Thursday 13 June 2013

Modern Mini Quilt Challenge

I've decided to enter Tesseract into the Modern Mini Quilt Challenge at Ellison Lane Quilts. It was a toss up between this one and my PTS10 pillow - but Tesseract won out, the main reason being this challenge was all about trying something new, which I did on several levels with this mini.


I designed this for the Emerald Challenge earlier this year, and used a new-to-me block (the Kaleidoscope block) for it. The greens are all Oakshott cottons, and the background is a mixture of low volume grey fabrics (Architextures, Simply Colour grey ombre and a Sweetwater text print). The inspiration for the layout comes from emerald gems, and also Lizzy House's Diamond Mountain quilt, which uses these blocks in a similar way.


I used two layers of bamboo batting for this mini quilt - I love the extra loft it's given without the puff that comes from polyester batting. I didn't want too much puff on this one, but did want the greens to pop a bit more than they would with a single layer. Having said that, I'm not sure that it was such a good plan to go down the no-binding path. Getting it to fold over at the back was a bit of a challenge. Also, my corners are quite rounded, and I'm not sure how flat it will sit when it's hanging. Which it still isn't. Ahem.



It is pieced and quilted entirely using Aurifil 50wt thread (2021 and 2865) - I love that the quilting blends into the background so well (although it blended so well while quilting I did have a bit of trouble seeing where I was going ;o) ) I really loved doing angular quilting too - a first for me, but definitely not the last. I really want to make a triangle quilt and quilt it like I did the green bits on this one.


Quilt Details:
Fabric - Oakshott greens, various low volume grey prints for background.
Size - 24" square.

xx Jess

26 comments:

Marjorie's Busy Corner said...

This is unique..I just love it

Susan said...

Still an all-time favourite!

Sharon said...

Great patchwork and quilting! Minis are so fun.

Susan at TheBoredZombie.com said...

It's really lovely and I like the no binding on it. It kind of makes the mini a bit grander by not boxing it in. Good luck (even though you dont need it!)

Vicki said...

You are right, this little mini is a winner!! Such beautiful colors and quilting. I think I like a little roundedness on the corners.

Beth said...

Your quilting skills never fail to amaze me!

Patti said...

This one is always a favourite!

Erin @ Once Upon a Donkey said...

So beautiful and it still makes me gasp with amazement. Everything you do is gorgeous.

Needled Mom said...

It is really gorgeous!

Adrianne @ On the Windy Side said...

Such a gorgeous quilt with absolutely beautiful quilting! Nice to see it again :-)

Dianne Neale said...

Beautiful, and the colours are so rich. Reminds me of a party dress I had when I was little!

Janine @ Rainbow Hare said...

This is gorgeous :)

Benta AtSLIKstitches said...

Beautiful - I couldn't even choose whether my favourite part is the design or the colours or the quilting, all fab

Di said...

Beautiful and your quilting is so good. Di x

Charlotte said...

love love LOVE!!!!!!

Nat at Made in Home said...

It is amazing! The quilting adds s o much texture!

Kirsten said...

Stunning mini- love the Oakshotts and your beautiful quilting!

Linh said...

This looks absolutely amazing thanks for sharing

knottygnome said...

wow it is amazingly lovely. congrats!

Heather D. said...

Amazing Jess. Your quilting continues to impress me!

Pat Merkle said...

LOVE,LOVE, LOVE! Awesome quilting.

Becky said...

Gorgeous!! Love the quilting!

Katy Cameron said...

Good luck!

KatheG said...

Beautiful!

nicole said...

This is just gorgeous! And your quilting is fantastic... great job!

Karee said...

Fabulous! The Kaleidoscope pattern is gorgeous, the piecing is spot on and I loved the pieced sections, and the quilting adds to the quilt. Can you tell I love your mini quilt? Thank you for sharing your talents.