Remember this rescue quilt?

About 2 1/2 years ago, I wrote a blog post and called it "Can this quilt be saved?" In it, I recounted the story of a college friend who entrusted her husband's well-loved (but badly damaged) childhood quilt to me to see if I could somehow restore it so that it could continue to be enjoyed and appreciated by their own children.

I must admit, I was a bit surprised by the responses that I received to that post. While I expected the posts that both admired my efforts and provided invaluable tips and advice on the cleaning and restoration process, I was a bit surprised by the number of people advising me not to try to alter the quilt too much and to avoid using modern fabrics in an effort to maintain the authenticity of the quilt. This being the first such project I had undertaken, I truly appreciated all of the feedback and it gave me a bit of pause as I decided how I wanted to proceed.

Ultimately, I stayed the course and finished the project according to my original plan. I remembered that my friend entrusted the quilt to me, with the implicit understanding that she trusted my judgment and my aesthetic in bringing it back to life. My original plan to infuse life into the vintage panel by pairing it with more modern (though vintage-inspired) prints was very much in keeping with my personal design style. If I loved it, then I could be fairly confident that their family would too.

Above, you can see a picture of the quilt after I was finished with my updates. I kept to a very simple courthouse steps / log cabin design in an effort to keep the focus on the sentimental middle panel. I absolutely love what the oliver + s prints brought to the project: a bit of whimsy with colors that really drew from the main panel.

The quilt finished at a nice toddler / cuddle size. I hope it's very happy in its new home, and that its owners are too!