Quilt top finished

Cowboys quilt top

Snakeskin/lasso blocks

Trying out button fabric as narrow border

Barbed wire/button block

All pieced blocks on design wall

Trying out folded up cowboy fabric

Cowboy squares on design wall

Blocks sewn in rows

Blocks sewn together

Close-up

Narrow button border added

Close-up

Quilt top finished

Close-up

Last night I finished the top of Cowboys quilt. I like it. I’m glad I decided to use a narrow strip of button fabric before I attached the wide outer border. It adds a little somethin’-somethin’ and makes the four small squares of the same fabric seem more deliberate and not so thrown in.

The fabric that got away

On the way home tonight I bought batting at Joann’s, then headed to Beverly’s for backing. I’d had my eye out for a sunset looking striped fabric with silhouetted trees and a lavender stripe. I thought it would go well with the cowboy theme. When I got to the store, it was gone. Employee Maria, who happens to be the sister of one of my co-workers, said she sold all of the fabric to a customer last week. Bummer!

I spent a lot of time looking at other possibilities, especially in the clearance. I finally decided to get the same light purple star fabric that’s used in the quilt top. I’ll put it in the center of the back, then attach some leftover fabric to the sides to fill in. I’ve chosen the cowboys, the lasso and the barbed wire. I’ll sew the back together tomorrow night, then begin a pillowcase finish.

Design notes

See more progress on: Make cowboy quilt