The Checkerboard quilt

I'm excited to share my latest magazine quilt, Checkerboard, which is in the May/June 2018 issue of Modern Patchwork. It's always a thrill to see my name in print! The quilt is made using Paintbrush studio's Painter's Palette Solids. They're my favorite solids to sew with--they're silky smooth and so saturated with color. You can see all 168 colors here. 

The cover: 

Find the magazine here.

I love improv log cabin blocks! They're fun to make, and each one turns out different from its neighbors. I made a smaller version of this quilt last year (below), but wanted to do more with the design. 

When I designed the Checkerboard quilt, I tried a few versions that were all log cabin blocks (in other words, a bigger version of what you see above) and it was just too much. The quilt needed breathing space. I really liked what the negative space above the below the block row added to the design.

I took some more photos of my quilt to share. 

If I'd taken them a day earlier, I would have had a snowy backdrop (ugh!). 

The full quilt:

I love how the transition of colors makes the block centers look like they're popping out (orange) and receding back (blue). I really enjoyed choosing the colors to use in these blocks, but it was harder than you'd think!

These next few shots really show off the quilting. Diane Oakes did a fabulous job! She quilted a spiraling square in each block, and then straight lines in the solid sections.

Blue block close-up:

Orange block close-up: