Friday, June 2, 2017

Harbinger of Spring & New Pattern Giveway

It isn't too often that I've had to keep a quilt secret from its fabric purchase to its flimsy completion and finally to its fledge.  I am super-excited today to finally get to show you and tell you about it, along with the fledgling pattern designers.
This is my take, which I've called "Harbinger of Spring", on the brand new, released today, first pattern "Star Blossom" of husband and wife team David (Dave the Quilt Engineer) and Tish (Tish's Adventures in Wonderland) Stemple.  I made the baby (or in my case, yoga size) quilt, which uses just one block and then borders.
Pattern designers with pattern tester! It was beyond cool to stop on our way north in Buckhannon near the end of March, and spend some much-valued time with Tish and David and family, as well as show them the quilt in person!
I had a limited amount of time (see below) when I started the flimsy, February 20, made with mainly Kaffe Fassett fabrics I picked up when shopping with Julie in Florida.  I wanted to use Kaffe because David loves him so much (as do I, I'm finding, more and more) but in order to put a little different spin on the pattern, I wanted to do black as the background instead of white.
I also changed the border a bit, adding in a split one before the final floral border so the cornerstone didn't blend into that final floral border.
The top went together in a snap! This is a great pattern for a beginner, as it is comprised of nothing but squares, rectangles and HSTs, but because of this, it makes for a quick pattern for the experienced sewist, as yours truly is, if you need a quick quilt top.

So I was about to go full tilt into the making of and writing up the pattern for Freefall for the QAL.
Bella kept reminding me I had Freefall to do, (see stack under her arm) while ensuring I stayed on task with the Star Blossom pattern test, "No squirrels, Sandra!"
Within 2 weeks of this photo, I, uh, had started Freefall, had finished the flimsy for Tish's pattern, but yeah yeah, had got mesmerized by a squirrel after all, much to Bella's utter disgust.
"Unbelievable, Sandra. You're out of control.  And where's my armrest pile of fabric?"
Personally, I think it's all good (she doesn't; this particular quilt is on the freaking wall, so she can't even lie on it) but I love that Quilter's Laundry Day had scraps from Harbinger of Spring as well as from Freefall!

Okay where were we?

Right.  Harbinger of Spring got folded up and put away for about a month and then, I knew I would be crazy and not able to quilt it once back home, what with the major move we were facing, so I pulled it out and decided to quilt it before we left Florida to come back home. I went through the threads I'd brought with me, and was über-pleased to find I had all the colours I needed.

I knew I wanted dot to dot and a fill of elongated figure eights in the tulip shapes.

More dot to dot and back and forth in the diamond shapes.

And then lines work inside dot to dot for the corner 'blossoms' (I don't have a ruler foot for my Bernina...yet... so these are walking foot and eyeballed FMQ-ed with some wavy lines between.

The above shot shows the little bit daring walking foot quilting (that's an oxymoron IMHO ha) using the purple and yellow threads on the black to emphasize the centre star.  It also shows the beads I FMQ-ed inside the lines for the one border (I love making frames with quilting) and then the cool wavy lines and super-big pebble in a pebble design in that next black border, whose design I am not sure. Judy of Quilt Paradigm showed me it.
Star centre outlined

Finally a design I've always liked but never done on a quilt of mine, piano keys in the final floral border.  No feathers on this one! I know! That's rare for me.
You can see that I did the flanged binding à la Susie's Magic Binding. I change the measurements though, and yes, there is a post coming on that.  Hmm, there are lots of posts coming aren't there. Did I mention I'm hiring for a secretary? LOL

Here is the back.  I snagged this backing and the binding which I just LOVE, at a St. Patrick's Day sale at Alma Sue's Quilt Shop in Sarasota.  I had the quilt with me, and the girl cutting the fabric even said, "Oh! Perfect!" when I said that was what it was for.  She also was dying to get a copy of the pattern, so I do hope she's reading this post, since I did tell her my blog!  I think she and I are kindred spirits on many levels/topics, and I wish we could have arranged to have coffee/tea together...next year!

The quilting shows up pretty decent on the back.

The labels:

One last shot that I had to take on our last beach day before we left.  I had just finished quilting it, but hadn't done the binding at that point. I just knew it would be a pretty amazing photo.  The wind had designs on that photo shoot, but I persevered and captured this:

Quilt Stats:
Pattern:  Star Blossom by Tish and David Stemple available on Craftsy
Size:  after quilting and washing: 40"
Fabric: Kaffe Fassett, Kona black, Moda marbles in yellow, Summersville Spring by Lucie Summers for Moda; backing is England Swings by Rebekah Merkle for Timeless Treasures, and binding is by George Mendoza for Westminster Fibres
Batting: Pellon Nature's Touch (I think; forgot to make a note)
Quilted: on my Bernina
Threads:  pieced with Gütermann; quilted with Essential in yellow and mauve, Sulky rayon in royal blue and Exquisite polyester in black.

GIVEAWAY!
I am giving away a copy of this wonderful pattern which has several sizes, as you see from the photo below of the ones Tish has made:

All you need to do is comment below with the answer to this question:

What colour background would you use to make this quilt? 

