This week we have been reading and talking about the idea of supporting all of the Indie pattern designers that are working so hard to design and release original patterns. Besides purchasing these lovely patterns we can also offer our time as pattern testers. Two weeks ago I was reading a couple of posts by Mihaela of A Beautiful Day. She blogs from Romania (don’t you love the ease with which we are able to befriend quilters from all over through this blogosphere.) Mihaela is working on a new pattern she calls Urban Folk Quilt. In one of her posts she asked for some testers that would help to verify that her English all translates correctly. I happily volunteered. It is hard enough to design patterns, figure out the measurements, draw up the instructions etc. But to do this in a language that is not your primary one must be very challenging.
You can be sure, language isn’t an issue for Mihaela. Her English is just wonderful and I did not find even one problem with her pattern and/or the translation to English. She includes every detail of instruction and sometimes more than one would expect. She discusses how to confirm that your blocks line up correctly, how to properly bind a quilt, and suggests ways to avoid block distortion. Overall, this pattern is complete and a great tool for the beginning quilter. I loved making it and would happily make another (and probably will!)
For this project, I chose colors that would work in our master bathroom. There are lots of bare walls in there. Bathrooms don’t rate very high on my need-to-decorate scale. Especially the master – who sees it besides Ray and I? I decided to make something to spruce it up. These colors work wonderfully.
I had so much fun quilting this. Finishing at 16 1/2″ squared, it was small enough to feel secure in trying new things. This quilt design feels a bit southwestern to me. It reminds me of a couple of throws that Ray bought some years ago on a trip to Mexico. This inspired me to quilt wavy lines, in three colors, across the horizontal stripes. Using the dark and light gray as well as the brown gives nice texture to the stripes.
Within the two rows of pieced blocks I used matchstick quilting. Having never quilted these narrow stripes before, I tried quilting with my darning/FMQ foot and with the walking foot.
Both work – the walking foot creates much straighter lines but oh my, it was taking forever! Having to stop and turn the quilt at each end was more than annoying. If it was a larger space being quilted, I would try the walking foot again. After a short stint of this though, I switched to my darning foot and FMQ’d the lines. They have a bit of an organic wobble to them but it still look ok. I love how the purple blocks have a bit of a puffiness to them from the tight quilting that surrounds them. Above and below each pieced row, I did some teeny tiny FMQ. Those rows are only one inch tall – it was a challenge to keep the movement flowing in such a small space.
What a fun project this was. Testing this pattern was an easy way to help another quilter out. There are lots of opportunities to test patterns. Be sure that you can meet the timeframe of the pattern designer though. Most likely she is relying on you to complete the task by a certain date so she can release the pattern. Speaking of which, Mihaela is releasing this pattern today! Check it out and show her some quilting love. It would make a great mini, table topper, or you could use it as a pillow cover if you add the backing to it.
Linking to several of my favorites, including Freemotion Mavericks, Finish it up Friday, and Off the Wall Fridays. Links to all of these are available at the top of the page, under Link Ups.
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This little quilt made my eyes open wide in admiration Bernie! How different and refreshing! And you quilting is wonderful on it! Great addition to the ensuite. 🙂
Thank you!! I appreciate the compliment Sandra. It was a fun and simple project (my favorite kind!) Hope all is well in your part of the world!
Wow, what a well thought out pattern testing effort Mihaela is going through. Your quilt looks fantastic and I really like all the different quilting motifs you used. The matchstick quilting looks like it worked really well for you, and I completely agree that a walking foot in small areas can go very slowly.
I really appreciated your help with the matchstick quilting. It is so nice to have so many people out there to ask questions and get hints from! Have a nice evening Yvonne!
Bernie, I am constantly amazed at how much you get done–and how varied your projects are. This is a great design (yea, Mihaela) and a beautiful interpretation with your colors and quilting. I agree, master bathrooms don’t always get respect, but this will be an elegant addition to yours. I’ve often thought pattern testing would be fun–but the timeline aspect keeps me from jumping in. I’m glad you did, though!
Lots of my projects are little so they are finished up quickly. This mini really only took an afternoon to piece and another to quilt. I’m happy with it though. I bet you would be a great pattern tester because you have such a wealth of knowledge! Give it a try. ?
Oh my goodness! The quilting on this beautiful little quilt is just beautiful! Those little pebbles and …ummm, I’m not sure what to call them…figure 8’s maybe? So much work and so well done. I am envious, and inspired to try free motion quilting again! What a pretty little pop of color and design for your master bath. You’ll smile every time you see it!
Oh Tami. Thank you for such a compliment. I am enjoying all of this FMQ practice. I love it on small projects. Quilting full size quilts is where I get frustrated. I’m hoping that as I keep practicing, it will become easier on real quilts. Hope so anyway!
Pretty! This looks kind of like a mini Navajo blanket to me. And you are getting really skilled with that quilting. You’re inspiring me!
It reminds me of the same – Thanks for the quilting love – I still cringe when I look at parts of it. But less so. It is improving!
I really enjoyed reading the details of how you quilted this pretty little piece. I especially like how you used different color threads for the wavy lines. Isn’t it great to experiment a little and learn what works for you?
It absolutely is Louise. That is what I love about mini quilts and smaller projects. I feel better about just experimenting.
This is gorgeous – it’s made up so lovely and will complement your bathroom wonderfully!
Thank you Abigail. I just put the sleeve on so I could hang it. So glad you stopped by!
Hello Bernie,
This is such a neat little quilt! I love your muted colours, and the organic wobble fits in just fine. Who needs straight lines?
Thank you for linking up with Free Motion Mavericks, and thanks too for the link to Mihaela’s blog.
Love, Muv
Oh, I’m glad you like it! I finally finished stitching the hanging sleeve on it. Hope you had a nice trip Muv!
Hi Bernie, this is a lovely piece and looks really great with your quilting. Thanks for telling us about your tester experience. There’s so much involved in getting a pattern out. It was very interesting.
Hi Andree, Thanks for your sweet comment. I have such admiration for all of the creative artists that release these wonderful patterns. They take a great deal of time and effort to be written up well. It was really satisfying to work with Mihaela and test this for her.