Monday, March 29, 2021

Island Batik Challenge March 2021, Scrappy quilt

A scrappy quilt is right up my alley, so I've really had a great time working on this month's Island Batik Ambassador Challenge! 



 I've been saving 2 1/2 inch strips from the different collections I've worked with over the last 6 years specifically to make this quilt, so it was great timing to get it put together!  Island Batik, Hobbs Batting, Aurifil thread and Schmetz needles provided the materials I used in this quilt as part of the Island Batik Ambassador program, and I'll give you details about those as I tell you this quilt's story.

The pattern I used to make this quilt is "Reflections".  I designed this block as part of a blog hop years ago, and ended up writing it into a quilt pattern.  I've made several quilts in the smaller size (which is perfect for a strip pack), but always had in mind to make a large quilt because I think it's the perfect scrappy quilt pattern for 2 1/2 inch strips.  I used the Schetz Microtex needle and Aurifil thread for all the piecing (quite a few bobbins were emptied in the process!)



As I started designing quilt for the Island Batik catalog, I thought it would be a great idea to start saving 2 1/2 strips of the leftover fabrics to make a memory quilt of my projects.  Since I'm a big scrap saver, I even had fabric from my early years as an ambassador to add to my quilt!  See the bottom block, second from the left?  That's the scraps from my first Catalog design!  I think I'll have to make a diagram of all my blocks and write down what each one was from so I can always remember each of the collections I worked with.  Some of them are catalog quilts, some are challenge projects.  Some collections have more than one block.  I mostly used strips from one collection for each block, but I might mix them more when I make another one someday!  


I forgot to get pictures while I was laying out the blocks - I had to move my dining room table out to give me enough floor space so I could see all 49 blocks at the same time!  After playing a bit, I settled on a layout and added the border with the extra four patch units.  For this, I just added one side at a time, folding up the center of the quilt and deciding what blocks would look good around the edge.  I still have a nice sized stack of four patches left over that I think I'll make pillow shams with.


Since I was using the Hobbs Poly Down batting I received in my January 2021 Ambassador box I decided to take this quilt down to the quilt shop and quilt it on the Lenni.  I definitely could have quilted it on my Juki, but it was a bit easier and faster to do it this way, and since the month was nearly over I decided it was the way to go.  The Poly Down batting is dreamy soft and has a nice loft to it!  It quilted up like a dream on the long arm, and I saved the leftover batting to make pillows with - I'm excited to see what it's like to quilt with on my sit down machine.


About five hours and 6 bobbins later, I was finished quilting!  I was excited to unroll it and see what the finished quilt looked like!



I love the fact that the diagonal lines in the block show up so well in the finished quilt!  This would be fun laid out in a trip around the world style, too, but since I had an odd number of blocks I chose this layout.



So colorful!  I know that a crazy bright quilt like this isn't everyone's taste, but I really love it!  Binding was the next step and I was really excited that I found a pile of binding leftovers to sew together for my quilt.


I stitched them all together, pressed the seams and stitched it on using my usual No Hand Sewing Binding Technique and Aurifil thread (50 wt is perfect for the topstitching!)

I had plenty of binding for this 92 x 92 quilt, and quite a bit left to spare!  I guess I will have to make another scrappy quilt to use this up, right?


I even made it around all four corners with no seams in them!  Woohoo!



It's hard in my house to get good pictures of a queen size quilt, and it's way too wet outside to lay it in the grass, so this is as good as it gets!  So much gorgeous Island Batik beauty in this quilt!


 And it absolutely lights up my bedroom!  Yes, this one is definitely for me :)

The Hobbs Poly down makes it soft and cozy, it's got a lovely soft drape and is nice and warm, too!  

Thanks to Island Batik for another fun challenge, and also to Hobbs Batting, Schemtz Needles, and Aurifil thread for the wonderful products I used in this challenge!  








4 comments:

Kathleen said...

That is a fun quilt - to remember some of the great fabric collections and also use up scraps. It is gorgeous.

Emily said...

Soooo pretty!!! I love all the colors, and that it's a memory quilt of sorts for you. And double yay for a scrappy binding AND not hitting any seams in the corners! That's always cause for celebration!

Quilting Gail said...

Love it!! Sew bright and cheerful!!! :-)

Jennifer Schifano Thomas said...

So bright and beautiful! I love how you used a different collection for each block and sewed the binding scrappy too. Have a great day!