Configured

Whoa. I've been working on getting projects crossed off my list this month, hoping I'd still have time to participate in the current QIS challenge, Modular Rhythms. Windows of time opened up over the weekend that allowed me to do just that, and it was probably the most satisfying creative time since the holidays. Meet Configured.

There are always several requirements in participating in a QIS challenge, and this was no exception:

• The palette was quite specific - Kona White, Black, Ash, Rich Red, Nacho Cheese, though a few very similar shades were acceptable. Luckily I had all the Konas on hand, so used those.
• Within the set palette, there were also minimum fabric amounts: white and red - 8" x 21" - the dominant presence; and gray, black, and yellow - 8" x 11" - accents, preferably in line-based compositions.
• Square finish, with a minimum composition size of 16" x 16". Configured finished at 18.5" x 18.5".
• Finally, with our quilted submission, there were a few questions to respond to. What does this piece represent for you? What do you want to express with this work? What was interesting about the creative process? Following is my written response:

Inspired by a multi-windowed building, my main focus was on the modular shapes and supporting strips between them. The repetition of the layered horizontal lines were one way to express the rhythm theme, while the dancing of color and size of the 'windows' was another. I found the palette very interesting to work with, especially while trying to work with the suggested visual balance. This piece was built one component at a time, deciding on the next section's needs as I went. The small size of the overall piece made that a very manageable and enjoyable way to create.

For the back of Configured (above), you can probably tell I started with my project scraps. Other than the scrappy pieced sections, I intentionally chose not to include black and white in the back, but went went a narrowed down palette. Straight-line quilting was done with Aurifil 50wt 2620 [Stainless Steel], which coordinated with the Kona Ash very nicely. I originally had a more complicated quilting plan in mind, but once I was this far, it felt like enough. I definitely did not want the quilting to overpower the design.

Finished off with a simple, yet grounding, Rich Red binding, the time spent bringing Configured to life was so fulfilling, and it felt good to stretch my improv muscles again.

Be sure and visit Quilt Improv Studio @quiltimprovstudio on Instagram to see the other entries. I think you'll enjoy the gallery!

Linking up with Quilting Jetgirl's Favorite Finish {January 2026}.

The Dualism Challenge

It took me a while to mull over the latest challenge from Quilt Improv Studio, which is Dualism. But finally, I came up with an idea I was good with, and things were fun from there on out. 

I think part of my excitement was choosing colors and fabrics that I really loved together - Cotton Couture Acid, Kona Raisin, and a print - Cactus Needles from the Charley Harper Barkcloth line.

I used my 12" Clammy ruler to cut circles and backgrounds, and if you don't know, the Clammy is awesome at this. Piecing was pretty uneventful, and I was able to trim each circle block at 13.5" square. Of course, I played with the layout for a bit. The photo below is actually before I decided to add one more block using the print, so you can compare this with the layout I ended up with and see what you think you would have chosen.

I had great fun making a quilt back using all the leftovers from piecing the quilt front, including the extra solid circle block I didn't end up needing. 

Early on, I had a simple quilting plan that I stuck with. Using Aurifil 40wt 2570 [Aubergine] and 5015 [Gold Yellow], I stitched horizontal straight lines in the two colors and two densities. The bottom two sections are quilted with lines in Aubergine 1" apart; the top two sections are quilted with lines in Gold Yellow 1" apart. Which means the middle section is alternating with both thread colors, and lines that are 1/2" apart. 

Matched binding seemed an obvious choice for this one, which I am calling Duality, fitting fairly well considering this definition:

du·al·i·ty - an instance of opposition or contrast between two concepts or two aspects of something; a dualism.

The quilt finished at 39.5" square, and I gotta say, simple as it is in design, palette, and quilting, I'm quite fond of it. Now off to post it in the Quilt Improv Studio challenge, hashtag #qisdualism.

Linking up with Meadow Mist Designs' Favorite Finish Linky!

Let's Eat!

Even though the current Quilt Improv Studio POP Improv Challege guidelines specificially said that we didn't need to create something really similar to Pop Art, I knew I wanted to try, with my first thought being of Andy Warhol's Campbell's Soup Cans. But, of course, not that. Merriam-Webster defines pop art as "art in which commonplace objects are used as subject matter." With that in mind, I chose the lowly fork, an eating utensil we use daily, and I bet you do too.

