I've been flagging a little on the quilting front. Yes, there have been round robins and Block Lotto blocks, and a few other bits and pieces, but nothing that qualifies as a "project". This is partly due to a natural winding down on my part as I've packed away my quilting frame and an (hopefully) preparing to pack out a lot more in preparation for house renovations in the new year. Another limitation is that I am determined to use up some of the fabrics in my stash and frankly, I don't like some of them or at least I don't know what to do with them.
But creative salvation came in the form of a pregnant co-worker. I haven't known her that long, but she is sweet and has been such a great help in recent weeks. I thought a baby quilt was just the thing to get me motivated to do something small and manageable.
Ages ago I toyed with the idea of a doing a modern inspired Dresden quilt. Some of the Monday Modern girls recently attended a Modern Wedge workshop with Kathy Doughty and have been making some beautiful blocks. In my usual way, I could not just follow that pattern, so I did some online browsing and designed a block that suited my purposes.
I did a few things to make this block: I only used 12 wedges (30-degree angle) which meant less pieces to deal with and a better size wedge to feature the fabrics. Half of the wedges are in the feature fabrics and the others are cut from a strip of white with a 1" lime green insert. I put the lime green in a different position on each white strip and then cut the triangles by flip-flopping them to end up with 2 sets of white wedges from each strip. I used a similar method for my Hexa-bee quilt.
The other thing I did was add setting triangles to the corners to square up the block so that I only had to trim a bit off.
The feature fabrics are from my stash. My friend does not know the gender of her baby, so I had to pick something that would work for a boy or girl. My girl loves blue and green and I seem to have many blue/green animal prints in my drawers. Once I picked them out, the green was a natural partner and I was off and running.
I have made 6 blocks that each finish at 15-1/2". I think that 31" X 46-1/2" is not a bad size, but I wonder if a border or sashing might be needed to break things up a bit. Or maybe just a border to make it a touch bigger.
I admit that I like these blocks so much that I was tempted to keep them for myself and start something else for my friend. I know that I can always replicate this block, but I never do the same thing twice, so it seems unlikely.
Linking up with Lee at Freshly Pieced.
I love this design! So whimsical and fun for a baby quilt! Your so sweet to make this for your co-worker. I like how the blocks meet, so I'm not sure I'd add sashing, but a border couldn't hurt.
ReplyDeleteGreat design and the colors are really good for either boy or girl.
ReplyDeleteHooray for not following a pattern. These are super blocks, I can see why it will be hard to part with them.
ReplyDeleteI like your blocks, the best gifts are the ones you dont want to give away,
ReplyDeleteThese blocks are looking lovely! I like how the blocks meet in the middle with the same lime green fabric you've used for the inserts, it all flows beautifully!
ReplyDeleteVery fun blocks and the fabric choices are perfect for a baby.
ReplyDeleteLovely blocks which look great butting up to one another. Your colleague will be thrilled with this baby quilt.
ReplyDeleteWhat a sweet, fun quilt.
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