Sunday, August 7, 2011

Skittles Quilt Top

In between the raindrops this morning I managed to get some pictures of my Skittles quilt top which I finished up this week. See that bit of clear sky? It was there for approximately 3 minutes and its gone again, the rain is back to pelting down :-( Seriously, its like November out there. Sorry this pic is so dark, its the best I could get. You'll get a better idea of the colours further down in the indoor pics!


It feels like I have been making this quilt top forever but in fact, its actually a very quick make. I just did bits and pieces of it here and there over a few months, but if you sat down to make it you'd have the top pieced in no time. I used Kate Conklin's pattern and it uses the "stack and slash" method which is very quick and lots of fun. It really suits a quilter like me who is looking for low stress quilting rather than needing to have pinpoint accuracy in blocks. It's also incredibly economic in terms of fabric usage - because of the way the blocks are constructed, you are Linkslashing across big blocks rather than cutting squares/rectangles etc from fat quarters, so there is really suprisingly little waste. So, if you like this kind of look, which I do, I would definitely recommend checking out this pattern. It includes a second pattern along similar lines and measurements for both lap and baby size.

The first stack of blocks I "slashed", I made my cuts quite evenly - but after that, I made them really randomly, going in the same and then different directions and I love the randomness and unevenness of how they work:


I used some of the purple and blue fabrics from the Central Park line and am totally delighted with how they worked together. The original pattern is in a purple colourway too which I think influenced my choices here, but as soon as I saw those trees and the big flowers in Central Park, I knew they were made for this :-)

Next decision is how to quilt this one. I could outline quilt the blocks and handquilt around each fabric slash as in the original pattern. But I've never handquilted before so I would be a bit nervous about it. And I would need to source some perle cotton somewhere. Or I could FMQ it which I'm leaning towards as I love the texture. One way or the other, I still have to piece a backing for this one before I can cross that bridge so I'll keep mulling it over - but let me know if you have an opinion, as always!

Linking up to:


{Sew} Modern Monday at Canoe Ridge Creations Fresh Poppy Design Sew Happy Geek

16 comments:

Jennifer Mathis of Ellison Lane said...

It looks great Sarah! I definitely want to try that stack and slash method. :)

Katy Cameron said...

Love how this came out, that stack and slash thing sounds like it could be quite fun and theraputic all at the same time!

Lindsay Conner said...

Very pretty! I'm going to try stack and slash on my next quilt, I think :)

The Sunflower Patch said...

Very cool! I am more a random kind of person myself,so will definitely give this method a try in the future.

Judith, Belfast said...

Gorgeous quilt Sarah! I've been shivering away here today! Can't believe I'm putting the c.heating on in August! Jxo

Live a Colorful Life said...

cute quilt! Kate's patterns are always so fun. and Central Park is one of my favorite lines!

The Sunflower Patch said...

Sarah,I have awarded you the Happy 101 blogger award! Stop by my blog to check it out :)

Lynne said...

I wouldn't have a clue as to how to quilt it so I'm looking forward to seeing what you decide.

Elizabeth Dackson said...

Love this quilt top, Sarah!!! It's so pretty!! :)

TheAccidentalCrafter said...

What a good looking quilt top, I'm actually looking at one of her patterns right now, and will probably do that next. Just deciding on the fabrics of course.

Katie B said...

Looks fantastic! I have this pattern too, and seeing yours really makes me want to make it! (I think hand quilting would be awesome)

Toni said...

Beautiful quilt! Love that you are a "low stress" quilter. Sounds about like me.

Jessica Kelly said...

Oh I just love this! Its so much fun, I would be FMQing this, but hand quilting is always an awesome choice!

Kate said...

It looks gorgeous! I'm so glad you enjoyed the pattern - its meant to be a fun one. I love the way you let loose with the angled cuts. I think FMQ would look and feel great, but I'll be interested to see what you decide.

Jennifer said...

This is one of my favorite Kate patterns! Her quilts are so fun to put together.

I love the look of FMQ against the sharp angles of the piecing. But I'm also on a handquilting kick... Perle cotton is wonderful to quilt with and very forgiving too.

Hmmmm... how's that for non-committal advice?

Jennifer :)

SewHappyGeek said...

I just wanted to let you know I've featured your quilt top link today on SewHappyGeek!
Thanks for linking up! :)