Modern Strip Quilt in Blue and White

I haven’t posted any new quilts on here for a while; life has been just a little bit busy.   I started this strip quilt around Christmas and finished it up recently.  I didn’t use a pattern but just made a rough sketch of what I wanted, first deciding the finished size of the quilt, and then working out the heights of the rows and widths of the strips. Then armed with a rotary cutter and a large pile of my favourite fabrics, I got cutting, working out the fabric and colour placement as I went along.   I really enjoyed the process and love how this quilt turned out.

Scrap Quilts

At first I thought this quilt would be quick and easy.  I thought I was just going to quickly sort out a pile of fabric, cut loads of strips and start sewing, but I soon realised it would involve more thought than that. Scrap quilts are lovely to look at because they have so much variety in the fabrics, but you have to give some thought to colour and fabric placement.

Colour Theme

To help me decide on a colour theme I began with a lovely line of fabrics that I’ve been hoarding called “Vintage Summer” by “Little Yellow Bicycle” for Blend Fabrics, a range in red, white, and blue. To this I added a variety of blues, pink, black and white, and greys.

Visual Texture

To keep a scrap quilt interesting, it needs contrast and variety in colour, scale, and visual texture.  Visual texture means how a fabric looks: spots, stripes, geometrics, solids, florals, swirly etc.   I varied the scale and texture from large scale prints to small scale monochromes and also included a variety of florals, geometrics, and linear prints.

Colour balance

There also needs to be a balance of dark, medium, and light tones.  To figure out the tone of a fabric, try standing back and looking at it through squinted eyes next to other fabrics.  It’s important too to include plain fabrics that allow the eye to rest and which provide a contrast to the busier prints.  I love the white background fabric by Jinny Beyer with its subtle pale grey floral pattern.

I have also included a sprinkling of a large scale black and white fabric to add a bit of sparkle and visual interest, and I scattered a few pale pinks around to provide colour contrast and add a little warmth to the cooler blues.

Backing Fabric

For the back of the quilt I’ve used “Cat Mint” in grey from the “Cat Nap” fabrics by Lizzy House for Andover Fabrics.  I was really pleased to find this lovely fabric because I think it is perfect for the back of this quilt.

Quilting

This quilt is lightly quilted with vertical wavy lines to contrast with the straight lines of the strips and to retain the softness of the quilt.  To keep my lines going in the right direction, I marked vertical lines on the quilt at 6 inch intervals using Quilter’s 1/4 inch Tape.  I’m a bit wary of using those blue marking pens to mark the quilting ever since I used one once that didn’t come out.

I really love the colours and fabrics in this quilt and am tempted to keep it, but for now it’s listed in my Etsy shop.

This modern patchwork throw would look lovely draped over a couch, chair, or day bed, perfect for keeping you warm while reading a book or watching telly.  

Just the Facts:

Quilt dimensions: 48 x 59 inches (122 x 150 cms)

8 rows of strips, from 5 to 11 inches (12.5 x 28 cm) long. Width of strips varies from 1 to 3 inches (2.5 x 7.5 cms).

Fabrics:  Over 50 cotton fabrics, including several prints from “Vintage Summer” by Little Yellow Bicycle for Blend Fabrics.

Background fabric:  White with grey floral pattern from “Blenders and Basics” by Ginny Beyer for RJR Fashion Fabrics

Backing fabric:  “Cat Mint” from the “Cat Nap” line by Lizzy House for Andover Fabrics.

Binding: “Twist” by Dashwood Studio

Wadding: Quilters Dream 100% Cotton (white), my favourite wadding.  It’s soft, breathable, and lovely to quilt with.

For sale in my Etsy shop.  NOW SOLD.

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Thanks for reading.

Annabel x