Silva Rhetoricae - Crumbs quilt finish

Silva Rhetoricae - The Forest of Rhetoric
60.5 x 77", big enough for a twin-size quilt.
Otherwise known as the "Crumbs" quilt.  Jo's Country Junction sponsored the quilt-along, and it was an idea I just loved, so I ran with it.  I got every student and almost every staff member at Cedar Tree to sign it, and it's been donated to the fundraising auction scheduled for May 11.  Here it is, actually at school, where I hung it up on the bulletin board known as "Verbland" for the photo shoot.

It has a pieced backing, and you can see a little of my quilting this way: I did free-form meander quilting with occasional loops around signatures and outlines around trees and stars, and the angular "tree" quilting along the inner border is supposed to suggest the forest theme without being too literal.  I also put in a hanging sleeve, in case whoever buys it wants to display it.  I do that for all my quilts unless I'm sure they will only be used on beds.

A mid-range shot so you can see a variety of blocks together.  I tried to stagger my tree blocks throughout the quilt, to give the feel of a nice little park where all the schoolkids are having a picnic.

Senior boys hanging out under one tree...

The Free Parking spot was very popular.

Proof that it's really finished -- the label!

Here are some of the kids who will benefit if there's a bidding war... 7th grade taking a practice National Latin Exam.  You can see Verbland without a quilt in front of it.

The seniors use room 202 for their working lunch each day.  Wouldn't it be nice to send one of them off to college with a one-of-a-kind memento of Cedar Tree?

I'm thinking a lot about my late mother today.  She died of breast cancer on Groundhog's Day 8 years ago.  My teaching, my parenting, my crafting, and my writing are so much influenced by her that it's hard sometimes to tell what is uniquely my own.  I think she would be pleased with what I'm doing in life and on the internet.  But then, she was always an easy sell!  I know she would be pleased to learn that the Susan G. Komen foundation has stopped funding Planned Parenthood, the largest abortion provider in the country.  It should go without saying that fighting breast cancer and killing babies should have nothing in common, but I'm glad Susan G. Komen has recognized that officially and I can support it in good conscience now.