For Melvin

  Phew.  I made it.  I'm sitting in the Atlanta airport now waiting to board the plane to South Africa and I'm happy.  I finished the last of the quilts for our trip last night and they're all packed in a bag and ready to be delivered in about 10 days when we head to Londolozi.  

This is the first one I made.  It's for Melvin - our ranger on safari.  He's the wonderful man who is behind the steering wheel of the Land Rover when we go out on our game drives.  He knows the names and histories of all the animals.  He has a way of making you feel completely natural and comfortable with the fact that there are animals that could kill you without trying within arm's reach.  He's fantastic with kids.  He has an easy laugh and a great way of saying "baby".  He makes a killer sunset gin & tonic.  I'm so excited to see him again.  

The pattern was taken directly from the Free Spirit Fabrics website on the David Butler fabric page.  The quilt seemed so perfect - and so perfect for Melvin - that the only thing I changed was the fabric they suggested for binding.  Back is scraps left over from the front, Kona Pepper and Robert Kaufman's Quilter's Linen in Taupe.  

I'll have more to show soon.  How soon all depends on what my internet access is like when I get there. Until South Africa,

xoxoxox