courthouse steps
Showing posts with label courthouse steps. Show all posts
spring steps
I do love surprises... and happy mail... and quilt making (especially for a good cause)!
For this months Aurifil Artisan challenge we were sent five fat quarters of Kaffe Fassett fabric to use in a project.
I knew I was going to make a quilt. I don't use red prints very often and spent a while auditioning fabrics to go with the bundle. Initially I pulled pinks and oranges, other warm tones because that's my vibe. It all looked too samey though and the Kaffe prints didn't stand out enough. So then I pulled a whole rainbow of solid fabrics, mixing them up with the prints to see what worked well.
Ultimately I went with a pale grey for the background and deep yellow, bright purple, olive and cerulean - sorry I don't have the exact shades, these fabrics were left over from other projects and I've failed to have any system for keeping track of the names/brands of solids. If you have a good system please let me know!
Traditional blocks are always a favourite and, as I haven't used any of my special quilting rulers for a while, I looked through them and decided to make Courthouse Steps blocks.
The olive was a considered choice, as it's the colour for the centre of the blocks. Inspired by the blooms on the prints, I wanted the blocks to look like large flowers and the green would be the stems.
Cross Steps Quilt ~ free pattern
This is a bold quilt, with rich purple, mustard yellow and cool greys. I love traditional Log Cabin and Courthouse Steps blocks and I played with them to create a modern and striking quilt.
The blocks are simple to make but the placement of dark and light fabrics completely alters the look, it also gives a brightness and movement to the quilt. I was pleased that this translated well from my scribbled design!
I used the Creative Grids Log Cabin Trim Tool Two to make the blocks, which meant it was quick as I didn't have to measure all the pieces and the tool makes it incredible accurate!
I quilted it using Aurifil 40wt in a soft grey with a simple cross hatch pattern.
You can get the free pattern for the Cross Steps quilt by clicking here. The blocks are 12.5" unfinished and the finished quilt is approx. 48" x 48".
feeling meh despite the finishes
July felt a bit meh to me. Loved what I've made but feel like I could have made more progress, though I probably always feel that way. I think there's a severe lack of actual quilts, I love small makes but it's not as satisfying as a quilt finish.
I finished a buggy bag for us to carry nappies etc in, a buggy liner for a friend, a tea towel for new neighbours and scrappy cards for anyone I think deserves one.
My favourite finish has to be my foot stool, every time I use it I smile:
I did manage a couple of other finishes this past couple of days, both commissions.
The first was on my FAL list, two sweet dresses made from Tula Pink fabric - which is just perfect!
An embroidered cushion, which was ordered by a returning customer - that's such a great feeling.
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Then I finally got my July Bee a Brit Stingy bee blocks sent off to Charlotte today, made using her brilliant tutorial:
I hope she loves them, if not she can send them back to me because I do!
Actually writing this post has made me feel a little less meh. I think having 3 kids at home all the time (especially on a rainy day like today) means that when it gets to the evening I just feel like lying in a darkened room, alone and in silence. I may well do that but there's sewing to do and I'm working on whipping up some samples for classes I will be teaching. This is a fabric pull for a cushion I'm planning:
I'm excited about it and fingers crossed it works as I hope!
I have finished my rose star quilt top but between the kids and the rain I've not been able to get a proper photo yet, hopefully I can share it with you soon.
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