Gender Neutral Baby Quilt ...
When your 2nd cousin—who you admittedly haven't seen in a while—surprises you with pics of her newbie that she gave birth to the night before and you need to pull a quilt together quick.
You start by determining what fabric you actually have in your stash (ALWAYS a limiting factor for me). Then, based on that, you decide which pattern you want to use.
I pretty much only use Kona Solids, so it is easier for me to quickly figure out what I have. Personally, I prefer to play with the color chips (on a white piece of paper) than the pieces of fabric themselves. It gives me a better idea of how they will work together.
In this instance, I chose to go with my Richmond Quilt design (I know, I need to get the tutorial written for this one).
Then came the tough part—which order to put the stripes in. While I didn't try every permutation available—I did try 4 main ones. At this point I find it best to take a photo of each, First, I can compare the 4 photos easily—a big win. But I also find that photos capture the colors and nuances in a quilt that sometimes the eye can't. So I actually photograph ALL my quilts on the wall in the process of making them.
Needless say, the 4th version above won. From a visual perspective, the purple and Blue strips seemed stronger and bolder and I liked how they separated the lighter coral and green strips. Quite honestly, this step is really all about personal esthetics.
I chose a straight line cross hatch to quilt it, using the corners of the pieces as guide lines (thought it's hard to see from these images). I do find it's better to use my walking-foot guide and set it so that it is going on the square NEXT to the one I am quilting, it is easier for me to see this line visually than it is for the squares that are about to get lost under my walking foot.
The binding photos show the quilting a little bit better.
Choosing binding was tough for this one. Eventually settling on a blue for for one side and a coral for the other, echoing the squares in the quilt. It's pretty obvious I am a machine binder (I have a machine binding tutorial you can see here).
Quilt by the numbers:
You start by determining what fabric you actually have in your stash (ALWAYS a limiting factor for me). Then, based on that, you decide which pattern you want to use.
I pretty much only use Kona Solids, so it is easier for me to quickly figure out what I have. Personally, I prefer to play with the color chips (on a white piece of paper) than the pieces of fabric themselves. It gives me a better idea of how they will work together.
Then came the tough part—which order to put the stripes in. While I didn't try every permutation available—I did try 4 main ones. At this point I find it best to take a photo of each, First, I can compare the 4 photos easily—a big win. But I also find that photos capture the colors and nuances in a quilt that sometimes the eye can't. So I actually photograph ALL my quilts on the wall in the process of making them.
Needless say, the 4th version above won. From a visual perspective, the purple and Blue strips seemed stronger and bolder and I liked how they separated the lighter coral and green strips. Quite honestly, this step is really all about personal esthetics.
The binding photos show the quilting a little bit better.
Choosing binding was tough for this one. Eventually settling on a blue for for one side and a coral for the other, echoing the squares in the quilt. It's pretty obvious I am a machine binder (I have a machine binding tutorial you can see here).
Quilt by the numbers:
- —Prewash dimensions = 48" x 47"
- —Colors = 1/4 yard of 8 different colors
- —White = 1 3/4 yard
It was a fairly easy pull together and the new momma texted last night that they love it and it is already baby approved!
Hope you're having a great weekend.
All the best,
Lisa
I love this quilt and would love the pattern. Will you share the pattern name?
ReplyDeleteThank you for the kind words! The pattern is FREE and you can find a link to it in my latest post 12/16/19. Sign up for my newsletter and you get the pattern for free (you can unsubscribe at at any time).
ReplyDeleteThe pattern there is the basics for how to make the quilt. I will also be sending an update via my email in early January where I will provide additional tips on how to leverage the pattern to achieve other layouts (like this one) with the same basic steps as in the Christmas quilt. Hope that helps!