Seasonal Brights
This fall I'm picking up my paper piecing needle and thread to join in the "Travellin' Pic Stitch Blog Hop". We're English paper piecing in colors inspired by beautiful places, organized by Katy of The Littlest Thistle and Laura of Quokka Quilts. Totally a unique idea, so I had to take part. The blog hop starts today. I'm not first - my real blog hop post will come later this month. Don't worry, I'm not cutting!
Last night I had a glorious "aha" moments, realizing I could combine my project for the blog hop with the new quilt I'm leading for do. Good Stitches this month. Our circle has been together for awhile and has stitched up all sorts of unique projects, but we haven't yet worked with English paper piecing. I know lots of my bee mates have experience, but it may be new for some, so I've chosen a simple (and laaaarge) block that seems like a good place for anyone to start.
Here's my inspiration! This is Summer of Love by Clare (previously Summerfete, but now blogging at SelfSewn). I know - it's stunning and all hand-pieced. I've been following Clare for awhile. She's an English Paper Piecing (EPP) maven for sure. To be honest, I didn't really see myself making a whole EPP quilt before, but with a little help... why not?
Next Color! Because it's autumn again, I've been thinking about our lovely work last year with Celebrate Color. If you missed it, do click through to get a serious dose of inspiration! Miss Emma Lamb made a special color palette post for Celebrate Color with several gorgeous color stories.
This one is so "me". Emma called it "Seasonal Brights". The beautiful teal and royal blues contrasting with warm gold and flashy mustard, that's just my cup of tea. And then the other colors - neutrals, unexpected peach, trendy orchid purple, earthy sage - round out a colorful, but decidedly fall array. Wouldn't it be fun to see this in stars!
Well, here's a good start. My stash includes lots of warm yellows, so no problem there. I also have purples just waiting to finally be used. My only good teal is that linen (upper left). Why is there not more dark, rich teal in modern quilt fabrics? I'm always on the lookout for that shade. But, I had the hardest time with the peach color. It's just not something I normally buy. I wish I had enough of the Meet the Gang text print (2nd row, far right) to use it for a star, because I think it's perfect and very "modern".
Each star only requires 2 fabrics, which makes choosing prints so easy. Here are my pairings, though I only plan to make 2-3 stars. We'll see! English paper piecing tends to be addicting...
I'm asking the Love circle to make 6 point stars this month. They (and anyone else) can use my Google printable to print out the diamond paper pieces for our project. Each block will require 12 diamonds, 6 for the star and 6 for the surround. The blocks will finish as 10 3/8" hexagons, which I'll machine piece together (or at least that's the plan, keep your fingers crossed). I hope that each member can each manage to make 2 blocks... I've just started on mine, so I'm not sure yet if I'm asking too much.
Well, wish us all luck, I guess! I'll be back with my traveling-picture inspired star later this October. If you're interested in English paper piecing, but not sure what it's all about, check out my intro video tutorial. The Travellin' Pic Stitch Blog Hop is sure to keep you inspired. Happy stitching!
Last night I had a glorious "aha" moments, realizing I could combine my project for the blog hop with the new quilt I'm leading for do. Good Stitches this month. Our circle has been together for awhile and has stitched up all sorts of unique projects, but we haven't yet worked with English paper piecing. I know lots of my bee mates have experience, but it may be new for some, so I've chosen a simple (and laaaarge) block that seems like a good place for anyone to start.
Here's my inspiration! This is Summer of Love by Clare (previously Summerfete, but now blogging at SelfSewn). I know - it's stunning and all hand-pieced. I've been following Clare for awhile. She's an English Paper Piecing (EPP) maven for sure. To be honest, I didn't really see myself making a whole EPP quilt before, but with a little help... why not?
Next Color! Because it's autumn again, I've been thinking about our lovely work last year with Celebrate Color. If you missed it, do click through to get a serious dose of inspiration! Miss Emma Lamb made a special color palette post for Celebrate Color with several gorgeous color stories.
This one is so "me". Emma called it "Seasonal Brights". The beautiful teal and royal blues contrasting with warm gold and flashy mustard, that's just my cup of tea. And then the other colors - neutrals, unexpected peach, trendy orchid purple, earthy sage - round out a colorful, but decidedly fall array. Wouldn't it be fun to see this in stars!
Well, here's a good start. My stash includes lots of warm yellows, so no problem there. I also have purples just waiting to finally be used. My only good teal is that linen (upper left). Why is there not more dark, rich teal in modern quilt fabrics? I'm always on the lookout for that shade. But, I had the hardest time with the peach color. It's just not something I normally buy. I wish I had enough of the Meet the Gang text print (2nd row, far right) to use it for a star, because I think it's perfect and very "modern".
Each star only requires 2 fabrics, which makes choosing prints so easy. Here are my pairings, though I only plan to make 2-3 stars. We'll see! English paper piecing tends to be addicting...
I'm asking the Love circle to make 6 point stars this month. They (and anyone else) can use my Google printable to print out the diamond paper pieces for our project. Each block will require 12 diamonds, 6 for the star and 6 for the surround. The blocks will finish as 10 3/8" hexagons, which I'll machine piece together (or at least that's the plan, keep your fingers crossed). I hope that each member can each manage to make 2 blocks... I've just started on mine, so I'm not sure yet if I'm asking too much.
Well, wish us all luck, I guess! I'll be back with my traveling-picture inspired star later this October. If you're interested in English paper piecing, but not sure what it's all about, check out my intro video tutorial. The Travellin' Pic Stitch Blog Hop is sure to keep you inspired. Happy stitching!