Meet Zoe the Zebra Baby Quilt

Zoe the Zebra is our most recent baby quilt. We were happy to make one for the newest member of our littles collection. Colt is becoming a big brother soon. He was so darn cute announcing it to us in his Big Brother shirt.

The inspiration for Zoe came from the previous animal quilts we’ve made. Ellie the elephant for Dominic, George the giraffe for Addison, Clarke the bear cub for Colt, and Lucy the lion for Chase. We wouldn’t repeat an animal and it needed to go with the bedding already purchased. We could choose between a monkey or a zebra. Zebra?!! In a hot minute, the whole quilt concept was finalized for Zoe.

Zoe Inspiration Image

We looked through several patterns from the plethora that we own for the perfect image to represent Zoe. She couldn’t be too realistic or look unfriendly.

Then we stumbled on this image. Zoe is smiling; Zoe has just the right amount of stripes to convey zebra; Zoe has tousled hair just as a young baby might. Even the sweet little pink checks are perfect. Hi, Zoester. You are just the perfect buddy to listen to and comfort our baby-to-be.

Zoe Fabric Selection

Nicole gave us a color palette of green to focus on. Of course, it goes without saying that a zebra is black and white. Green, black, and white with two spots of pink will be fun to work with. As overachievers, we just had to introduce a few more basic colors beyond green, though. Naturally.

Sue got busy selecting the fabric for the grass, zebra, and sky. It wasn’t long before she handed me the bottom section of Zoe and I got busy appliqueing. Did you know that zebra enjoy eating grass?

Zoe Needs a Border

After finishing the applique, we knew we wanted a black sashing to separate the center from the outer border. It also helps us to bring the center to a size amenable for adding the border pieces. After that, we asked Nicole which pattern she would enjoy using the half-square-triangles we created.

Ribbons, mountains, partial flying geese . . . the choices are endless with HSTs but in the end, Nicole chose a ribbon-esque border.

Zoe Quilting Design Choice

Before you know it, we took a trip to Ken and Carol’s for a wee bit of quilting. We stepped outside our normal panto box of Loop the Loop and went with Counting Sheep. Wow, weren’t we brave?!!

Here’s the first row on the frame. It was finished and off the frame in under an hour and a half. That has to be a record for us . . . but who keeps track?!

Zoe for a Sprinkle Finish

We held a small sprinkle (not a full-fledged baby shower) for Nicole. Just the girls could come – no boys allowed, which annoyed Dominic. He announced they were having a boys-only sprinkle but all of us would be invited since we made the food. Addison was tickled pink to attend the sprinkle, and even more so to help Auntie Cole hold up the quilt for a picture.

It won’t be long now until the baby is here. They will be covered and wrapped in our love with a good friend to speak to whenever they want. We chose a balloon-filled fabric as the backing in calming shades of gray and green on white.

We cannot wait to meet our littest little. In the meantime, we’ll enjoy time with the other four littles until school starts. Happy Friday to you! Bye for now.

♥ ♥ ♥

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