The Rocky Road to Dublin

In 2011, when I qualified for my first worlds championships as a soloist, I was working at my local public library.  One of my favorite pastimes there was leafing through the quilting pattern books when I was supposed to be shelving.  A short time after I returned from Dublin, I decided I needed something cool and unique to put my worlds patch on, so I decided on a quilt.  Call it luck, call it destiny, but one evening when I picked up a book on scrap quilts using five-inch squares, I flipped right to a pattern called The Rocky Road to Dublin.

Having myself had a rocky road to Dublin, I could not have found a more appropriate pattern.  I didn't know if I qualified, I had only heard rumors that I was going to since I was next in line and there might be an adjudicating conflict.  I was left in suspense until mid-January when the official judges list was released.  

Finally, I can show off my hard work here.  This quilt has taken until now (the almost exact two year anniversary of the day I danced solos) to finish because of various excuses I don't care to list all here, but foremost being: look at all those tiny pieces.  I had to cut them out and sew them all together.

I love that this pattern takes a traditional quilt block (Irish chain) and fancies it up.

There are also little shamrocks quilted into the fabric!

Of course, on tag on the back, I included my worlds patch.

If you're interested in making a quilt of this pattern, an online link can be found right here.

Goals: Drill reel 2nd ending many times
Days till NANs: 46