Pattern Giveaway – OccasionalPiece

I’m getting ready to do a live-online presentation and teaching at Glendale Quilt Guild next week, and a deadline always sends my I-should-try-this into overdrive. So while I have the Criss-Cross pattern up online, and I thought I was pretty settled, a little voice in the back of my head said I should try some autumn colors in the largest size block in the pattern.

Okey-dokey. So I pulled a group of red-orange, purple, gold, orange, yellow fabrics and I was cooking along, pretty happy with the choices I’d made, but when I was looking for another darkish to put into what was up on the design wall…

…this fell out of a bin. It was Jennifer Sampou’s Chalk and Charcoal fat quarter stack, purchased some years ago. I used to have it out on a surface, just because I liked the colors so much, but had never opened it. (I’m sure you have never done this.)

So, in a flash, all the previous choices were down from the wall, and I had cut and was arranging all the new choices up there. The last image is adding in the strips.

So here is Criss-Cross Autumn, a 35″ square wall hanging. And since we don’t live in a climate that has a lot of rusts, golds, purples, reds in the tree canopies, but we do live in a climate that at the end of summer has a lot of golds, browns and yellows, my husband and I took a drive out in the countryside to shoot some photographs.

We were out in Hemet, by the golden San Jacinto mountains (shown above). One writer once compared the California hills to a tawny mountain lion. I grew up in the Bay Area, where in autumn, the golden grassy hills are interspersed by giant spreading oaks. What we have mostly now is not native, as I discovered when reading this essay, but like the author, I do love the colors.

Now, what to do with that other almost-quilt? How about I give it away? I’ll send you the almost-quilt (already cut!) and its strips (also, already cut, although I have to tell you that once you get adding and subtracting, you may find yourself adding more). There are also a few extra pieces in there, in case you have a different vision. I will also include a hard copy of this new pattern, with multiples sizes and variations.

Leave me a comment at the end, tell me about what colors are in your landscape around you right now, and how you feel about those colors. I’ll pick a winner using the husband-draw-a-paper-out-of-hat method, and let the winner know by email. Here are some image/photos of Criss-Cross Quilt, done in Christmas fabrics:

I’m looking forward to live-online teaching this quilt at the Glendale Quilt Guild next Saturday!

*Criss-Cross Autumn*, Quilt Index No. 232

UPDATE: Just thought I’d add this to the post. I finished the quilt a few days later, using a simple straight-line quilting pattern, varying the directions. It will be perfect for hanging up during September, when autumn arrives.

UPDATE: Comments are now closed. Winner will be contacted via email on Monday, August 10, 2020.

P.S. There’s a coupon code for the pattern, good for 25% off Criss-Cross Quilt through the end of August. The code is listed on the PayHip page.

I finished my quilt, and I’ve titled it Juxtaposition. Every quilt teaches me something, and this one taught me to try again, to not get discouraged, to discover new ways of doing things.

This photo of the quilt, shows less of the texture–the quilting–and more of the color and pattern. I love the pattern.

It is Facets, from Anne of SpringLeaf Studios and as a lovely part of this quilt, she will be offering one pattern for a giveaway. (UPDATE: Giveaway is closed.) I only did one of the several versions of this pattern; mine was the simplest, but all of her directions are clearly written and easy-to-follow.

The easy punch of the graphic design drew me to this, and I knew that the fabric I chose, Charleston Farmhouse, would be a perfect fit. I just didn’t anticipate the difficulty of quilting that central square, but it didn’t take away my fondness for this pattern. I’m already planning to make it again, using the blocks idea shown on the front of the pattern.

I wrote about the frustration I experienced in quilting this, but sitting in my hotel room one morning (we were away at a conference), I realized that if I didn’t tackle and finish, this quilt, I probably would pitch it in the thrift store bag.

(original quilting)

So I drew up two ideas for the center; both were generated by a comment of a reader who said that my ferns in my original design were facing the wrong direction. I thought a long time about what she said, and as I drew, took in her ideas. I let my husband and my quilter friend Beth vote on the one they liked, and I went to town. I used a blue marking pen to assist me, but didn’t trace the leaves, as I still wanted that organic look to the quilting.

After I finished, I had my quilt in one hand, camera in the other, walking around the hotel looking for places to take its picture. This shot was taken in full sun, laying on the grass in the late afternoon and the texture of the quilting really pops. I used a faced binding again on this quilt, and I like how it looks.

It was lovely to come home with a finished quilt. This is quilt #121 on my 200 Quilts Index.

It is also part of the Third Quarter Finish-A-Long, and I’m happy to say I finished one more quilt on my list!

And also today, my tutorial on Y-seams posted at Leanne’s blog here, if you need a little help in that direction.

To win a copy of this pattern (it’s a downloadable PDF), tell me about the hardest quilt you ever made, that really challenged you, but one that stuck with until the end. Are you glad you finished it? Do you hate the quilt? Love it for what it taught you? Gave it away as soon as you could?

~~Leave a comment and I’ll pick a winner on Thursday evening.~~

Drawing is now closed. Thanks for participating.