Tie One On Fabrics Blog Hop with Lilla Quilt Variation

A new version of Lilla. I just don’t get tired of this pattern. That’s because it is a guide more than a pattern. Plus, it includes 25 different block ideas! Use one or use them all! Or, in my case, use 21 plus 1 made up block.

Scott Hansen over at Blue Nickel Studios asked me a few months back if I would play with his upcoming fabric collection. Feeling motivated by the lush colours of his collection, Tie One On, and having some time in my schedule I said yes. The timing also seemed ripe to make another Lilla quilt.

My original plan was a straight remake of the pattern. Same layout, same queen size, but in different fabrics. The second version I made was random, put together from my test blocks. But I wanted a new version of the original. Best laid plans…

I was sent the Sedona colourway of the Tie One On fabric. Gorgeous! These are all batiks from Banyon Batiks, a division of Northcott Fabrics. Really, they are gorgeous fabrics and wonderful to work with. I don’t shy away from batiks as many modern quilters seem to. Beautiful fabric is beautiful fabric! I will use any fabric if it is the right colour, truthfully. Getting the Sedona colourway seemed serendipitous, I always think of our trip to Arizona and the dessert three years ago. With no vacation for us this past summer I planned to live vicariously through this quilt.

Fabric in hand I made a plan. And 20 blocks in (the queen size quilt in the pattern makes 100 blocks) I realized I would run short of the Tie One On Fabric. Banyan Batiks were wonderfully generous and sent me more fabric when I asked nicely. Unfortunately, it was the wrong colourway. Well, wrong for my plan. By now I was 40 blocks in.

This is the part where some quilters would panic. I figured I had 2 choices:

• Throw in the towel. Finish the quilt with the blocks I had at this large baby size and move on. It would still be a good quilt, so no loss.

• Figure out a solution that reflected, at least, my original plan.

I went with the second option. You see, when you embrace improv piecing the spirit of saying yes, of making things work permeates all your quiltmaking. It gives you creativity to figure out a new design solution to a problem. So I took the yellows and oranges and the green from the second bundle, putting the pinks and purples aside for something else, and figured it would just brighten up my dessert sunset thing I had going on.

My plan for the background of the blocks was rather formal. I sketched a colour draft to keep on track. I thought I was brilliant. Then two things happened. One, even with the new fabric I wasn’t going to have enough of the Tie One On Fabric to make 100 blocks. Okay, so it will be a 9 x 9 quilt, not 10 x 10. Easy fix. But two, it looked like utter crap when I laid it out like my sketch. Really, not good - busy and not in a good, fun, scrappy way. The block designs were completely lost.

When in doubt, sleep on it.

Or, try to sleep. The idea hit me around 1 am when back pain was keeping me awake. I should have got out of bed and laid it out right then and there. I waited until 7 am and in the light of day I realized my new idea was brilliant. It gave order, but was still interesting. It respected what I’d done so far and my colour inspiration of Sedona. It shows off the fabric and the block designs. Success!

Scott Hanson and Banyan Batiks have done a wonderful job with these fabrics. Gorgeous colours and were easy to work with for both improv work and precision piecing, as the Lilla pattern has both.

If you want a little bit of the fabric yourself leave a comment below. On October 1, around 1 pm MST, I will pick one random commenter to win a bundle of Tie One On Fabric! Please leave your email address in the comment itself so I can get a hold of you. Then the fabric will be mailed to you direct.

Visit the rest of the blogs on the tour for your chance to win more. Not to mention some great ideas with this lovely fabric.

9/22 - Teri Lucas                 https://terificreations.com/

9/23 - Robin Long               http://robinruthdesign.com/blog/

9/24 - Sue O'Very               https://sueoverydesigns.com/blog/

9/25 - Cheryl Arkison          http://www.cherylarkison.com/diningroomempire/

9/26 - Linda Sullivan           https://colourwerx.wordpress.com/

9/27 - Sheri Cifaldi-Morrill   http://blog.wholecirclestudio.com/  

9/28 - Debby Brown            http://higheredhands.blogspot.com/

9/29 - Blair Stocker             https://wisecrafthandmade.com/blog/

9/30 - Kim Niedzwiecki       http://www.gogokim.com/

Pattern available wholesale and retail through C&T Publishing.

Lilla Pattern Launch

Lilla

90'' x 90''

Lilla is a collaboration between myself and Lotta Jansdotter. It is also a pattern available from C&T, launched this week.

Last year C&T approached me with the idea of working with Lotta on a pattern. I hesitated for a split second then agreed. Hesitated only because of timing, but I didn't want to turn down the opportunity to work with an artist and person I truly admire. So Lotta and I started emailing.

While it would have been fantastic to visit her in her Brooklyn studio or have her come out for some Prairie and Mountain air, we had to settle for the back and forth of online collaboration. She chose the fabrics we would work with - a selection from her soon to arrive collection, Lilla. We discussed style of quilt - medallion versus block based, improv versus precision, pieced versus applique, scale of piecing, and so much more. Lotta sent me some inspiration images, I made sketches. My job was ultimately to translate her ideas into workable quilt patterns. It was up to me to interpret her inspiration for the home quilter.

One of my favourite moments was when I opened up my email with this image in it. Lotta made some paper cut shapes. Up until this point we'd been going back and forth with little progress on something feasible for a quilt or a quilt that she liked. But these images! I went straight to my sewing machine to play, instead of sketching. Soon after we had a workable design. 

I really tried to take the organic nature of Lotta's work and translate it to the need for blocks to lay flat. Her shapes lent themselves well to some basic improv techniques, thankfully. Combining those with some precision piecing creates a challenging and graphic quilt.

The pattern itself lays out the techniques as a whole and then instructions for 25 different blocks. Yes, 25 blocks. As presented the quilt is queen size, but the pattern includes a baby size option. Make 1 of the blocks many times over or make all 25 four times over or make each one only once. It's entirely up to you, but the pattern includes it all. It also includes specific fabric notes to make it with Lotta's Lilla fabric as we designed it, but feel free to go on your own.  

I've made another version of the quilt, with totally different fabrics. It changes it up! Watch for that soon. 

In the end I am so glad I didn't let the time factor get in the way of this great experience. Sure, it was a rush as I frantically finished just before I had to leave to Australia. Thank you to Bernadette at Wonderfil for guiding me through the quilting. The experience of collaboration was worth it. It presents a creative challenge, for sure, but that's a good thing. It gets me outside of myself and the insular world of my own creations. On to the next one!

Pattern now available from C&T, or ask for it at you local quilt shop.