All Seasons Basket Quilt - Vintage Quilts Inspiring New Creations

Between working on the house and travelling to take care of our grand children this weekend I wasn't sure if I was going to be able to finish my project for this month's Island Batik Ambassador challenge.  I ended up packing up my machine and supplies and taking the project with me, and really enjoyed being able to show the kids what I do, and talk with them about how quilts are different from blankets and how I do the machine quilting!

I was able to do some stitch in the ditch around the blocks and finish the large border before we left.  I really like the pointy loop I did here, and plan to try this again, stretching it out a bit to look more like an overlapping heart!

I wanted to try out some ruler work, but forgot my extension for my machine.  I did try a curve in the open space of the basket, but ended up free-motioning the curves in the background.

I added some loops above the curve and wishbones in the lover part, which filled up that area nicely!

I did some overlapping spirals in the setting triangles.  I used a green variegated Aurifil thread on the whole quilt, and was really pleased with how well it worked.  (4653 50 wt)

At this point I decided to add the binding and call it done :)  I caught a break between showers and took the quilt outside for some photos.  Next time we visit I'm taking a stack of them, what a nice yard for pictures!

So pretty!

I've been loving using bits and pieces to make up a backing, too.  It's fun to see sizable chunks of some lovely fabrics.

The pattern I used for this quilt is my All Seasons Basket.  The fabrics were all provided by Island Batik, and I used a variety of lines. 

Thanks again to Island Batik for another fun challenge - I love how using their lovely batik fabric can make a traditional pattern look entirely modern!

You can see my previous posts about this challenge below:
Design inspiration.
Making the blocks.
The finished top.

I hope you enjoyed following along with this month's challenge!

When you plan your quilt, but another idea captures your mind!

That's the funny thing about doing a challenge quilt.  At least for me!  I can have an idea all planned out, walk into my sewing room, pick up some fabric and end up going in a whole different direction!  At least I can use my original idea for another time! 

This months Island Batik Ambassador challenge is one that really speaks to me as I love vintage quilt design!  I am a good hand quilter, so often find myself being asked to hand quilt grandma's quilt top and I really enjoy working with the traditional blocks and fabrics.  One of the fun things about working with batiks is that they instantly give a traditional quilt block a look that is more modern.

I had my whole quilt planned out, but for some reason when I walked into my sewing room yesterday, I spied a stack of fun colors of my Island Batik Scraps and thought that it would be really fun to make a new version of one of my older patterns.  I love my All Seasons Basket pattern in florals, but I think it's going to be super pretty using my batik fabric!

Since I'm working with scraps (which is one of my favorite inspirations behind vintage quilts), each basket will be a different color.  Not sure what I'll use for the sashing or borders at this point, but sometimes it's fun just to play with what you already have and see what happens! 

I'm loving the yellow basket!  The background is a lovely pale yellow basic called Oatmeal - I barely had enough for my background pieces, but I think it's just perfect for my baskets.  If I hadn't had enough, I would have gone scrappy with the backgrounds as well.  That's what the quilt-makers in the past did - use up what they had, even if they had to piece smaller bits together to make it work.  I love seeing details like that in traditional quilts.  Not to say that all quilters did this, there are many lovely vintage quilts that you know the fabrics were carefully chosen and purchased for that purpose. 

Are you inspired by vintage quilts?  What's your favorite vintage block or pattern?  I'd love to know!

Have a joyful day!