Monthly Archives: August 2014
Far Far Away – Finished
Happy Labor Day weekend! Before the official end of summer, and the end of August, I’ve managed to finish one last quilt with the Far Far Away baby quilt. It’s been a busy and productive quilt making month here in Brooklyn. This one has now been moved to the finished pile and will soon be listed in the Etsy shop.
As I mentioned here and here , I had a charm pack of the Heather Ross Far Far Away collection that was perfect for a baby quilt.
I wanted to do something a little softer looking and went with a gray background rather than something bright. This quilt is definitely not as bold as some of my more recent projects, but I really like the mellower look. I used the same gray (Kona Cotton Shadow) for the back and I used Kona Cotton Pansy for the purple binding.
The Far Far Away collection has so many beautiful colors which make for lots of options if you are pairing a solid with it. Now that I’ve made this baby quilt, I’m itching to get my hands on more of the collection and make something a little larger in size. Has anyone else made anything with Far Far Away yet?
Colorado Boy – Finished
Last month I had a special request to make a baby boy quilt for a family in Colorado. The only two design requirements were to make it a strip quilt and to use gray. Easy enough! This is what I came up with:
Since it is for a baby boy, I decided I had to throw in some blue, but rather than use bright blues I chose blues that are mostly a little darker and have some gray in them. I did throw in the one shade of bright blue to add a little pop.
I think the different shades of blues and grays make for a very modern looking baby quilt.
And surprise! There are two.
I had just enough fabric left to make a second quilt so it is currently in-progress. The second one will be listed in my Etsy shop when it’s done.
The two are (of course) not exactly alike in the front or the back. The baby quilt that is on its way to Colorado has a dark blue backing while the one for the Etsy shop will have a pale gray back. I’ll let you know when the second one is finished!
Sherbet Dreams – Finished
I’m on a roll finishing quilts this month. Yesterday was the Hopscotch quilt and today is Sherbet Dreams.
This quilt is bright, bright, bright! But I think the colors are really fun and very summery.
Like I often do, I pieced together larger pieces of fabric I used from the front of the quilt for the back.
I’ll probably add this quilt to my Etsy store so keep your eye out for it.
Hopscotch – Finished
The Hopscotch quilt is finished.
You might remember that I was thinking about adding a boarder to this quilt, but in the end I decided to leave it alone. I took the less is more approach.
For the back, I pieced together a large floral print from the front and also some solids.
I have the Sherbet Dreams quilt finished, too and that one is up next!
Purple + Teal
My purple and teal color experiment turned out way better than I thought it would. Now that this quilt top is complete, I really like the look of it – more than I thought I would. And the best news is that the color combination is not as much of an early 90s throwback as I thought it would be.
This is another baby quilt because I only had enough fabric for that size. Now the only thing left is to decide what to do for the back. Because there’s so much going on in the front, I might go with a solid for the back, but that is still TBD. I do think I’m going to keep it in the purple color family.
One of the solids used in the quilt is Kona Cotton in plum, and I usually like to coordinate a fabric from the front for the backs of my quilts so plum could be what I go with. Or maybe I’ll mix it up this time and try something different. I might have to think on this one for a bit.
P.S. I don’t have a name for this one yet so for now it’s being referred to as Purple + Teal. If you have any name suggestions, feel free to share!
Boxed In Baby
Remember last year when I made this quilt I called Boxed In? I had some blocks leftover and always planned to use them to make a baby quilt, and it has finally happened.
I still love this fabric. Most of it is Dear Stella’s Piper collection and I think the prints are so fun and the colors are so great.
For the back, I had a large piece of the Piper floral print that I broke up by adding a solid purple strip through it. I also needed just a bit more length so adding the purple strip was my solution.
Now that this baby quilt is done, it will be added to my Etsy shop just as soon as I get to it!
Far Far Away
I’m checking in to share my Far Far Away quilt top. As I mentioned on Monday , I had a charm pack of the Heather Ross Far Far Away collection and I thought it would best be used as a baby quilt. The collection is perfect for it and I had just the right amount of fabric.
I wanted to do something a little softer looking so I went with a gray background for the blocks. I admit it’s looking a little dull right now, but I still have high hopes that this one is going to come together well. I also think some of the dullness is my poor photography skills!
It’s kind of hard to see in the photos, but the squares are not completely centered in all of the blocks. I wanted to make it a little less perfect looking so the Far Far Away squares are placed in different parts of each block.
Even though there’s already a lot of gray, I plan to use the same gray for the back. I’ve been using a lot of bright and bold colors in my quilts lately and I’m in the mood for a more subtle look. So gray it is!
Color Experimentation
I’m experimenting with a new color combination that I have not tried before: purple and teal.
Scratch that. Now that I think about it, I have combined purple and teal before but I think it was sometime back in the late 80s/early 90s when I wanted to redo my room with both these colors. My tween self thought they were the most beautiful colors ever and a perfect color choice for a bedroom makeover. So I guess I do have experience combining purple and teal, just not when it comes to quilt making.
I came to this color epiphany when I was putting together fabric piles for my next quilts and noticed that I had some prints that included both colors. I started pulling some other fabrics in those colors and realized I had enough to make a quilt. Now, although I have enough to make a quilt, that does not mean it’s the right thing to do.
I have to confess that I’ve been looking at this pile of fabric and really questioning myself. Am I crazy to make a purple and teal quilt? Will it be obnoxious looking? Am I trying to relive my youth?
Right now, I’m thinking I’m going to go with it and see what happens. If it turns out bad, I’ll chalk it up to a good learning experience.
I’m now off to listen to some New Kids on the Block and start this purple/teal experiment.
Far Far Away
In June when I attended the Heather Ross rooftop crafting event, we all received a charm pack of some of her fabric. I chose her Far Far Away collection and I have been staring at the fabric for the past couple of months deciding what I want to do with it.
I have finally made up my mind and have started putting a sweet little baby quilt together. These fabrics are so great and perfect for a baby quilt. Now that I’m working with them, I want fat quarters of the entire collection!
This quilt top is coming together pretty quickly so stay tuned for an update.
