Fussing Over Birds

Another fabric collection I had the privilege of playing with for Market was Valori Wells' Wrenly.  Birds and flowers adorn the various prints.  This quilt was like a Project Runway challenge for quilting.  The box arrived on a Friday.  I had no idea what was in it, had not seen any previews of the fabric. I had very limited time to make decisions and execute a design idea.

But the large bird print was begging to be fussy cut.  I knew that immediately.  The hexagonal piece takes things in a slightly different direction than squares set on point.  It's a little bit of the unexpected.  The triangles fill in the rows with pops of color.  And Free Spirit's Designer Dapples in Lime really make it pop on the backside.

I used Y seams because I feel you have a little more control over the points.  Contrary to what some of you may be thinking, Y seams are not difficult.  They take a little more time and you do have to mark the points, but they are nothing to be afraid of.  In fact, a quilt with big pieces like this one is a good way to practice and add this skill to your repertoire.

Working with colorful prints seems to agree with me.  The box of fabric was opened, cut, sewn, quilted and shipped off in three days.  Now, I certainly don't recommend you follow my example and speed through all the steps required.  But I do recommend that you try some new things--maybe even something with a skill you don't feel you've mastered.  If you choose to make this one, the pattern should be available in the coming weeks on the Free Spirit website. 

I hope you're having a Happy Monday!