Finally, let it begin

If you've been following me from the beginning, you may remember this post from November, when I announced I was soon to be starting my first quilt. Well, Christmas hit, followed by my sister's bridal shower and wedding, and it wasn't long before February rolled around (and almost out the door), but now I FINALLY have a chance to revisit my little (read: big, exciting) project. And this time, I'm really going to do it.

The fabrics (Cosmo Cricket's Early Bird collection) are the same, but I've decided to change the pattern. Back in November, I'd decided to do Elizabeth Hartman's birthday quilt for my first one. I still really like that quilt, and if this one goes well, perhaps it'll get made at some point, but a few weeks ago I finally bought Elizabeth's new book, The Practical Guide to Patchwork.

It's wonderful. Total eye candy throughout, just like Elizabeth's blog, Oh, Fransson!, and she does a fantastic job of explaining the entire quilting process, from choosing fabrics to assembling and binding the quilt, which was especially important to me as a newbie quilter. Then, I started flipping through the quilt projects in the back and found this one:

After debating between this one, the birthday cake quilt, and another project from the book (and asking multiple opinions), it was clear that this was the perfect quilt. The book says it's for a "confident beginner," and while I'm not sure I'm that, it doesn't look too overwhelming. It's a good size, and I like how it uses big blocks of fabric, so you'll really be able to see everything, especially my favorite print:

The fabrics are washed and ironed, and this weekend I'm heading out to find the solids for the sashing. I can't wait to get started!