Quilting the Tree of Life

I have put aside the prairie point blocks (all cut out and ready to go) and started quilting the Tree of Life quilt!  The center is complete, and I had been really torn about what to do with the outer border.  I love the braided border and wanted something to fit the theme of the quilt while not overpowering the lovely outer border.

A while back I saw that Quilty Pleasures had a series called Stop, Drop, and Roll Quilt-a-long.  She had a few awesome yet simple quilting designs to practice, and I really loved the swirly feathery design she posted.  The way I quilt, if I put the outer edge under the needle, the design would have been counterclockwise.  The braided border goes clockwise on the quilt.  I didn't want that.  I emailed Debby and she graciously replied.  She suggested I quilt the border from the back of the quilt!  Light bulb!  By quilting the border upside down, the direction of the swirly feathers would be in the same direction as the braid.

Here I go!  I used my walking foot to quilt around the outer edge of the quilt so I knew where my boundaries were.  The design is a bit tedious so I am doing one bobbin a night.  By the time I can start quilting, it is late and my eyes are already buggy from being tired.  Still, it should be done rather quickly.  I love that you don't have to be careful about tracing your own lines.  It really has some whimsy to it!

I have one side complete now, and after that I have a little more to do with my walking foot, and then the quilting is done!  I can't wait to share pictures!

P.S.  The specific tutorial I used can be found here.