Bloom Chicka Boom!

Though of course I love each of the quilts in Stash Statement and enjoyed creating them, the blog hop is now entering my personal favorite section of the book, with four quilts that have Improv in the Background.  In this section, the improv piecing becomes a textured backdrop for the blocks, and the effect is really cool- almost like an impressionist painting.  The four quilts in the section show land, sea, sky, and a neutral.  With its lush blooms, representing land is the super cheerful and fun Bloom Chicka Boom quilt.

It's no secret that green is my favorite color, and in Bloom Chicka Boom, I included green scraps in every shade imaginable.  Eight Kona solids were used for the blocks- Purple, Tangerine, Royal Blue, Pomegranate, Corn Yellow, Melon, Turquoise, and Cerise, and the bold solids against the improv create a cool, three-dimensional effect.

This quilt was so much fun to design and make, and even though it looks like a ton of improv, it's really just an illusion, because the solid floral blocks take up the most visual space in the quilt.

On the back I used this awesome Art Gallery print, which picks up the colors in the front just beautifully, and widened it out with stripes of Kona Pomegranate and Chartreuse.

Bloom Chicka Boom was actually made almost two years ago (publication is a long process!), so I can't remember the actual name of the fabric or the collection for the backing (sorry!).  This was also before I started getting a little more adventurous with my free motion quilting, and it is stippled with 50 wt. Aurifil White.  Confession- even after quilting other designs, stippling is still my very favorite motif for letting the piecing really shine.  I love how it is easy to vary the quilting density, and that it just blends right in.

I framed out these bold blooms with a Kona Cerise binding.  I almost went with a shade of green to blend into the background, but I love the contrast that the Cerise offers.

Michelle at From Bolt to Beauty and Chris at Made By Chrissie D did an amazing job making the Bloom Chicka Boom pattern their own, and I can't wait for you to see them!  Then, make sure to head over to my Etsy shop HERE for your very own signed copy!  You can also find Stash Statement on Amazon, Connecting Threads, your favorite craft book seller, or at your local quilt shop.

It's hard to fathom, but there are only a few weeks remaining in the Stash Statement blog hop!  I'm including the full lineup for you, and just so you know, each time one of these lovely ladies blogs her project, I've updated the links in this list to direct to the specific posts (even for the previous weeks in the tour).  So you'll always be able to find them!

4/16- Grand Bazaar    Shelley @ Cora's Quilts

                                      Connie @ Freemotion by the River

4/23- Louvered  Lindsey @ Primrose Cottage Quilts 

                            Diann @ Little Penguin Quilts

4/30- Precarious  Jess @ Quilty Habit                       

                              Myra @ Busy Hands Quilts

                                                            

5/7- Beach Retreat  Sarah @ Sarah Goer Quilts                               

                                  Liz @ Savor Every Stitch 

                                                           

5/14- Fire Pit   Alison @ Little Bunny Quilts                                          

                         Preeti @ Sew Preeti Quilts

                                                            

5/21- Detour    Laura @ Slice of Pi Quilts                         

                         Shelley @ The Carpenter's Daughter Who Quilts

                                                            

5/28- Murrina    Yvonne @ Quilting Jetgirl             

                            Leanne @ Devoted Quilter

                                                            

6/4- Scattered    Jayne @ Twiggy and Opal                      

                           Christine @ Triangles and Squares 

                                                            

6/11- Bloom Chicka Boom   Chris @ made by ChrissieD            

                                               Michelle @ From Bolt to Beauty

                                                            

6/18- Regatta   Susan @ Quilt Fabrication                             

                          Debbie @ A Quilter's Table    

                                                            

6/25- Catch a Falling Star  Cynthia @ Quilting is More Fun Than Housework        

                                              Anja @ Anja Quilts

                                                            

7/2- College Prep   Hilary @ by Hilary Jordan                 

                                Lori @ Crossquilt

                                                            

7/9- Take Flight (free bonus pattern)  Kelli @ Seriously, I Think It Needs Stitches 

                                                             Paula @ The Sassy Quilter

 

Bold Stripes

Hey there, friends.  I hope everyone had a wonderful Easter Sunday yesterday.  After early church, we spent a quiet day at home, and it really was wonderful, especially since yesterday was also the last day of Spring Break, and wild thing heads back to school this morning.  I've been working on a new quilt for a preteen girl, and it has been an easy, breezy quilt to put together.  Incidentally, this is the big sister of the recipient of my Seeing Double quilt;  she just took a little longer than her sister to decide on the design and colors she wanted.  She saw this backing on my Snippets quilt, and decided that the bright colors and funky feel were perfect for her room.

These bold rainbow stripes in varying widths were really quick to put together, but the most fun part was playing with the colors to make them blend gradually down the quilt.  In fact, I got a little carried away when I was choosing fabrics (y'all know I love a rainbow), and ended up having to really pare down the number of fabrics.  I decided on 17 different fabrics, but I think I started with around 24, before I realized that the stripes would all have to be really skinny to fit that many prints into a quilt this size.  This quilt will finish at 70 inches square,  and the stripes range from 2-6 inches in width.

The recipient's favorite color is purple, so her mom asked if I would make the rainbow purple-heavy.  Since the top is relatively minimal in design, this quilt is getting a large-scale floral backing with lots of purple.  I know none of you are one bit surprised that I chose an Amy Butler print- it's called Paradise Garden from the Love collection, and the colors are just delectable.

This one is sure to be a quick finish, and I hope to have it all ready to reveal at this week's Needle and Thread Thursday.  We shall see!