Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Big Blocks

A few months ago I ordered a fat quarter bundle off of Etsy.  To be totally honest, I don't even remember what fabric I ordered.  What I do remember is a tiny scrap of fabric that I got with my package.  It couldn't have been more than 2"x3", but the pattern was too cute to ignore!  So I scoured the internet and even contacted the Etsy seller who sent me the scrap, only to find that the fabric is discontinued! It was a paisley from from the Prints Charming line Rainbow Garden.
Now fast forward a few months to a visit with my sister. I was headed to her office for lunch, and had a little time to kill.  Knowing where the nearest yarn and quilt shops were, I headed in that direction. After browsing their newest fabrics I headed upstairs where they kept the older fabric lines.....and that's where I found some Rainbow Garden! They had several prints in both colorways, and lots of it.  I chose my favorite 3 prints and headed for the cutting line. I ended up with 2 yards of the paisley print and 1 yard each of the teal print and the plaid. (I'm hoping that on my next visit this fabric will have made it's way to the sale corner-they really had a ton of it left!)
When I pulled out these prints to work on a quilt, I couldn't imagine chopping them up into tiny pieces. The way the artists play with color and mimic screen printing (which is how they got started, I believe) is lost when the prints are broken down.  So I went with a very basic design involving 5" strips of the prints with 2.5" strips of grey on either side. That brought my blocks to a whopping 20" square, and the whole quilt measures 60"x80"!
This is also the first quilt that I quilted on my Bernina rather than the Grace frame/Juki set up that I was using. I think it went pretty well for an inaugural run!
Oh, and I didn't even mention the best part about these fabrics-they were printed on a shirting so they are so incredibly soft. I almost couldn't combine them with the kona that I used for my grey strips!
Quilt front: I used the grey strips to create the illusion of my printed strips "floating"
 Quilt back with a little bit of piecing
 Detail shot of my QuiltyGirl label and a hand written label
 Giant paisleys! <3
  A close up of the front

This quilt is now in sunny San Diego! My first college roomie is an AMAZING wedding photographer out there, and this is her 30th bday/"thanks for being such an awesome friend" gift. If you're ever in the need of a photographer, look her up. I follow her blog, and her photos are so beautiful they make me wish I was getting married now! She also does a lot of traveling for clients, for those of us who don't live in CA. :) In fact, I'm secretly hoping that when my sister and her boyfriend decide to get married I can bring Melissa out to the midwest as their photographer. She also does engagement, family and baby photos.

I traveled around Peoria a bit with this quilt before I sent it off. I couldn't pass up the opportunity to snap a few pictures of the quilt around town. Just don't compare my pictures to Melissa's!
This first picture was taken on Grandview Drive overlooking the Illinois river. This is one of my favorite views in Peoria.  I love being able to stand in the middle of the city and look out at the farms and wide open spaces.
 This last picture was taken in East Peoria overlooking the Illinois River at downtown Peoria. Hey, look at that, there's the Spirit of Peoria. Ha! We're so fancy...

Don't forget to head over to Quilt Story for their Fabric Tuesday.  My Christmas tree napkins from last week are being featured today!

14 comments:

Kristie said...

I love the colors in this one, and the big bold patterns. Nice use of the fabric, I think you highlighted it well!

Emily said...

This is gorgeous! :) Great work!

Christie describeHappy said...

I like when a fabric inspires a quilt! I also really enjoyed your photography -- stunning!! Congrats on having your napkins featured, they too are really pretty!

dot•dot•blog said...

I LOVE that fabric! I hope there were some leftovers that are making their way into my Christmas present ;)

Elizabeth Dackson said...

I adore that paisley, it's gorgeous! And your photography was amazing. I love quilt pictures like these, they always make me smile. Great work!

MM said...

Awww Yay! i love that my new quilt has such a great back story to it! I will treasure the gift always, you are so talented!

DD Lindsey said...

Clicked on your link over at Quiltstory...love love LOVE your Big Blocks Quilt! I am officially your newest follower :)

CREATIVE DISORGANIZATION said...

I luv that print and am shall I have seen it on my ciber travells...I was at the Dr's a few weeks ago and found some nice pattern in a mag just like that...I asked the lady if I could copy them, but she said 'Take the book'...yippee to me! Your quilt reminds me of thr 'Fandango' range!

Diane said...

Love that print! Don't you love it when you have a fabric in mind and it shows up unexpectedly?

Naturally Carol said...

I really enjoy the big blocks in quilting today, the boldness and the ability to really enjoy the fabric just as it is are a great bonus I think. Lovely quilt!

Janine said...

Wow, your quilts are amazing! Thanks for the tip on stamps! I am definitely checking the website out!

Quiltstory said...

I love the colors! and the big blocks showcase the fabric so well! Thanks for linking up to Quiltstory!

Anna said...

ooo, love it. and this line is one of my favs!!! I'm saving mine up for a quilt but I was hoping to get my hands on more of the 70s rainbow garden print. :)

Kathleen W. said...

Oh, I love it! That paisley fabric is quite a find...too bad it was discontinued. That is one gorgeous quilt.