It’s taken the entire day to piece this quilt back using the extra blocks, small scraps and other leftover fabric all because I didn’t have a backing fabric on hand. Looking at the panel I almost see it as another quilt – not quite, though, because the left side has a rather boring patch right in the middle. That was where I started piecing, trying to use the larger leftover pieces and wasn’t being concerned about placement or size. In fact, I was simply trying to create a 26″ x 72″ panel to use on the back and didn’t think I could actually be making a second separate quilt!

This is just the backing for the “boomerang” quilt (I don’t have a name for it, yet). Now to cut some batting, layer the three parts, and pin them together. I haven’t yet set up an embroidery for quilting the quilt – that’ll be tomorrow’s part of the project.

A blizzard outside today, so I’ve been sewing all morning. I just completed the quilt top with the pieced inner sashing and the border. I like how the border print brings the whole project together. There’s now enough colour movement and border fabric elements within the panel to invite the eye to look around.

I added the narrow sashing to the border before applying the border to the panel so I could do a single mitre including the narrow sashing – easier than mitring the two elements separately and trying to get them lined up.

Now I have to come up with an idea for the back. I have quite a few leftover blocks (with boomerang) and some rectangles I assembled from leftover triangles along with scraps from the blues. I don’t have any “backing” fabric, per se; my plan is to use the scraps to make as large a panel as I can, then fill in with something that goes with the blues in the top.

Better get cracking…

This is where I began on Jan 18th (https://www.pinterest.ca/pin/219480181832790827/)

I liked the simplicity of the design, although I thought I’d try using print fabrics to create the blocks. I also didn’t want a square, a good lap quilt has to be a rectangle so it covers the body as well as the feet when you use it, even if it’s created as an art piece intended for hanging!

So from the beginning I was using this “trajectory” quilt for inspiration not to duplicate it. Also it’s a paper pieced work – I hate paper piecing so I constructed a set of templates (based on a 6 1/2″ block) to cut my block elements.

Then I went through the fabrics in my stash – came up with several shades of blue but nothing to contrast with it so I went shopping.

In the end I came up with more blue and some yellow/chartreuse pieces.

I cut the block pieces, matched the lighter yellows to the softer blues, the darker chartreuse with the stronger prints and navy pieces.

With the blocks sewn I laid them out – the challenge was establishing a gradient within a rectangle – not as easy as you’d think.

Deadly!

My pale blues read beige and I probably should have reversed the pairings using the brightest yellows with the navy elements; the darker chartreuse with the pale elements – in any case an acceptable quilt but nothing outstanding about it. Here’s where I realized it’s much easier to make quilts that “pop” with strong, large print or batik fabrics!

I had bought a yard of a much larger print fabric which tied the blues/yellows, intending to use it for the border, but I decided I needed to incorporate some into the panel.

I made several new blocks using that fabric in the corner.

Not much better. You barely notice the large print. Nothing is moving your eye around the panel and the upper left corner just sits there.

I thought about my problem for four days while I sick with the norovirus and decided I needed both less and more of the larger print fabric. I made some new blocks this morning.

In addition to the few hints of large print, I took away several of the very pale blocks, replacing them with darker elements, I also moved other blocks around mixing up the array quite a bit more. After looking at this arrangement for a while I decided I could finally start sewing rows.

Still not one of my better quilts but at least I can live with this. When the panel is assembled, my intention is to insert a narrow gradient sashing (maybe 3/8″) using the yellow/chartreuse fabrics, ending with a 3 1/2″ border using the large print. Who knows, I may even decide to add some appliqué, although I have no idea what that would be – I can certainly break up those deadly light fabrics with small large print circles….

The original inspiration piece worked for a number of reasons: first the quilter used solids (four yellows, three greys), easier to match up than prints; she worked in an 8×8 square array which allowed her to establish a symmetry not possible with 7×10. (My reason for choosing 7×10 instead of 8×11 had to do with the finished size of the panel and with a wide border ending up too large for a lap quilt.)

While the centre panel is settled, the sashing/border is not (and I’ve not yet given any thought to the quilt back). There’s still a lot of sorting out to be done here.