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Wednesday, October 6, 2021

Birds of a Feather and Fall Foliage

We're moving right along in the Scrappy Improv Quilting blog tour!  Birds of a Feather is up first today, and it pays homage to my favorite springtime backyard visitors.  We have a few bird feeders with different kinds of food in them to attract a wide variety of birds, and it's so much fun to see all of them congregating.

For the Birds of a Feather quilt, I used all of my light to medium aqua scraps, plus some light blue scraps, with bird silhouettes made from Kona Chestnut.  This palette is classic and so soothing, and looks like the birds are sitting on a wire with a cloudless sky in the background.  If you wanted your birds to sit amongst the branches of a tree instead, light and medium green scraps would accomplish that nicely.

I quilted each bird with lines that echo the shape, but I added a little extra curve in the quilting lines to give the hint of a wing in each silhouette.  When free-motion quilting two identical shapes, it can be difficult to make them match, but don't worry!  They don't have to be exactly the same.  In fact, I think it gives character to the piece if they don't.  The quilting lines on my birds are similar to each other, but definitely not exactly the same- and I'm okay with it!  I quilted swirly paisleys in the background, and it gives the illusion of clouds in the sky.

Two aqua fabrics look great on the backing, and the Kona Chestnut binding creates the perfect frame for this mini quilt.

Sew Preeti Quilts made Birds of a Feather for the blog tour, and I can't wait for you to see hers!

Up next is Fall Foliage, and this quilt is unique because it's the only one in the book that uses batik fabric scraps.  If you follow my blog, you know that I actually don't use a lot of batiks.  It's not that I don't like them, it's just that I find myself more often gravitating toward more graphic prints.  But I knew when I designed this leaf that batik scraps would really bring it to life.  The distinctive watercolor effect of the batiks shows off the autumn leaf perfectly.

In keeping with the outdoorsy feel of this mini, Fall Foliage is quilted with a dense, allover wood grain motif.  The tan thread blends into the Kona Khaki background, but stands out a little bit against the scrappy improv leaf without taking away from the colors.  The texture on this quilt is just amazing.

On the back of the quilt, I used some chunky batik scraps, and I love how the wood grain quilting shows up against them.  Since I don't use batiks very often, I wanted to really showcase them in this quilt, so I opted for a scrappy binding on this one to frame it.

Susan at Quilt Fabrication made her own version for the blog hop, and I know you're going to love it!

Be sure to join me next Monday, when I share the next two quilts from the book!  And check out the full blog tour schedule below!

Signed copies of Scrappy Improv Quilting are available in my Etsy shop HERE, or ask about it at your local quilt shop.  It is also available on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other major booksellers.  
And shop owners, you can get it from any of the major distributors- Checker, Brewer, United Notions, and EE Schenck.  I hope you'll consider adding it to your library or carrying it in your shop!  :) 

Scrappy Improv Quilting Blog Tour Schedule-
10/11- OrnamentalGail @ Quilting Gail
            Churn, Churn, ChurnCynthia @ Quilting Is More Fun Than Housework

10/13- Sunset CrossingKate @ Katie Mae Quilts
             Positivity- Sarah @ Sarah Goer Quilts

10/18- All Dressed UpLinda @ Flourishing Palms
             ShockwaveAnne-Marie @ Stories From the Sewing Room

10/20- Sweet Bee (a bonus thank-you pattern), Finishing, and Wrap-Up (here!) 



3 comments:

  1. Those are two of my favorite quilts from yor book, Kelly! Both are on my list to make. I enjoyed seeing Preeti's and Susan's versions, too. The blog hop has been just great for quilty inspiration!

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  2. LOVE both of your quilts, Kelly!! Preeti and Susan did a great job with these patterns. I am SEW enjoying your Book Hop!

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  3. Your Fall Foliage is giving me warm fall feels with all it's scrappy goodness. Love the woodgrain quilting motif too.

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