It was oh so timely that I happened to cut into the Tuscany View fat-quarter bundle I'd purchased from Fabric Bubb when I did. Because one year ago last week we were in Tuscany, Reggello in fact, in the Tuscan countryside. Though we were fortunate to take a daytrip to Florence, Tuscany's capital, it was in Reggello itself the we experienced THE most breathtaking sunset. And it was that sunset that came to mind when I purchased the fabric.
The colors, all Cotton Couture from Michael Miller, weren't exact, but were reminiscent enough.
As I worked from one color grouping to the next, I intentionally used some overlap with the colors to create some interrelatedness, just like in nature. I briefly considered rearranging the blocks from the arrangement I'd fashioned on my design wall, but after plenty of affirmation on my progress post, I decided to continue on with what was originally in my mind's eye.
Wanting to save what little fabric I had left for (hopefully) binding, I found a stash fabric just the right size, and though the palette wasn't spot on, its design definitely was, for the quilting I had planned.
For quilting, organic straight-line [link to tutorial] felt the obvious choice. Though my original plan involved just three threads, basically one for the top, middle, and bottom sections of the quilt, once I got going I switched it up, and used quite the variety - nine in total. I used two or three for each of the five sections.
Gotta say, this kind of quilting is something I really enjoy. Between the variety of thread, the improv stitching, and the smallness of the quilt (28" x 34"), it was alot of fun.
And then, of course, for the binding, another obvious choice - some straight matched binding [link to tutorial]. I had a limited supply of the fabrics left, so I kind of used what I had to create a combination I enjoyed.
And boy did it evoke some extraordinary Tuscan memories.