I definitely wanted to let the 'pop' theme also speak through the fabrics I used. As I mentioned in my July Fabric Usage post, I used the self-curated bundle shown below with the later addition of Kona Rich Red. See that red bit in the green print second from the bottom? That's what confirmed the addition of the red. The overall palette is unique, I agree, but it was fun to work with, kept with my continuing use of Rich Red, and was kind of unexpected. All reason enough for me.

And then, I set to trying to create improvisationally-pieced forks. Let's just say my first attempt wasn't that great. By the way, the first two blocks were about 9" square.

My friend, Louise/@imfeelincrafty gently suggested that including a shadow or outline might improv things, and they definitely did. 

The new blocks were 10.5" x 15.5", a much better size. I wasn't 100% happy, though, and kept obsessing about that section on the right where the corner of the fork's shadow was. I finally settled on a rough method, reconfigured the most grievous one, and just let the rest be what they were as I created them. They ended up with a pretty similar look, but not quite identical. That's improv for you. But finally I had a set of six that I was fairly happy with.

Is it bad to say that one of my favorite things about this piece is the chair print I found to include on the back? It's by Laurie Wisbrun, and I've been hanging onto it for a very long time. I thought it was perfect for the eating theme of this little (30" x 30") quilt, and honestly, gave me renewed energy to get this one finished.

I went with straight-line quilting at 1/4" intervals using a randomly-placed handful of Aurifil 50wt threads - #2115 [Lemon], #2120 [Canary], #1231 [Spring Green], #1114 [Grass Green], and #2250 [Red]. Then I finished it all off with a faced binding.

So was my foray into pop art quilting a success? That's debatable. But it was definitely fun to give it a try! If you want to see how my take on the QIS Pop Improv theme compared to the other challengers, check out the #qispopimprov hashtag. 

Lineplay

So when I left off sharing about the progress on my current Quilt Improv Studio challenge project, I had four triangle-ish segments of improv lines, and honestly, I could have just left it as it was. I liked the imbalance and the tiniest bit of yellow in my primary + black & white palette. But I had other plans, and I felt compelled to see them though.

I had ordered some 28wt yellow thread [Aurifil #2120 Canary] and set out to create two "ghost-blocks," if you will.... segments that echoed the feel of the improv lines in the red and blue slabs, but in thread rather than fabric. Honestly, I love how it turned out!

Then, of course, I needed to quilt the rest of the design. I chose Aurifil 50wt in black [#2692] and in the red and blue sections, stitched from the edge up into the black lines and back out. In the yellow sections, I again echoed those lines but just until they met. (Sorry, forgot to take a photo.)

Once the planned quilting was complete, there was just a slight problem, and that was that just a few of the blue 'lines' bubbled up in the center more than I would have liked. So with happily matching thread, I quilted just a few of the red and blue lines in each section. Minor, but it helped the problem, and added a little extra interest.

At just over 24" square, "Lineplay" barely fits the minimum dimensions for the challenge, but it works! I'm happy that though it started with a couple of purely improvisational striped slabs, I find the resulting shapes very intriguing. And the ghost 'blocks' were fun to execute - one of the few times I've used 28wt thread. I definitely want to use it more. And last but not least, this piece was constructed mostly of scraps, which made me verrry happy.

50 Days + Primary Color Challenge

So back in December I mentioned starting another 50 (or 100?) Days of Scraps, and two things about that: 

1) I settled on 50 days because it felt manageable AND I can just start another if it feels right; and

2) Without a speck of fanfare, I started in several days ago.

So far, I've made Bee Sewcial blocks I'm super happy with, cut out an entire patchwork hearts quilt top (stay tuned!), and started in on my response to the latest Quilt Improv Studio challenge centering on primary colors + black & white, and the common theme of lines.

So above is my (scrap) fabric pull for the improv challenge piece, though I don't think I'm going to incorporate that yellow dotted fabric, the rest has found it's way into the piece I'm working on. And below is my first slab of lines. Considering I started piecing the black and white lines into a rectangle of blue fabric, things really took on a shape of its own.

I made a similar slab starting with a red square, then cut both slabs into triangle-ish shapes. I did grab a yard of black fabric from stash to use as the background, and came up with a composition I'm really excited about. At this point, the piece measures about 26" square, with my goal being a 24" square when finished.

So I plan to wait a few days before starting in quilting, basically because I ordered some thread, but also because I like to save really focused sewing for the weekend. So stay tuned for that later, but meanwhile I've got a couple of other scrappy projects I've started that I'll share with you soon!

