Friday, August 11, 2017

variegated

Well the last two weeks have reminded me just how fun a quilt-along can be! The Improv Stripes QAL, over 90 participants strong, has been a fun ride, and it's been so delightful to see folks try improv for the first time, fall in love with stripes, and explore their own designs.


I created my own "variegated" by culling all my gray scraps and combining them with a bit of a wild solid color mix - just what appealed to me at the time. After trying several different layouts, I settled on this one - that if you start with the dark blue block and let your eye travel right then down - creates a sort of a spiral. At least it started out that way!

When it came time for quilting though, I went with both horizontal and vertical organic straight lines, creating a grid in several sections. Just for the fun of it, I used a handful of colored threads though that's not really obvious unless you look close.


Measuring 32" x 35", this one was especially enjoyable as I was sewing in community. Can't beat that!


This quilt was on my 2017 Q3 Finish-A-Long list!

22 comments:

  1. I love the motion that the spiral creates in the top and that you get a lot of detail both far away and up close (with the thread color). Amazing what can be done in a couple of weeks, isn't it?

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  2. your quilt turned out really nice, and I like the way it looks in the shade behind the beautiful flower.
    KATRIN W.

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  3. All those grays mixed with the colors makes the quilt so pleasing to eye. I just want to explore every combination used. Well done! (I haven't joined in, but I want to give this a try later!)

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  4. Debbie, I give you so much credit for introducing me into the creative world of improv...one I don't ever want to leave! One of my favorite quilts was the one I made last summer with the CrossCut design. Now this summer, I have another favorite! It was a bit tricky getting all of the pieces to fit together, but it took me out of the box and that's what made it so wonderful. Keep 'em comin'!

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  5. Very cool. This has been so much fun. Can't wait to finish mine

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  6. It was lots of fun sewing stripes and seeing all the ideas on Instagram. Finishing my quilting today on this fun project!

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  7. Love your piece. We had a vacation for a week so I am still making strips!

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  8. I love how yours turned out! I have thoroughly enjoyed participating in this qal and thank you for encouraging us in our improv quilting journeys! I'm looking forward to getting mine quilted!

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  9. I LOVE it..the colors are gorgeous!

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  10. Awesome blog, i always enjoy & read the post you are sharing!
    Thank for your very good article...!

    pirates of the caribbean 5

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  11. I love it - the grey really, really works! I wasn't able to sew along, but I'm definitely trying this when I have a little bit of time!

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  12. Love what you did. This is a beautiful quilt!

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  13. Great quilt along. Although I didn't particpate in this one, I enjoyed seeing what others created. Your log cabin style construction of Variegated really adds a lot of interest to the quilt. Lovely.

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  14. An almost log cabin effect! I love this! I was sorry to miss the QAL, but I'm inspired to give it a try when I get home. I'll have plenty of time to delve into many projects!

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  15. Oh what a beauty! Love the colours you've used, I would have loved to join in with this qal but not enough time!

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  16. This looks really fantastic! Pleased to join your QAL, thank you for your inspirations and many greetings from Lübeck, Germany!! Yours Ariane

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  17. Love how you keep sharing & inspiring the quilting community! Love your version of improv stripes!

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  18. What a great quilt and a wonderful finish for the FAL. I took part in my first QAL this year and loved the sense of community it engendered. Thanks for taking part in the FAL from all the FAL hosts!

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  19. I've made a striped improv quilt, but I wound up cutting it into triangles. I think the next time I make this, I should focus on rectangles. This is really nice.

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