Leave me a second comment if you are a follower of my blog (let me know how you follow me, email, bloglovin' or Instagram) for an extra entry.  New followers welcome. I will keep the giveaway open until Sunday night and post the winner on Monday.  Please know that I won't be responding to comments on this post due to the large volume that occurs during giveaways.

Note: Affiliate links follow.
Tish and David's pattern is available for instant download on Craftsy.

If you're bored and have some extra money you want to spend on quilting 'stuff', 😉check out Connecting Threads, for a terrific 30-50% off on select tools, 40-50% off all books, on until June 12, and a fantastic deal on the same thread that I used for the purple and yellow.  It's a pack of 5 "Salt and Pepper" for $11.85! You read that right. These are 1200 yard spools, 100% cotton, size 50/3.
Remember they ship free in the US for orders over $50, free to Canada United Kingdom and Australia for over $75! Sweet. (sidenote: I think Craftsy could do better in their shipping to outside of the US and Canada, just thinkin'...)


Craftsy is having another great sale on all classes, all weekend!  These are member-voted favourites, so you know they have to be terrific! And there's no postage to pay for these, right?!

As always thank you so very much for your support, and if you choose not to, at least choose to support a different affiliate blogger, right?! mwah! 😘

Linking up
Crazy Mom Quilts
TGIFF at Chezzetcook Modern Quilts
Confessions of a Fabric Addict
My Quilt Infatuation

79 comments:

  1. I Love Love LOOOOVE your quilt!! the Pattern is Awesome!! Love you did background in Black..really POPS the colors, pattern & your quilting!! GORGEOUS job!!!

    Would love to win this Pattern..thank you for the chance! :D I would like to make black background as well...or maybe a gray.. Would depend on prints I would pick. :)

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  2. Woohoo!!! Almost the colours I suggested. ( mine were dark purple,medium blue and teal), this is stunning with black, and a new size for a flanged border? Will that be posted before I use it on the freefall leaves?? How neat to be together when you travel back or forth. The knitting needle bag that was posted to Auckland last week will fly with its owner to the UK next week. So where will this quilt end up? Superb pattern, and a secret well kept by you all!!!

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  3. Fabulous, Sandra! The black background really makes the colorful Kaffe fabrics stand out even more! I think a nice version would be white background with Christmas prints.

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  4. This is a great pattern. I've never heard of yoga size quilts, but I know exactly what you mean. Great idea. I'm going to make one for me and one for a friend. Mine will be purple.

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  5. Another beautiful version of Tish and Dave's lovely pattern. You rocked the fmqing!

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  6. I love this pattern. I can see it in bright colors and used as a picnic quilt. Not sure what I would use as the background color as I like both the dark and the light. Thanks for the great giveaway.

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  7. I follow you through bloglovin.

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  8. It looks fantastic in these colors Sandra! Done with the black background, it looks like a totally different pattern. So cool!

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  9. This is a great pattern, so much versatility. The piano keys look great, I love them and may need to try them out too. I would love red background with black and white fabrics.

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  10. Love this pattern and just saw one other version of it. I am thinking in a purple background!

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  11. Black makes a great background as far as color, but bad as far as lint, cat hair, etc. I think I would try a medium blue gray with Kaffe fabrics.

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  12. I follow on bloglovin and email.

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  13. What a fabulous quilt and wonderful pattern. I think I am going through withdrawal as I see this with a tone on tone cream spider web fabric and several fun Halloween fabrics. I'll bet the smallest size would make a great table topper.

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  14. I would use a silver gray or I am also thinking a teal green. Love the pattern! I follow email.

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  15. Really gorgeous with the black, bit I would use a white or a light grey. I want to try piano keys, thanks for sharing as You have inspired me with colors and FMQ ideas.
    djcutting2(at)gmail(dot)com

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  16. Great to see the different colour variations on the pattern cover. Your choice of the black was perfect. I see a rusty-orangeish-brownish background colour. Now how's that for a colour description? ... only because I am thinking of a fabric in my stash, that I really do not know what colour it is! Plus in the stash there happens to be a coordinating multi-colour bubbly-sort-of print.

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  17. How do I follow thee? .... Bloglovin' with the auto-email notifications.

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  18. I think I would go for a bright orange or maybe yellow background! Beautiful pattern!

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  19. Love your quilt and the black background is stunning. I think I would make mine with a grey background.

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  20. I am really loving seeing all of the different interpretations of this pattern and yours is very striking with the black and Kaffe prints (did I ever tell you I'm taking a class with him in September), I do not like using solid prints and prefer using a tone on tone like grunge, low volume or tiny swiss dots. I am loving this pattern.

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  21. Another beautiful quilt finish,Sandra! The black background really makes the Kaffee prints pop. I would likely choose a gray background. I have a pile of red plaids from Dad's shirts memory quilt project that would look nice like red and black version that Tish made.I do love the large quilt block patterns more and more lately.

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  22. I follow you on Bloglovin and Instagram.

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  23. I follow you through e-mail after realizing that your posts do not magically appear on my computer.

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  24. I would not have used black but after seeing this stunning quilt, I've changed my mind. Absolutely stunning 💕💕

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  25. I follow via email and on Instagram.

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  26. As I said before, as your ever loving sister, I follow you every which way but loose. 😂😂

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  27. Your quilt is beautiful. I have just discovered Kaffe Fassett flowers. I dismissed them for years thinking they were too "flowery." But maybe my taste has changed or I've seen the potential--thanks to lots of blogs that I've read. I would use a gray for the background.
    kthurn(at)bektel(dot)com

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  28. I follow you by email and Bloglovin. But I read my email every day so those blogs I don't want to miss a post I make sure to subscribe that way. I read thru Bloglovin once in a while.
    kthurn(at)bektel(dot)com

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  29. the black background really pops the colors and block, great choice.

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  30. Left two comments on the bloglovin comment box . Hate that

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  31. I would definitely use bright colours on an anthracite background. I love this pattern and would love to use it for a baby quilt.

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  32. What a great pattern! I love yours with the black background, but I'm not that brave and would most likely go with light background!
    Thanks for the giveaway!

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  33. I love this quilt with the black background!!! J_dobler@msn.com

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  34. I love this quilt with the black background!!! J_dobler@msn.com

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  35. I forgot, I follow you on Blogger and Instagram.

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  36. Your version looks great! It's been fun seeing how different each one looks.

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  37. i just love this pattern, i would use a cream color background

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  38. Such a lovely yet simple pattern. I would use a periwinkle or a pale rose shade for the background.

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  39. I like the black background, but I wonder how it would look with a very pale blue background? It's a lovely quilt! ljbisme at msn dot com

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  40. I follow your blog via email. ljbisme at msn dot com

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  41. The black border is a great choice with Kaffe fabric. I would love to make the quilt with batiks, and would probably use a cream/beige fabric.

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  42. I would use kona storm. Thank goodness .
    kcummings71@gmail.com

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  43. I follow you here on bloglovin . Thank you .
    kcummings71@gmail.com

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  44. I am desperate to try a different color solid backround. my go to is kona coal and my stand bys are black and white. so I would love an aqua or an orange backround the aqua with reds and the orange w navy/

    sharongalli(at)gmail(d0t)com

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  45. I follow via bloglovin

    sharongalli(at)gmail(d0t)com

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  46. I think I would use a blue background.

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  47. I'd like to try a navy background.

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  48. Wouldn't it be darling with a pink background, with red, aqua and navy or gray for a baby quilt?

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  49. Sandra, your version is just gorgeous! I'll have to study the pictures more closely before deciding on a color scheme. Choosing colors/fabrics is and always has been the most difficult part of quilt making for me.

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  50. I love the colors you chose-just beautiful! I would use a dark brown, love the color combination of turquoises & pinks! Thank you, Susan

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  51. I follow you by email! Thank you, Susan

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  52. Very pretty quilt. I love the pop of color with the purple. I like to use a background color that has little things like stars or circles.

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  53. No wonder they (Tish and Dave) are all smiles. You did them proud with a gorgeous quilt and beautiful quilting. I follow you like a loyal puppy :-)

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  54. Beautiful design and quilt! I really like the bright colors against the dark background.

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  55. Great quilt! I love the black background you chose. It really allows the Kaffe fabrics to shine. I'd like to try this pattern with a gray/steel background... I love the quilting you chose...

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  56. P.s. I follow you on Bloglovin'. Have a great day!

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  57. I check your blog daily and love the name of your blog. I also love the Canadian references as so many of the blogs are American.

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  58. I would use gray as the background for this pattern. Mostly because I have a large piece that has been in my stash way too long but also because I have noticed a few quilts with gray backgrounds on social media lately. I think the first one I noticed was on th No Scrap Left Behind Blog Hop which eventually lead me to your blog.

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  59. This is so pretty. The colors remind me of bright marbles and tiles after a rain or in a pool of water. And I love the backing. The black background you chose seems perfect. I'm such a copycat I'd probably use that.

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  60. Your quilt is so pretty! I think I would use gray as a background. That seems to bee a popular color to go with these days and I haven't tried it yet. (I do love black backgrounds though, the black makes the colors pop so nicely)

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  61. I love your version of the quilt. The black makes it come to life and the girl at the counter was right, the backing is perfect. As far as what I would use for the background, I have some of last years Kona Color of the year, Highlight. It's bright yellow and paired with this years Flamingo,some aqua and grey and I just might have a winner.

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  62. It's just beautiful Sandra...and lucky you getting to hang out with the makers ; )

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  63. Congrats on a gorgeous finish! Black always makes those brights just sing, so you chose well.

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  64. I would use a light grey background for this quilt.

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  65. I follow your blog thought bloglovin. I can't imagine how hard it must have been to keep such a great project under wraps.

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  66. I had been thinking about a dark background, but you already did that :) I also thought about a medium blue background with the stars in purples, pinks, and light neutrals. I love your version!

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  67. So pretty! I've been catching up on your blog. I love seeing what you've been up to even with all of your unpacking and settling in you are doing.

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