Hard Days Work

For many years, my husband worked outside and went through a lot of jeans.  They'd get stained, ripped, worn out, painted on, you name it. It seemed like such a waste to throw all of that naturally weathered material away, so I started saving it.  I managed to accumulate enough to make 2 quilts that are very useful for picnics because of their weight and durability (don't want a cactus sticker poking through :P).

This one is called, "Hard Days Work" because of the origin of the material, and I used a log cabin pattern. I wasn't sure how it would turn out, but I cut as I went and tried to mix up the worn colors as best as I could.
I am really happy with how it turned out.  The black squares provided a center-piece for each block, and then the black sashing that frames each block kind of finishes them.  I don't usually skip borders, but I felt like this quilt didn't need it (and it was getting pretty heavy already).

I did, however, really want to complete a denim back, which kind of turned into its own quilt because of the diagonal piecing and the worn and weathered attributes of the denim. I love the back as much as the front.

Rather than trying to quilt this (way too thick and heavy for my machine to handle) I decided to just tie it with yarn. I chose a coral-colored yarn left over from another tying project I completed for a friends baby quilt. I also didn't bind it, but rather sewed the back and front together and turned it right-side-out and hand-sewed the opening.

Now I am ready to do it again.  I have found new pattern ideas and I am restocking my denim.  Unfortunately, my husband isn't going through denim like he used to, so it's going to be a slower process for sure.