QIS Primary Improv Challenge

Are you familiar with the Quilt Improv Studio? "A workroom to practice improv quilting and share exercises," Giovanna/@jonikquilts, Paola/@thecultofquilt and Carla/@falcolupo host periodic challenges, and newly announced is a Primary Improv Challenge. Obviously the primary colors of red, blue, and yellow are included, as well as black and white. "To maintain a common line in our works it was decided by the majority of poll respondents that we will use the graphic element of the line during the creation of our quilts." And yes, some of the initial parameters of each challenge are decided by Instagram poll!

The minimum quilt size is 24" square to enter the challenge, and the deadline isn't until March 31, 2022, so we've plenty of time! All the sharing of challenge quilts is done online, which makes it easy to enter, and easy to enjoy the work of the other participants.

All the details are here, and you can check out a couple of hashtags - #qisprimarycolors and #quiltimprovstudio - 

to see more.

If you're interested in seeing my previous challenge pieces, click on the links for my Blue Repetition, Black and White, and Monochroms Dreams entries. Consider joining us for this latest challenge!

Redwork

Hopefully by now you're familiar with the periodic challenges hosted by Quilt Improv Studio. I have participated in two previously, making Utterly Blue for the Blue Repetition Challenge and Bow Ties No. 1 for the Black and White Challenge. And now my newly completed Redwork is my response to the current Monochrome Dreams Challenge, which runs July 1st – October 15th, 2021. 

Of course I debated a while over which color to use, finally settling on red, or rather redS. I've grown to love the mix of various reds over the last couple of years, so I was eager to revisit them. I had quite a few in my stash, including Kona red, rich red, wine, brick, crimson, Chinese red, cardinal, lipstick, and ruby. 

I started by taping off a 24" blue painter's tape square on my design wall and filling it with shapes. I started with various sized rectangles, then somewhere along the line I created some triangles, a few HRTs, and some stripes. At the point shown in the photo below, I was confident enough to begin sewing pieces together, while knowing that I still needed to build out some, as the minimum size for the challenge was 24" square. Still, I liked where it was going.

So you can see in this next photo (below), that most of the build out happened on the right side and along the bottom. I ended up incorporating more triangles as I pieced, as well as more of the other elements. The top, when complete, measured 26.5" square. 

When I shared the blue tape photo on Instagram, Latifah Saafir commented that she loved the contrast of the reds with the blue. I totally agreed, and chose to combine the two for the quilt's back. I included both a solid (Kona Harbour) and a blue print, as both were such great matches for 'painter's-tape blue.' You can see I also had just a few small leftover striped bits that I was able to incorporate. Quilt backs aren't usually my favorites to piece, but this one was totally fun.

For quilting, I used two red threads, Aurifil 50wt #2250 [Red] and #1103 [Burgundy] and once again used the Fancy Straight Line from Jacquie Gering's WALK book. It just goes so nicely with this kind of improv, and provides awesome texture, though I think this is the smallest scale I've done it. The finished, trimmed quilt measured 25" square.

It was difficult to get a good shot of the quilting once that was underway. I tried both indoors and out, and I couldn't get the colors to show true. Thankfully a follower reminded me to try putting a white sheet of paper in the photo and then crop the photo afterwards. That definitely helped. The photo below was actually taken indoors on a big sheet of white foam board near my best light source. The first photo in this post was taken outdoors on a pretty cloudy day, so you can see there's a difference no matter what I did.

Here's a closer look at the quilting. Between the palette, the improv, the smallish-size, and that quilting, this project was truly enjoyable; and being my first finish in weeks, felt delightfully good.

So there's still time if you're interested in joining the Monochrome Dreams Challenge. And if you want to see more of what folks are creating, just check out the hashtags #qismonochrome and #quiltimprovstudio.

Linking up with Meadow Mist Designs' Favorite Finish Linkup!

Bow Ties No. 1

Finally! After watching lots of wonderful 'black & white + one' quilts pop up on Instagram, I was able to clear the schedule for my own participation in the Black and White Challenge with the Quilt Improv Studio. The guidelines are pretty simple, and the time-frame generous, quilts not being 'due' until May 16. First up was sharing your fabric. My 'plus one' to add to my black and white was Kona Pickle.

Random note: several weeks ago, I found out that unbeknownst to me, my grandma made bow tie quilts back in the day. I've been itching to dabble with the bow tie block ever since, and the challenge felt like a good time. I had in mind how I might make them improvisationally, but then browsing through Gwen Marston's Liberated Quiltmaking, I saw she had included a liberated bow tie block, so that sealed the deal. I set in making blocks out of 2.5" squares of all three colors.

