I sewed a quilt for PBS Fabrics Sew-cial Networks this past month (the one I mentioned last post) using SuzyQuilts' pattern, Bird Watching. I used PBS Fabric's Wonder! fabric line by Katie Larson, along with their Midnight and Bright Aqua solids (from their Painter's Palette Collection). They sent me the fabric to sew with for this project.
The pattern was originally meant to highlight Charley Harper fabric (hence the name), but using it with the Wonder! fabric line made me want to highlight the color-block the most. And using the solid Midnight for the background guaranteed the triangles would pop.
The pattern was originally meant to highlight Charley Harper fabric (hence the name), but using it with the Wonder! fabric line made me want to highlight the color-block the most. And using the solid Midnight for the background guaranteed the triangles would pop.
A set of templates are used for the pattern--the larger one needs 2 pieces to print out. I could have just used my equilateral triangle and a 60-degree ruler, but I chose to use these to keep my skills up: aligning, tracing and cutting with flimsy templates demands super-precision (and some added patience)!
I knew the Midnight solid would be the background and the color-block would be the center of each triangle, but I had to play around with the rest of the fabrics to determine how I wanted them to play: mix it up or one fabric for each triangle?
I decided I liked the jumble of mixing the fabrics in each triangle, so I began assembly. Triangles first, then attach background pieces to the sides, assemble the rows and finally sew rows together.
There were enough extra triangle pieces to make a column of them for the backing of the quilt, with the Bright Aqua for either side.
The quilt was so quick to assemble (one day for the top, one day for the back) that I completely forgot to photograph as I went along! The next time I thought of it was when I was quilting.
There were enough extra triangle pieces to make a column of them for the backing of the quilt, with the Bright Aqua for either side.
The quilt was so quick to assemble (one day for the top, one day for the back) that I completely forgot to photograph as I went along! The next time I thought of it was when I was quilting.
The spots of gold throughout the fabrics made the blues sparkle, so I started quilting with a gold thread. I made 2 large triangles, echoing 2 of the sewn triangles in the quilt.
Next, I changed to a deep turquoise blue thread and again echo-quilted, but with this color I stitched lines 2-3 inches apart. Both threads are visible against the Midnight background fabric. I like that!
Once I was done, I buried threads while contemplating binding fabric. The quilt wanted a colorful binding! But which would work the best? The color-block would get lost I thought. The arrows would be fun, but I would have to fussy-cut them. So that's what I did.
Once I was done, I buried threads while contemplating binding fabric. The quilt wanted a colorful binding! But which would work the best? The color-block would get lost I thought. The arrows would be fun, but I would have to fussy-cut them. So that's what I did.
I like how it turned out, with the arrows looking like triangles.
I still had a couple extra background pieces and triangles, and fabric, so I decided pillows were next on my 'make' list!
Then I made a couple pillow for my couch--'cause it matched there too!
I had a blast sewing this quilt and pillows! I've since washed the quilt. I love how soft the fabric is and how well the colors held. There was almost no color on my Color Grabber after the wash.
Thanks for the fabric, PBS! I look forward to the next project!
Thanks for the fabric, PBS! I look forward to the next project!