Kantha Sew Along Finish!

In the middle of May, I began hand-stitching a Kantha quilt when I joined the 2022 Alison Glass Stitch Club Kantha Sew Along. I finished it Saturday, August 20. 

In my four decades (plus) of quiltmaking, I've never spent more time hand-stitching any quilt than I have this 54" X 75" Kantha. Even hubs, who usually doesn't pay attention to what I'm working on, recently remarked, "Isn't that thing dead yet?!" 

Last week I knotted all the thread ends and clipped off the tails. 

Then I finished each side of the quilt by turning in the sides and securing them with a hand overcast stitch.

I'm sure I spent an inordinate amount of time stitching not only because I'm slow, but I quilted rows more densely together than necessary. Rows are about ¼" to ⅜" apart.

Though Kantha is usually made with a single front layer of fabric and a single back layer (no batting), a pre-washed layer of flannel is in between the front and back of mine. That's because prints on the front were shadowing through the yellow fabric on the back. The flannel didn't make it any more difficult to stitch. 

Fabric on the back is mostly this yellow Paintbrush Studios prairie cloth...

...but I also pieced in this busy Sally Kelly print. 

When viewed outdoors in the natural light, the texture can't be missed! 

I chose hand-embroidered words for the back that are from the Bible:  A glad heart makes a happy face; (...a broken heart crushes the spirit). Proverbs 15:13 

"glad heart. happy face."

Even though I can't reach the lower branches of our Bismarck palm for quilt-hanging and photos,  it's nice to still see it above my quilt stand. 

Stitch Club Kantha Quilt, 54" X 75"

Since this quilt took so long to make, I did some number-crunching when I finished it. I hand stitched:

• 194 passes along the 75" length of the quilt (not counting the edge finish)
• an average of 145 stitches in each pass
• making a total of approximately 30,066 stitches

I emptied these balls and a spool of #8 Eleganza perle cotton, and several #8 Prescensia Vinca.

Total quantity of thread used to make a 54" X 75" Kantha quilt:

• 15,268" that's equal to 
• 424 yards that's equal to 
• .241 miles of perle cotton (.388K) 

Wonderfil and Prescensia companies must certainly love me! I'm happy to call it done, and relieved to be finished before the August 31 deadline. Linda