Choosing a layout for my blocks required some design wall play. Alot of the more traditional layouts would call for more of a 'background' than I was interested in. Luckily, I tried arranging them in such a way that I only needed setting triangles, and making those black let the whole design float in a way that appealed to me. Plus I really like the secondary designs that were created, though I didn't over-think their placement as much as maybe I could have.

At any rate, on to quilting! I was able to find a backing in stash that in my mind, 'fit,' and not just in palette. Bow ties on the front; martini olives on the back. What's not to love? Remember Midwest Modern by Amy Butler? Well this is Martini in Mustard. Considering this was one of my most cherished old favorites, I hesitated only slightly before cutting it to size. I have a couple of large-ish scraps, so hopefully they can find their way into another project soon.

For quilting, I revisited an oldie but goodie from the AQS blog: 25 Nine Patch Quilting Designs. It apparently doesn't have a name, but it's a combination of angled lines, which I stitched with my walking foot using black thread.

I gotta say, black solid fabric really attracts the lint! Even after 'cleaning' it several times with my lint-roller, it still felt messy. I finally went ahead and threw it in the wash. Not sure that even helped much, but it did add the expected crinkle.

Finishing at 26" x 26", this was an enjoyable first go at those bow ties, and I expect I'll explore with them again.

#quiltimprovstudio #improvblackandwhite

Sharing the Love of Improv

For those of you that love improv as much as me, I really hope you've discovered Quilt Improv Studio/@quiltimprovstudio, "a workroom to practice improv quilting and share exercises." It is the brainchild of Paola Machetta/@thecultofquilt, Giovanna Nicolai/@jonikquilts, and Carla Beretta/@falcolupo, a trio of Italian modern quilters who use the Quilt Improv Studio to share their love of improv. I highly recommend you follow them all, as well as the group account.

One of the ways they share the love is through quilt challenges, such as the current Blue Improv Challenge. Remember, I participated in that challenge last month by creating Utterly Blue.

The challenge is still ongoing though, and newly completed quilts continue to roll into their feed. The deadline to enter isn't until January 10, 2021, and since the finished quilt size is suggested at just 24" x 24", it's totally manageable. Here's all you need to know to enter.

Another feature of the studio is the aspect of learning from each other, and that was explored recently in a post where several of us participants were asked a series of questions about our creative process. You can read our responses in the recent Learning Together post. The post ends with, "A spontaneous, free and open group, united by the same passion, the desire to try, to get involved." I'm glad for the opportunity to be a part of it.

Utterly Blue

Ok, this was fun. I mentioned last week that even though the 2020 Pantone Quilt Challenge isn't happening this year, I still planned on doing my own Classic Blue challenge, and so I did! I mean, really, it's as good as it gets, and I wasn't about to break tradition.

It started with stripes. Basically lots and lots of improv stripes. I considered adding a few other fabrics/colors into the mix, but when it came right down to it, I left well enough alone. The blues were just too rich as they were.

Somewhere along the line, once I had the top done, I mentioned on Instagram that there was a design in there that probably only I could see. And that design was inspired directly from my recent Vista Toscana quilt and the way the blocks wrapped around each other. You (maybe) can see it most clearly in Utterly Blue if you look at the left side of the quilt.

I "mirrored" that same effect in the opposite side of the quilt in different proportions. Maybe you see it, maybe you don't, but if was definitely fun fabric play for me, and I can't promise that this will be the last project exploring that concept.

For the back, I went really simple - and solid.

From that viewpoint you get a really good look at the quilting, don't you? The design is "Fancy Straight Line" from Jacquie Gering's Walk book, and I'd used it several times before, always with great results. I used Auriful 50wt #2730 [Delft Blue] after considering several options including a variegated thread (a red, white, and blue!). In the end, again, I decided to just stick to the blue.

And then to finish, matched binding in one key spot seemed appropriate. The quilt finished at 25" square.

There's one more tidbit about this little blue quilt! Just as I was getting started, I learned that the current challenge with Quilt Improv Studio was a Blue Repetition Challenge, so I couldn't resist joining in and will be entering this quilt soon. There's lots of time to join in - the quilts are small - and the deadline isn't until January 10, 2021. Plus they're a very welcoming bunch, so consider it, ok? 

#blueimprovrepetition #quiltimprovstudio