Friday, February 7, 2020

Polka Dot Magic!

The end is near!  My Polka Dot Wonky phase is over for the time being.  With a renewed urgency of using my stash, I was able to whittle down one area of excess.  Polka Dots.  I love polka dots and these fabrics are right up my alley with the bright saturated colors, but it was time.  I said previously (Wonky Baby), that I had wanted to make this quilt for quite some time.  My wish was granted!


WONKY  LAP QUILT
46" X 60"
From orange, tangerine, yellow, magenta - to green, peach, coral and purple!  The combination of those colors are balanced with a scrappy background using neutrals.  



There were a couple things that were planned out while I was making this quilt.  After I pieced the blocks, but before I gave them the 'wonk' treatment, I took advantage of my empty design wall.  By laying out the blocks before hand I could make sure the colors were evenly scattered from top to bottom.  



From there I pulled out my rotating cutting mat, placed a template of painters tape for trimming and went about wonky it up!  My tutorial for making Wonky Blocks shows my process for piecing, cutting and the painters tape template.  I like my blocks to alternate leaning left and right, but not have each one exactly like the other.  Some variations are slight, while others are as wonky as I could go.

    
As you can imagine assembling the rows goes quite fast.  While I had this quilt finished before the Wonky Baby quilt, I set it aside until the quilting mood hit me.



Because I'm using my stash, I thought a pieced backing would be in order.  What better way to quickly consume a stash or scrap pile?!  Pieced backing to the rescue.  

It seems more often than not that my backing selection is always 'this much' too small.  By piecing a vertical or horizontal strip using scraps or orphan blocks is a very good way to expand a back, don't you think?



In the spirit of the wonky block, I quilted wonky lines.  It feels like it's been a long time since I didn't quilt the living daylights out of a quilt, but this one I controlled myself.  It's perfectly perfect or perfectly imperfect...however you want to look at it!  



The final step was the binding of course.  Scrappy all the way!  My itch again has been scratched!



Washed and piled up.  Just the way I like to end when I make a quilt!

When you make a scrappy binding and the colors are clearly different from each other, what color of thread do you use?  One color?  Multiple colors?  I'm a multiple kinda girl, but I'm curious what other people do. 

Back to quilting with dense straight lines on another quilt...


LINKING:

18 comments :

  1. I think I would go for a soft mid grey thread. It's a lovely quilt - so fresh amd playful.

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    1. I’ve always thought a wonky block quilt was playful too! I never tried going with one color thread for a scrappy binding, but grey sounds like the perfect choice!

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  2. Lovely, bright and vibrant, just like you! Personally I try to use a colour that blends in with most as best I can, but if it clashes with some fabrics I would change colour.

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  3. I love your wonky polka dots! The colors and dots just sing. I like using different color thread on scrappy quilts. Great finish.

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  4. I have used matching threads even if that means changing it out over and over again

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  5. Fun! And love your quilting on this one! I struggle with thread color sometimes...don't have a hard and fast rule.

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  6. Inserting stripes into backings to enlarge them is definitely a wonderful way to go. Otherwise I end up with large excess added to my stash from trimming down a more oversized backing!

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  7. LOVE IT! I am not mad for Polka Dots, but I love the color range you've used. And wonky is so much fun!

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  8. I like those dancing squares on this bright, happy quilt. I need to try piecing my backings more; I like the way you used the stripes. I rarely think to use anything but a neutral thread for binding. I need to branch out more!

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  9. Dots are always happy and cheery as is your petty quilt. Well done.

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  10. Happy and cheery is the perfect way to describe this quilt - just like Karen said above! What a fun way to feature the color and the dots with simple piecing! Great finish, Jayne!

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  11. Pretty and joyfull quilt! Love the wonkyness ;) For a scrappy binding, I use neutral thread, light grey or brown

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  12. What a fun, happy quilt! Polka dots and wonky just go together so well. I love all the colors you used too. And that not all the wonky is the same. It's so cute and cuddly!

    I too am dot-crazy and have probably too many dot fabrics. Right now I'm "supposed to be" working on an all-dot scrappy Trip Around the World. At least queen-sized. I think I've got about 20 blocks, so I still have a ways to go! It will be my 2nd, but not last, all-dot quilt!

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  13. You are an inspiration Jayne! You are really sewing up that stash and finishing your projects. I tend to change thread for a scrappy binding. I am usually using the bobbins from my longarm so I always have lots of colors to choose from. Thanks for linking up with Oh Scrap!

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  14. What a fun quilt! I forgot that I have a bin FULL of wonky blocks, just waiting to be assembled...
    For scrappy bindings, I tend to use variegated thread - I choose one that has a lot of the colours that match the fabrics.

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  15. Happiness is a polka-dotted quilt!!!

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  16. While I usually go for the cooler colors of Wonky Baby, I absolutely LOVE the bright, bold warmth of Wonky Lap Quilt!!! What fun!

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  17. Very cute. Love the color combo.

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