I made a quilt! My sew-jo had been missing for the last few months, allowing days and weeks to slip by without the one thing that has been such a big part of my life for more than a decade. Fabric play, stitching, patching, quilting have always been a source of pleasure and comfort. This quilt is hopefully a sustained return to that which I once so enjoyed, and an endeavor to stitch my way out of the doldrums.
Click on any image for a larger view.
I must say that I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed digging deep into my fabric stash and slowly putting the pieces together. Therapeutic really. The quilt features many, if not most, of my much loved stashed fabrics from Japanese fabric houses including Yuwa Fabrics, Kei Fabrics, and Sevenberry. Many of the prints are designed by popular Japanese quilter and designer Suzuko Koseki, and Atsuko Matsuyama.
Some of these fabrics have been in my stash for a number of years and they are now difficult to find, others are relatively recent additions and can fairly easily be sourced online. Of course, I have been adding to my collection for more than a decade and have bought small pieces whenever the opportunity arose. I have also had the great pleasure of going the Tokyo Quilt Festival in 2018 where I was able to greatly enhance my Japanese fabric collection!
I have quilted the quilt with edge to edge vertical lines. The quilting lines are spaced just a ½ inch apart to create a texture that I absolutely love, even though it can become rather laborious to straight stitch the many lines for several hours on end. It is worth it!
For the back of the quilt I have combined my favorite and often used newsprint fabric (Newsprint from the Story collection by Carrie Bloomston for Windham Fabrics), and a beautiful daisy print by Suzuko Koseki for Yuwa Fabrics. I really wanted to use the floral print for the quilt back but only had two yards on hand, and as this quilt was supposed to be a stash buster I thought it only right to use the floral print and combine it with my often used - for it versatile as it goes with everything! - newsprint fabric. The top half of the quilt back is floral, and the bottom half of the quilt back is newsprint.
For the binding I have again stuck with my signature black/white stripe binding, in part because I am very fond of this finish, but also because I do not have on hand all that many pieces of Japanese fabrics in quantities suitable for binding (at least a ½ yard), and the few prints that I do have larger quantities of were not suitable.
Some of these fabrics have been in my stash for a number of years and they are now difficult to find, others are relatively recent additions and can fairly easily be sourced online. Of course, I have been adding to my collection for more than a decade and have bought small pieces whenever the opportunity arose. I have also had the great pleasure of going the Tokyo Quilt Festival in 2018 where I was able to greatly enhance my Japanese fabric collection!
For the back of the quilt I have combined my favorite and often used newsprint fabric (Newsprint from the Story collection by Carrie Bloomston for Windham Fabrics), and a beautiful daisy print by Suzuko Koseki for Yuwa Fabrics. I really wanted to use the floral print for the quilt back but only had two yards on hand, and as this quilt was supposed to be a stash buster I thought it only right to use the floral print and combine it with my often used - for it versatile as it goes with everything! - newsprint fabric. The top half of the quilt back is floral, and the bottom half of the quilt back is newsprint.
For the binding I have again stuck with my signature black/white stripe binding, in part because I am very fond of this finish, but also because I do not have on hand all that many pieces of Japanese fabrics in quantities suitable for binding (at least a ½ yard), and the few prints that I do have larger quantities of were not suitable.
QUILT DETAILS
Japanese Stash Buster Quilt
The finished quilt measures 64 inches x 76 inches (163cm x 193cm).
608 patchwork pieces.
Each finished piece measures 2" x 4" (excludes seam allowances).
This quilt was not strip pieced, instead I randomly pieced
individual blocks of 4 pieces x 2 pieces (a 8½ inch block).
Fabrics:
Fabrics from my Japanese fabric stash collated over more
than a decade, including many
designs by Suzuko Koseki for Yuwa Fabrics.
This quilt is for sale!
I have made this quilt to raise funds for the official charity of the 2020 Boston Marathon - CYCLE Kids. All proceeds from the sale of this quilt will go directly to the charity, and in turn will fulfill my husband's dream of running the Boston Marathon. My husband Paul is a keen long distance runner and has run 7 marathons across the world. He has his sights set on the Boston Marathon for next year but to gain entry we need to raise funds - all funds go directly to the charity.
My husband has supported my passion for patchwork and quilting for a very long time. He had cheered me on all the way, and financially supported Red Pepper Quilts - particularly in the early years! - and now it is my time to reciprocate and support his mission.
CYCLE Kids is a US based charity committed to working with schools to ensure the basic rights of children to a physically and emotionally healthy start in life all through the experience of learning to ride a bike and make healthy eating choices! CYCLE Kids is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, EIN: 20-1169399.
If you have any questions or if you are interested in purchasing this quilt
please contact me by email:
redpepperquilts@gmail.com
OR if you would like to make a donation to support my husband
and at the same time raise funds for a very worthy charity I would be
super grateful. Please use the link below:
and at the same time raise funds for a very worthy charity I would be
super grateful. Please use the link below:
As always, thank you so much for stopping by! I really appreciate it.
Rita
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COPYRIGHT: Do not copy or use any content or photos from my blog without my written permission. This is original content from www.redpepperquilts.com.
This is gorgeous. I love seeing all your beautiful fabrics and how you put them together. Your quilts always make me smile.
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed seeing another of your quilts and learning of cyclekids.
ReplyDeleteHappy quilt, makes me smile. You were one of the first quilters I followed. Have a wonderful day.
ReplyDeleteIt is always a pleasure to see one of your quilts pop up in my feed. This is another beauty.
ReplyDeleteIt is SUCH a pleasure (and a wonderful Sunday morning surprise) to see another beautiful quilt from you. I have always loved your exquisite photography. Thank you for the joy you give fellow quilters just by sharing your work with us online.
ReplyDeleteI just made a small donation to Paul's cyclekids campaign. (By coincidence, I currently live in the Boston Metrowest area.) Best wishes to you and to your husband; please keep us updated on his Boston Marathon journey.
Your quilt is amazing! I'm glad you got your sew-jo back. It's terrible when it goes, but it happens. Happy quilting!
ReplyDeleteBeautiful! Your quilt is motivation to tackle my scrap stash that has taken over my sewing room.
ReplyDeleteRita, this finish is beautiful. I adore it.
ReplyDeleteAs always, I am praying for you and your mom and dad.
Remember to rest your mind, and focus on what makes you happy.
This is a fabulous mix of colour and pattern. x
ReplyDeleteLovely. Wonderful to see you back to stitching.
ReplyDeleteOh, Rita, so wonderful to read and see the lovely quilt you made. Miss seeing your super creations regularly. I just adore your work.
ReplyDeleteWonderful to see a lovely Red Pepper Quilt! Thank you for sharing your quilting mojo challenges - creativity and quilting mojo sometimes is fickle and enigmatic. I've suffered from sewing gaps and have given up worrying too much. Just thankful when the flow returns. THank you as always for sharing.
ReplyDeleteWow! In so many ways! But the biggest surprise was when I got to the end of this post and saw you are selling it! Wow!
ReplyDeleteIt is so good to see you back - your colorful quilts are always a treat to see!
ReplyDeleteIt is so good to see you back - your colorful quilts are always a visual treat to see!
ReplyDeleteI love this quilt! So many great fabrics! :)
ReplyDeleteI really hope your sewjo remains. Such a gorgeous quilt and what fun going back through your stash as having the fabrics tell their story.
ReplyDeleteRecently found your blog from Pinterest (then Etsy). I love your work and choice of fabrics. Very inspirational. I'm a beginner/intermediate quilter and finally have a bit more time to spend. I hope you'll continue to share your work. thank you!!!
ReplyDelete