The Joy is Back

Written by Diane Harris on February 7, 2023. Posted in Blog, How-tos and Ideas, Inspiration, Quilt Lifestyle

I went through a rough patch the last half of last year and I struggled to create. But things are looking up and my sewing machine is humming again.

Flicker from View, a design by Thimbles and Needles; this is my version.

I fell in love with the cleverness of this design by Jo at Thimbles & Needles in Sydney, Australia. The offset quality is eye catching, and I thought my bright fabrics would look great in her quilt design. I bought the pattern from Jo’s website and let’s just take a moment to marvel that we can do that! Aren’t you glad for technology? I sure am.

I want to insert an editorial here. Couldn’t I have tried to figure it out myself without buying the pattern? Well yes, I probably could have. But I bought the pattern because I know how much work goes into pattern development and I wanted to support another creative person. And I’ve learned that many times, there’s bonus info in the pattern like tips, fabric guidance or a handy way of organizing the process. Well worth the money.

That sewing was really enjoyable: simple piecing that looks super interesting. What’s not to love? I still have a few rows to go but it will happen soon, I promise.

I jumped at the chance for a simple sew-along with Plains and Pine last week.

The Wild Star is a simply pieced traditional Lone Star but with Lindlee’s modern twist, I was smitten. And she writes terrific instructions so I knew I could succeed.

Gradations of color on my Lone Star sections

I decided it might be fun to work from light to dark on each star section. I pulled from my scrap bin and only had to raid the stash a couple of times for a missing value.

I had to decide what colors I wanted to use because there’s not a neat division of eight on the color wheel. There are three primary colors and three secondary colors, but I needed two more. I turned red-orange-yellow into four sections, and added teal in between blue and green.

I didn’t like all the light points in, but I didn’t like them on the outside either. I auditioned a bunch of grays for the background because I wanted to give some relief from the colors. I think too much color can be overwhelming. It’s like your eye needs a palate cleanser, so to speak.

Light points in and out, polka dot background

This is where I landed: the light and dark points alternate in and out, and the polka dots might not be everyone’s choice but I like them.

I’ve learned to trust my gut. Even if I know that something is out in left field, I will just do it. It’s only fabric, and if it doesn’t work, I will learn something. We don’t need to fear making something ugly. It is totally okay.

My setting triangles must have stretched a bit because I had to trim quite a bit to make it square. And yes, I did cut off the tips of some points. The world will go on.

It’s still not really flat but hey, THAT WILL QUILT OUT.

I added a little border to float it in that sea of polka dots.

I’m auditioning lots of things but I’m not sure what will come next. Sometimes you need to let things marinate. I’ll make another one of these because I love the colors in Lindlee’s quilt: