Monday, March 31, 2014

Spiral Rainbows

This small (finished at 27" x 27") scrap busting project has been in the works for quite a few months.  I didn't know when I started exactly where I wanted to end up, but I'm very happy with the final destination.  :)


I started by digging through my scraps and dividing them into colour groups, then put the blocks together using the crazy piecing technique described in "Quilting Modern."  This falls under the category of 'improvisation' which as I've said many times, does not come easily or naturally to me, so for me these blocks were a lot of work.  I have a hard time just letting random be random and I probably put way too much thought into it!


After seeing Debbie's 'Unlocked' quilt quilted in a spiral, I knew I wanted to give it a try on this project.  I had quilted concentric circles once before, quite a long time ago, so I needed a refresher on how to get started, and any tips and tricks I could gather to make it as smooth as possible.  I hope to write a blog post soon with what worked for me as far as the spiral goes, so stay tuned for that! **quilting a spiral blog post is up, you can find it here**


I found this really awesome Michael Miller "Old Script" fabric to use for the binding, and I just love it.  And in case you're wondering, the backing is nothing to write home about, a plain solid cream, which is why it is not pictured!


I hope your day has been as beautiful and sunny as ours has been!  Thanks for stopping by.

Linking up with finish it up Friday @ Crazy Mom Quilts

24 comments:

mle said...

Fun project! improv doesn't come naturally to me either. It seems to take forever as well but the result is really spectacular with these rainbow blocks! well done!

Amy's Crafty Shenanigans said...

absolutely gorgeous :)

Michele T said...

Love it!!! The quilt designs are really neat too! Great way to bust your stash!!!

Izzy said...

Wow - it's really gorgeous! Improv is super hard for me too... Actually, not just hard - scary! But I hope to give crazy piecing a try soon.

The nosy pepper said...

This is gorgeous!

Erica said...

Love it! You definitely can't tell that the improv was hard work, it looks like you are a natural!

Alisa said...

It turned out very well! Improv isn't that easy for me either. I like how the colour blocks are squared up though, balancing out the wonkiness.

DeborahGun said...

one of my favouritest mini-quilts ever Heather :-) I just adore it!

Debbie said...

oh I love this and the spiral is perfect on it!!

Susan said...

Yes, we had our hottest April 1st day ever! (32degrees C). I love this quilt Heather! You are really coming up with some impressive finishes! No one would ever know you struggle with improvisation!

felicity said...

Totally fabulous! So colourful, and the spiral quilting is perfect. Looking forward to your tips and tricks.

Cille said...

Perfect spiral - it looks fantastic

Kleep said...

I just love it!! I want to make a mini quilt to hang in my sewing room, but I am completely undecided on what to do!

Jackie's Stitches said...

I've only sewn one improv block and it was painful! Truth be told - I didn't like the outcome. But I really like what you've done here and I think that making blocks of color would be a much easier process. I definitely like what you've done here!

nicole said...

So awesome Heather! Your spiral quilting is fantastic!

Carla said...

I LOVE this! You did so awesome Heather. A perfect finish

Wendy said...

gorgeous! I love rainbow quilts and I love the improv-ness of this.

Turid said...

Really beautiful. I love it!

Katelyn @ Sing While Crafting said...

I love this! Beautiful colors. Improv piecing is super difficult for me...so I get you there. This is fantastic.

Run 'n Stitch said...

What a great quilt. I love the rainbow of colors. It's very inspiring! Thank you for sharing.

Samantha said...

I really, really love how this scrappy project turned out! It is gorgeous!

Caryl @ cinnamon holiday workshop said...

I really like this colorful quilt and such a great idea for the quilting.

Katherine said...

Wow. I LOVE it, Heather! So scrappy good in yummy colours. The cherry on top is your wonderful spiral quilting. Gorgeous!

Heidi Staples said...

This is absolutely stunning!!