bloom

Hi! Jacquie here. My first goal for the new year is to tackle ufo's from 2008. So, I'm back in class and making progress. My project is a vase with log cabin flowers. It started with this vase. I added more to the opening as Tonya suggested to make it easier to piece in the stems.
Then came piecing in the flowers. Here's where I got stuck and and finally after reading Tonya's suggestion and studying her diagram I was able to piece in the flowers and stems. I really wanted three flowers, but after hours of drawing and sewing and ripping I settled for two.
Then I tackled some letters. b l o o m. Can you read it? I didn't get them as "free" as I wanted. They are a bit straight for me. I think I was concentrating so hard on the piecing I forgot about making them wonkier.
So here it is. "bloom". It's 19" x 38". Definitely bigger than I was planning. Well, I didn't REALLY have a plan. I do think it's fun and whimsical and will make a nice wall hanging. My only disappointment is that the background fabric is just cheap, thin, muslin. I started this as an experiment, never thinking it would be a piece I would love. The backing will be Alexander Henry's beach stripe and I haven't chosen a binding yet. Maybe polka dots?

The question I have for you is how would you quilt this? I really don't want to mess it up. Any ideas would be appreciated. It's been fun catching up on all your projects. Lots of very cool stuff! I'll look for your ideas and hopefully be back soon with a finish.