which comes 1st - the fabric? or the pattern?

If you're stopping by for the 1st time, welcome! And here's a bit of background to this sampler quilt WiP.
Back in 2018 I randomly bought a curated selection of fabrics from @cottoneer with only a vague plan in mind. It featured a soft cotton merino green floral #outbackwifefabric along with a mix of linen, barkcloth, & woven checks and I fell in love. But then things stalled, and I did nothing with the fabric bundle.

Fast forward to now ... and after spotting the sewalong last month for the folk sampler quilt @farmandfolk, whom I have only recently discovered, I realised this was something I could use those fabrics for.  I added a couple more prints from my stash, focusing on softly blending pinks, peaches & green, a jazzy bit of plum, and muted browns.

Fingers crossed my bundle plus a *sampler will capture that intersection of traditional and modern sewing quite nicely, win/win. 

For my last few blocks, I checked out some more traditional blocks for inspiration, 

and ended up making a crystal star block, a drunkard's path variation block, a card trick block, 

and another Le Moyne star to help balance out my colours.

After making my 20 blocks I was ready to trial a few sashing ideas. I've opted for narrow sashing, a bit of trend just now, yes? I love how this Ruby Star Society 'maze in goldenrod' ties everything together subtly, just enough contrast without being overpowering. 

Pop back after weekend & I'll have a quilt top to share! Here's a peek meantime ...

I'm curious now, which comes first with you ... 

the fabric? or the *pattern? 

*Image found on Pinterest where it’s stated that this quilt is part of The International Quilt Museum collection in Lincoln Nebraska.

I usually do have a pattern in mind, before buying fabric. After buying fabric though, I usually change my mind about the pattern, sound familiar (wink wink). Until next time, Linda

pretty vs plain

If you've stopped by lately, you'll know I'm stitching along with Sara's #folksamplersewalong. I’m making a kind of fusion between my own "style" and Sara's very rustic & earthy feel @farmandfolk. 

With only a few more blocks to go, I’m now starting to choose fabrics with even more intention,

like in this extra corn & beans block ✅

and with my chain & bar block, 

my initial version was quite intense

so, I swopped out some of the peach on my flying geese for more cream ✅

Onto the new block this week - Block 12 Le Moyne star ✅. I’m also trying to use up some smaller bits & bobs thru'out this sewalong and, of course, I ran out of the light peach print. Still, it was fun substituting another pretty to fill in the star.

16 blocks ✅

Hm-m-m- there's a bit of a pretty vs plain vibe happening with this fabric mix, I think.

Here's where my thoughts are at the moment ... Using a carefully curated selection of fabrics from @cottoneer back in 2018, I added in a mix of linens & cottons while still trying to keep my colour palette simple. My main background colour is cream, in assorted subtle shades.  

The dominant colour started out as a soft green floral #outbackwifefabric, with complimentary prints in pink & peach, and a little plum print to jazz things up. I've added in solid fabrics in pink and two shades of green, and there's minimal use of soft brown and grey. The checks & stripes add a little fun visual element too. 

Some block combos delight me, and, on reflection, I do love how those plain blocks provide a nice calm contrast. 

The question now is - 

Do I stop at 16 blocks, make a sashing decision, & get a quilt top together? 

Or do I keep on keeping on, and make all the 20 blocks?

... Yep, lots to think about when making a sampler quilt!

folk sampler

We are halfway through the folk sampler sewalong adventure now. 

Sara from farm and folk recommends we keep our palette simple, like the antique inspiration sampler. With that in mind, I opted for soft greens, olive & browns, and peachy/pinks, with a mix of different creams, and a splash of plum to jazz things up. 

Must just add, it's quite an exercise in “control” for me, with a selection of fabrics in a minimal colour palette. I kept rummaging around in my greens to find extras to add in - old habits - but then I realised I actually didn't have to! 

My soft green large floral works so well, it creates a focus and sets the mood. The other smaller scale prints in smaller pieces all seem to connect somehow. 

Unlike Sara though, I'm not using any hand dyes, but a mix of prints, linen, barkcloth, soft cotton merino & woven checks.

I've had this linen for years!

I'm cutting into the pink parts but might use the little girl in the backing maybe?

Block 10 star in the window ✅

Block 11 chain and bar ✅

I made two extra sawtooth stars & one chain & bar block too - super fun revisiting the block and playing around, changing different elements. And I think having some blocks that are similar in construction helps achieve some cohesion.

And yes, I do like some blocks better than others, but overall, it's looking great ...

The #folksamplersewalong is hosted by sara buscaglia from farm and folk. She is using Barbara Brackman's book for her block choices for this sampler.

Until next time, Linda

boardwalk quilt

Last week there were 16 blocks on the wall ...

... et voila!

It's exciting when you get to the finished quilt top stage, don't you agree? 

Love this eclectic collection of fabrics and colour,

all (except the Kaffe spot) from my scrap/stash baskets 

quilt top measures 62" x 62"

And I'm happy to announce that I now have an amazing collection of quilt tops all waiting to become quilts 

So many things to make, so little time, 

Linda

another Wednesday, another block

I'm stitching along with Sara's #folksamplersewalong. There's something quite relaxing about a sewalong, the blocks arrive at a steady pace 1x week - I don't know how it's all going to look at the end, to sash or not to sash, whether my muted colours will work - but I'm trusting the process. 

