Another Fabrications Strip Quilt

Fabrications strip quilt.

After whetting my quilting curiosity with Fabrications 2.5" strips and making Quasar 45, my mind has been whirling with ideas and possibilities for these fabulous pre-cut gems.

How easy can it get? A beautifully coordinated variety of colors and prints is already chosen... the cutting is done... all you have to do is open - the - package and off you go!

This time I chose the Inspiration colorway: white and teal. This Fabrications bundle is one of Blank Quilting's signature fabric collections that supports ovarian cancer awareness. The dragonfly print and the other coordinating blenders are cool and fresh and the white strips add a nice brightness.

The pattern I used as a starting point is one of the many FREE downloads on the Blank Quilting web site. My version does not have borders and I chose an assymetrical design for the two inserted "flippies" (the vertical black strips).

Here is a view of the full quilt. I like how the random black diagonals create contrast and movement.

Inspiration collection strip quilt.

Below are closeups of the inserted folded black strips—similar to flat piping. The pattern designer calls them "flippies." These folded strips are sandwiched between two adjacent wider strips during the piecing process. (Sure beats trying to sew a narrow 3/4-inch strip! And, much quicker.) These inserts accent the vertical style of the quilt and define a space for two different free motion quilting designs.

Folded strips are inserted during the piecing of the quilt top.

You can see the two different quilting designs below. The narrow black strips define the space and offer a logical separation between the motifs.

Detail of the free-motion quilting.

Yes, there is a thread color change in the center section. [I admit it. I am a color hound and a thread junkie.] The pebbles were quilted with two different colors of Sew Fine, a 50 wt. poly by Superior Thread.

The wind-like swirls on either side of the off-center section were quilted with Tutti, a variegated 50 wt. long staple cotton by Wonderfil (one of my favs!).

View of the free-motion quilting on the back.

The backing fabric is Madison—one of Blank Quilting's 108" wide backing fabrics.

Sketches of free-motion quilting designs.

I often sketch potential quilting designs before I drop the feed dogs. The design process for this quilt was no different.

Sketching allows you to relax while you figure out and fine tune an appropriate design. There are no stitches to pick out if you don't like it, and it serves as a test run before you put needle to the quilt sandwich. Don't bother using an eraser when auditioning your designs on paper... just flip over to a new page in your sketchbook and keep sketching.