This is a story about Charlie’s adventure. I shared this story once before when I made the quilt top. That was so many years ago that I thought would share the story one more time, along with the finished quilt.
Charlie is my sweet little orange kitty who, contrary to everyone’s belief, has a sweet tooth that would rival anyone. He would do anything to get a lick of ice-cream, watermelon, sweetened cream, or anything else sweet you can think of.
One day, Charlie learned that on All Hallows Eve, if he puts on a wizard’s hat and a bow tie and sits very very quietly amongst the Jack-O-Lanterns, magic leaves will come and carry him to the Land of the Seven Sisters who would give him lots and lots of sweets to eat. So he came to me and asked if I would make him a hat and a bow tie. I was happy to oblige.
As the evening approached, he donned his starry hat and bow tie, smartly walked outside, sat down in the pumpkin patch and waited very patiently.
Charlie has a very bossy sister and two very clueless brothers. They all love to play with Charlie. His sister specially loves Charlie and keeps a wary eye on him at all times. Charlie excitedly told her all about his plan. She didn’t really believe him, but she was not about to let him sit outside all alone either. Who knew what peril would befall her brother! She was also not going to leave the other two out of sight, because then she would have to spend the rest of the night looking for all of them if they got lost. So the bossy sister pushed the disgruntled brothers out the door and all of them surreptitiously waited a little distance away from little Charlie as the sun sank below the horizon.
They waited and waited and waited some more. Then, when everything had gone quiet, all the kids had gone home after their Trick-Or-Treat runs and the Jack-O-Lanterns were about to go out, they heard a rustle and a swoosh. Suddenly they were off, all four of them, carried away on gigantic leaves! These were no ordinary leaves, of course! On each one of them, a different adventure awaited the little kitties. They stayed together, hopped around and rolled from leaf to leaf, played, and had amazing fun.
All this time, while they were busy playing, the leaves carried them onward and upward to the Land of the Seven Sisters. By the time the little kitties got there, they were exhausted. They sat in the midst of stars and each had their favourite food to eat while watching the Jack-O-Lantern-lit Earth turning down below. Charlie had his most favourite sweets to eat that day and nobody was going to stop him. Slowly as the night got deeper, they fell asleep on top of each other and were carried gently and silently back down to earth, down to their soft, warm beds.
I had a wonderful time drawing, creating the layout, and designing the patterns for Charlie’s Adventure. I definitely had just as much fun as my little kitties. Charlie was all right with sharing the story with all of you as long as he and his beloved Papa could have the quilt.
Now I am really glad to have finished the quilt so that they can huddle under it together and dream of sweet things.
For the most part I did wavy quilting to depict the wind that blew them all to the Land of the Seven Sisters. I didn’t want to purchase new fabric for the binding, so I used some lime green material that I happened to have at hand. Although I had originally had a purple binding in mind, I rather like this one.
One day I would love to illustrate this story for a book.
As you know, Charlie does tend to come up a lot in my stories and artwork. This is a sketch I made of him trying to climb a wall. “Trying” being the operative word.
Last week I shared a little story about how he was one of the helpers of the Winter Fairy. You can read that little story here.
Charlie sat and supervised as I wrote the story. Actually, he was trying to convince me to give him some sweet treats. He was most disappointed when that didn’t work, “Nobody at home ever gives me anything!” So he went off to bed to dream about his special All Hallows Eve adventure while snoozing with his pumpkin. Supposedly the pumpkin gives him sweet dreams.
Although he is now 17 years old, he is still the perpetual kitten of our home and continues to make us laugh with his antics. Also, much to his chagrin, he gets smothered in hugs and kisses all the time, despite loudly claiming that “he is a grown-up boy who should NOT be hugged and kissed”.
Whether you read it today for the first time, or re-read it, I do hope you enjoyed the story, even though it is out of season.
Until then,
-Soma
P.S. I always get asked – the patterns are available in my shop.
I am linking up with the linky parties on my Events And Links page. Please pay a visit to some of them. They are a fabulous bunch!
44 thoughts on “Charlie’s Adventure”
dee June 25, 2021 at 20:04
Lovely quilt.
Handsome Charlie.
And super-cute story of the orange sweet tooth. :)
Connie Griffin June 22, 2021 at 06:56
Awww Charlie sounds a lot like our orange kitty Opie :) Wow your quilt is amazing, you did a beautiful job on it, and such a cute story to go along with it :)
Archie The Wonder Dog June 9, 2021 at 07:40
I loved the story and the quilt – hooray for finishes! *waves pompoms* Thanks for Furtling!
Tanza Erlambang June 9, 2021 at 07:08
fantastic images…. and wonderful adventure…. love it
handmade by amalia June 7, 2021 at 20:51
This is a wonderful story. I admire an adventurous cat and the quilt is fantastic.
Amalia
xo
RachelSwirl June 5, 2021 at 05:56
Wow! That is some incredible work, I love all things Halloween so I ADORE THIS! Thanks for sharing and for linking up with #MySundaySnapshot.
Sarah MumofThree World June 4, 2021 at 23:37
What a beautiful story and the quilt looks amazing!
#mysundayphoto
My Corner of the World June 3, 2021 at 23:13
I’m so glad you re-shared your awesome story and photos.
Our cat does like sweets, but he really enjoys some popcorn with me, too :)
Thanks for sharing your link at ‘My Corner of the World’ this week!
