Kaffe Gradient Flimsy

 Finally, after being on my to-do list for months, the Kaffe gradient flimsy is finished. 

Years ago I inherited a stack of five inch charms of Kaffe Fassett Collective prints but I never knew what to do with them. Then last year Rachel Hauser of Stitched in Color posted a remake of her Teeter Totter pattern in which she used a lilac gradient for the gridwork. Ah-ha, that would be the perfect concept for my little Kaffe squares. While inspired by the concept, I did not use her pattern due to the size of my squares. 

Since my squares were so small, I used 1" finished strips which I cut using the 1-1/2" die on my die cutter. A lot of cutting made easy! I cut each square in half on the diagonal, laid them out on the design wall and clipped them in pairs with their sashing strip.  

Upper left corner

At retreat in 2023 I started piecing the blocks and arranged them on the design wall. To smooth the transition between the blues and the pinks, I needed to add a few non-Kaffe prints, but they blend so well you would never know. 

Right, halfway down

As I assembled the quilt from the bottom up. it became apparent that I didn't have enough of the solid purple I was using. So I went shopping and found a similar purple I thought could replace it. After replacing the diagonal strips in multiple blocks and assembling several rows with sashing, it became obvious that the purple was too light and disappeared into the blocks instead of providing the same degree of contrast as the blue and the burgundy. So, back to the store for a darker purple, and much seam ripper activity to carefully take out and replace the offending fabric. A lot of those bias seams got ripped out twice. 

Lower left corner

Other projects and priorities got in the way, and this project languished as a UFO until recently when I finally added the top row of blocks and finished the flimsy. I didn't realize I was so close to a finish! 

Later this fall, a friend will help me spray baste this quilt, an outdoor task better left for cooler weather.  I'll quilt it on my domestic machine with in-the-ditch stitching using invisible thread. Then my friend will teach me how to face it instead of using a visible binding around the edges.  

I have a wall in my sewing room where I want to hang this quilt. The size came out to 48" wide by 78" long, perfect for the space available. And it will be dramatically visible from the hall and through the sewing room doorway.  This one's a keeper. 

Linking up with Alycia Quilts 8/30, Small Quilts and Doll Quilts 9/2, and My Quilt Infatuation 9/5

The Referee Stripe Quilt

Earlier this month I had time booked on PCQ's long arm and I was able to quilt the Referee Stripe top that I pieced at retreat in July. 

Yes, it's bold, wild and crazy, and very vibrant. I love how this quilt turned out! 

The piecing design using half-hexies made of strips combined with a bold referee stripe was inspired by something I saw on Pinterest attributed only to "Kathy." Thanks, Kathy whoever-you-are, for the inspiration. I already have another striped fabric in mind to make the same pattern. 

The back is a combination of black and white prints from my stash, cobbled together. 

This quilt will eventually go to a local family services agency where it will be perfect for a teenager. But first, I'm going to hold onto it and display it in PCQ's quilt show in the winter, then donate it afterward. 

Referee Stripe, 62 x 78"

Linking up with Alycia Quilts 8/23 and My Quilt Infatuation 8/29

Black and Tan Blocks

 I've been making blocks for my Black and Tan project. After making a few and rejecting them, I think I finally have all the values placed where I need them. 

Here's what the blocks look like on my design wall. I need to make four more of the blocks with hourglass units in them, and three more red churn dash blocks. I should probably stop calling this the black and tan project and start calling it the brown quilt, because that's how it's ending up so far. 

Along the way I've been looking at the project in greyscale to adjust the value placement. Here's the final version:

The border will continue the black star points out to the edges against the beige background. 

Here's the top half without the distraction of the empty spaces. Lots of diagonal movement! 

Good progress, finally. There are several rejected test blocks in my orphan block drawer; I'll have to figure out something to do with them later. 

Linking up with Design Wall Monday at Small Quilts and Doll Quilts