I’m making a kind of fusion between my "style" and Sara's @farmandfolk very rustic & earthy feel. I'm trying to keep my colour palette simple, using the soft green vintage floral as my focus, with other gentle colours added in like peach & pinks, muted browns, and maybe plum as an accent. 

I'm also using different weights of fabrics in this sampler, like linen, barkcloth, soft cotton merino, woven checks & regular quilting cottons. The more blocks I've made, the more I'm coming to grips with the different fabrics, combining similar weights if possible. Super happy so far with the added depth & texture to my experimenting! 

Soft colours + scattered prints = joy in every block. 

block 8 Snowballs ✅

block 9 Bears Paw ✅

- almost halfway through the 20-week adventure! 

If you love a sampler quilt and savour the process, this one could be for you too.

Linda

brought to you from my scrap baskets

These 'boardwalk' blocks have come together slowly over the past few weeks, and I've enjoyed every minute of the process.

The pattern calls for 25 blocks (set 5x5), but I decided I'd make 16 blocks for my quilt (I don't make as many big quilts these days). My blocks are full of wild colour combos - some work, some not so much. Lots of fun mixing up lots of fabrics from my scrap baskets, the old, the new, designer and unknown bits & bobs too, all in large florals, spots, stripes, & geometrics.  

I'm super happy with how I've problem solved through those trickier bits, like sewing those boxy looking curves and making up my own FPP template for the fan segments. 

Here are the last few blocks ... 

a real mix in this next one,

Amy Sinibaldi 'haven' peach, a Tanya Whelan spot, grey Liberty, woven b&w gingham, 

an early Denyse Schmidt and a center square of AM ...

and block 16 

 

 I've also settled on my sashing choice, so the full reveal won't be long now.

Linda

seamlessly chaotic

I've been busy jumping between my folk sampler blocks (see my last post) and these boardwalk blocks.
I'm machine piecing my blocks, with a little additional FPP. These big 14 1/2" blocks are a super fun playing with colour and large-scale florals.

These go at a very slow pace ... seamlessly? chaotic well, no not exactly, there has been some unpicking and swopping out of fabrics happening. But on the +side, the more blocks I make, the easier it gets, and I think I've conquered those square looking curves!

I’m having fun using multicoloured prints in each block,

keeps things cheerful & chaotic

a classic vibe happening here with the peach & navy,

keeps this one a little calmer ...

Oh, the possibilities, I feel like every block is a little colour study

That's 12 blocks done✅

Linda

latest batch of blocks

 

Loving this #folksamplersewalong, many thanks to Sara @farmandfolk for putting it together. Her instructions are excellent! Like Clare @selfsewn, I’m working on making a kind of fusion between my style and Sara's @farmandfolk style. 

The different weights of fabrics in this are proving a tad problematical, e.g. quite bulky when joining seams, etc. Also, I've noticed that because some of my fabrics have been folded for so-o- long, even ironing isn't getting a nice finish. Maybe I need to get some *starch? 

On the +side, I'm super happy with my colour palette, see last pic.

The accent colour I have chosen to run through my blocks is pink. And I've started auditioning for possible sashing options as I sew but haven't settled on anything yet. 

Here's my latest batch of blocks ...

Block 5: Corn and Beans ✅

-h-m-m- a little unpicking needed here!

Block 6: Double T ✅

a little bit of Outback Wife to add some zing

Block 7: Garden Walk ✅

All up to date now and looking forward to Wednesday's new block.

*edit: the starch has certainly helped with those fold lines, yayee.

Linda

something a bit different

Time to break open that bundle I’ve been saving for The. Perfect. Project.

Back in 2018 I bought a fabric bundle that I never actually used all together as a palette in anything. It was called 'Rosebud' in some blush-rose pinks and earthy camel tones, all in different linen weights, barkcloth & soft cotton merino. 

When I spotted the folk sampler @farmandfolk recently with its rustic & earthy feel, I decided my small bundle would work very nicely. And I could always go to the quilt shop for extras - but it turns out I have enough in my stash here to add to the initial bundle and I was excited to get started.

I mixed in some darker fabrics with lighter tones so that it looked scrappy and had a lot of contrast. I'm keeping the colour palette simple - something just a bit different for me, I know! - using soft green, peachy/pinks, assorted soft browns to "ground" things, with maybe just a little black. Some fabrics are light and airy neutrals, while others are dark, moody & muted. 

I really love that one or two of the fabrics stand out a bit too, like the grey and white gingham and the Outback Wife floral 'Elizabeth' print.

 Block 1: Woodland Path 

Block 2: Sawtooth Star

Block 3: Crow's Foot

next up Block 4: Sunray's Delight

and a group photo of my blocks so far ...

I'm enjoying seeing everyone’s work, loving all the different combinations of colour and prints.

If you're curious, click over to #folksamplersewalong

Linda

my new favourite colour

It's been a miserable wet Winter's day here, but I'm loving the gentle green Spring vibe in this latest log cabin quilt. Along with a mix of greens in minty/teal tones, I’ve also mixed in a few multi-coloured low volumes to keep it lively and because this is my first single colour quilt in quite a while. And I wanted to make sure I didn’t get bored with it, because I definitely lean towards “the more colour the better!”

I’ve totally enjoyed the simplicity of the process, and I think my new favourite colour is green💚