Michelle Keltner June 3, 2021 at 16:06
That quilt is beautiful and sweet to see Charlie. Thanks for linking up and have a great weekend.
Alison Hall June 3, 2021 at 12:38
Wow! This is amazing Soma!
Darren Coleshill June 2, 2021 at 11:52
Wow that quilt is incredible, so vibrant too
Thank you for linking up to #MySundayPhoto
A ShutterBug Explores June 1, 2021 at 09:29
Your story and artwork are wonderful and I love Charlie ~ what a sweetie ~ Xo
Living moment by momen,
A ShutterBug Explores,
aka (A Creative Harbor)
Carol S. June 1, 2021 at 06:17
This is such a sweet story and your art and quilt are beautiful!
Patty June 1, 2021 at 04:30
Love the quilt. Thanks for linking up with Elm Street Quilts One Monthly Goal and congrats on your finish.
Anne June 1, 2021 at 00:55
Charlie is one handsome cat and I’m glad he gives you so much inspiration. The quilt is amazing and your story delightful, I’m in total awe of all your talents.
Little Wandering Wren May 31, 2021 at 20:29
Soma – both you and Charlie are adorable please give him a special cuddle from me and slip him some ice cream if you would! Fabulous quilt and story definitely deserves to be made into a book!
Wren x
Angie May 31, 2021 at 20:01
Soma – a delightful story, and a quilt to go with it! What more could one want? So lovely to have you return to Mosaic Monday – your talent is much appreciated!
NatureFootstep May 31, 2021 at 15:00
Love your art and story about Charlie. The quilt is gorgeous and so are the drawings. :)
Sam May 31, 2021 at 04:15
How lovely to tell a story through the material. Gorgeous detail as well x #mysundayphoto
Kim Carberry May 30, 2021 at 05:45
Aww! What a cute story and the quilt looks brilliant! Great work x
Caro May 30, 2021 at 04:52
Your story is adorable and I love your beautiful quilt
Calendula May 30, 2021 at 02:19
Love the quilt, the paintings, the gorgeous story and your special cat! Just everything! Thanks for sharing!
John Adams May 30, 2021 at 00:00
17 years old. wow, quite an age! Amazing quilt and imagintaive story and love the illustrations also. #MySUndayPhoto
The Joyful Quilter May 28, 2021 at 18:54
Congrats on getting Charlie’s quilt finished! Thanks for sharing that sweet story, too.
Nicole/DVArtist May 28, 2021 at 14:00
This is a wonderful post. It’s nice that Charlie has been your muse for 17 years. The quilt is gorgeous as is your art. I look forward to seeing the ink art next week. Have a great weekend.
Wendy K May 28, 2021 at 12:45
Gorgeous quilt and paintings, I love your cat adventures.
Linda K May 28, 2021 at 10:53
beautiful quilt and a wonderful story! Charlie is so sweet. Happy PPF!
Sherrie May 28, 2021 at 10:10
Hi,
Beautiful quit…love all the components that make up this
quilt. Have a great day!
Linda Calverley May 28, 2021 at 09:00
Lovely quilt and story.
Kathleen Kingsbury May 28, 2021 at 08:04
Love the story and the quilt, and that binding sets it off perfectly!
Christine May 28, 2021 at 06:29
Sweet story and a lovely quilt
riitta k May 28, 2021 at 05:20
Oh, such a wonderful story about Charlie’s and his siblings’ adventure. The quilt is so beautiful that I truly believe some magic can happen with its help! So, so cute <3 Thank you for sharing enjoy the weekend with all of your kitties.
Anesha May 28, 2021 at 05:10
What a handsome boy. Only fitting you capture his adventures. Love your quilt as well, amazing.
Valerie-Jael May 28, 2021 at 00:07
Fabulous story and love the quilt, and of course, Charlie as star of the show. What a lovely morning read this has been for me, thanks! Hugs, Valerie
Gillena Cox May 27, 2021 at 23:56
BRAVO!!!
lovely story, quilts awesome art
HAPPY PPF
(✿◠‿◠)
much love..
Lady Fi May 27, 2021 at 23:18
Wow – fabulous! You are very talented.
BLOGitse May 27, 2021 at 23:00
Lovely, lovely…all of this post!
Happy PPF!
Veronica Lee May 27, 2021 at 21:32
What a delightful story! Love the quilt.
Dixie May 27, 2021 at 19:52
A wonderful story and a lovely finish to the quilt
Charlie looks so beautiful and regal. His eyes are gorgeous too.
Looking forward to the illustrated story.
Mary May 27, 2021 at 18:20
I hope Charlie is feeling better these days. Your quilt turned out so cute and has a great story behind it. That green binding is wonderful. It’s so nice to see you blogging again.
Sue May 27, 2021 at 15:57
Wonde4ful story and quilt, Charlie is a very handsome cat. I hope you do get to create a book.
Kim May 27, 2021 at 14:15
I cannot wait to read the illustrated book, Soma. A fabulous quilt starring Charlie. The eyes of the adventurous kitties and jack-o-lantern glow. Charlie is a handsome fellow sitting there. He has a rather kingly look about him.
Lavender Dreams May 27, 2021 at 07:24
That is simply delightful and would make a wonderful story book! The colors and design…with a touch of mystery or magic, whatever you want to call it! I love it!
Becky Turner May 27, 2021 at 06:36
Love the story and the Quilt!!!
The cat eyes are such a great addition to the quilt and their place in the story.