnic but I should have - it's gotten hot here too. I want to go on a picnic with you! blessings, marlene

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  13. Beautifully creative picnic and quilt. So very imaginative....love it! Salami sandwiches, yum! My son loves those as well...sub buns, salami, cheese, and cucumber slices. Perfect picnic fare! Love your post!

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  14. That is the best picnic quilt I've ever seen! So stinking cute and colorful, and clever storage pockets. I love muffins and watermelon at a picnic, just in case you wanted to ask :-) I'll be back.

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  15. now you are talking!!!! this picnic quilt is the best ever!!!! You should get that pattern out for us,,,,lol
    seriously...love it!!

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  16. I love this idea Is a pattern coming for it,.

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  17. A great picnic quilt. love the pockets for treasures or necessities. What a fun thing to do with hubby late at night!

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  18. How clever and beautiful! Your picnic partner looks like he is truly enjoying the evening, too!

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  19. What a GREAT quilt Mary Pat ! I loved all of your pictures......sometimes pictures tell the story better than words.......your picture told me there's lots of love in your family and that your a mighty creative woman !.

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  20. I for one don't think you can ever have too many pictures! :-) This is just too great. I love all the detail you put into your picnic quilt. I especially love the idea of a picnic at night! PERFECT!!!

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  21. Not too many pictures at all...I loved scrolling through them all. Your quilt is absolutely stunning even with ants crawling all over it! I love the pockets and handles to carry it, the design you chose, and the fabrics are just beautiful. Lucky you to have such nice company and good food at your picnic!

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  22. Such a fun couple of outings with your beautiful picnic blanket...especially love that ant shot...he looks a bit confused, lol!

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  23. Terrific! A great picnic quilt with wonderful colors. I sure enjoyed the picnic too. The pictures are always fun to see.

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  24. Mary Pat ... your picnicing is great fun ... and your quilt is just great! How nice that you invited your neighbors in on the fun. Thanks for brightening my very cool and rainy day here in the northeast ... :) (Mary) Pat

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  25. I loved that you had a trial run just to see if the pictures would turn out, LOL. You keep those neighbors guessing!! Can you imagine the conversation in their home "Honey, you won't believe what those crazy C's are doing now!" Seriously though you did a great job on your picnic quilt. How fun that your little neighbor could come over and try it out with her mom. I see this getting a lot of use!

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  26. The storage solution deserves an A+.It has to be a PIN.

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  27. Cute accessories! Nice use of the patterns!

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  28. Love the fabrics you used and the pockets idea is brilliant! Looks as though you had a great time!

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  29. Brilliant idea for the quilt!!! So so clever. So many good ideas on this hop....I'm thinking its time to make myself another picnic quilt and incorporate some of these ideas. A midnight picnic sounds fun too. Love the pick of your man with the wine glass...he looks truly happy!

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  30. Fantastic quilt and great ideas for storing your picnic items! Thank you for sharing.

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  31. great quilt. and i 'love your midnight picnic!

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  32. So lovely! Thanks for sharing!

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  33. Waoooh, you really designed the PERFECT picnic quilt, it is not only practical, but beautiful!!! I wish I was an ant when you had a picnic at midnight, hahaha, I would have joined immediately :-)
    Hugs from Switzerland

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  34. So romantic to have a midnight picnic and so many memories made. It's so handy to be able to store picnic items in the blanket and be ready to go at a moments notice. Love your picnic basket picture and all the items you created for it.

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  35. What a quiet romantic picnic you had. You quilt was just beautiful!

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  36. Your picnic quilt is so well designed with pockets for everything! You did a great job!

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  37. What a great quilt. I think having a midnight picnic would be fun. Thanks for sharing your beautiful quilt and your picnics with us.

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  38. What lovely picnics! And such an adorable picnic quilt -- love the pockets! Your napkin rings are amazing, too!

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  39. You are just so creative! I love the quilt with all the pockets... and perfect fabric choices!
    And I LOVE your menu...my mouth is watering!
    Such a fun idea to have a night picnic... fantastic photos!

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  40. Fabulous picnic blanket! What great ideas you had for pockets, etc. for holding all the picnic necessities - I loved the addition of the games, too. Best way to have ants on the picnic are the kind you included!

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  41. I really like your picnic quilt, just lovely. Having a midnight picnic so romantic.

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Thank you for any little comment about my work or my blog. I am an old quilter, but a new blogger who loves to learn, improve and connect!