Make Modern Issue 49

What do you suppose non-quilters think of when they hear the word ‘quilter’? Old-fashioned images of women cutting fabric by hand and sitting solitary in front of a sewing machine? A mindless activity for those with too much time on their hands? Of course, we all know this couldn’t be further from the truth. Quilting is so much more than the process of cutting up fabric squares and sewing them back together. Quilting is good for the brain. It’s an opportunity to tap into an inherent love of creating that becomes lost to so many of us when we become adults. It’s a great chance for some brain training as we immerse ourselves in learning new techniques. That simple patchwork, or some hand sewing, can become a meditative activity to…

MM 49 PERFECTLY PIECED This fun and vibrant quilt would be great for the gym junkie in your life, Tthough the cool geometric design means you don’t need to crave hitting the weights to appreciate this quilt. The hot colour scheme works perfectly, but any colours – even scraps – would work well. materials ¼ yd each of seven different red, orange and yellow fabrics, ranging in tone and mostly in the orange range3 ¼ yds of white background fabric5 yds backing fabric¾ yds binding fabric68” x 88” piece of batting Finished Block Sizes: 4” x 6”, 4” x 4”, 6” x 6” Quilt Size: 58” x 78” fabric note: Claudia used batiks from Island Batik’s Opulent Oranges collection in Pumpkin (1), Daffodil (2), Goldfish (3), Cantaloupe (4), Carrot (5),…

Whether you say appli-kay or a-plee-kay, spell it appliqué or applique, do it by hand or by machine, the end result of applique is the same – sewing smaller pieces of fabric on top of a larger piece of fabric to create a design. How you get there is up to you! One option is hand applique – using hand sewing to attach the shapes to the background fabric. This is a common method for appliqueing English paper pieced (EPP) shapes to a background fabric, where the edges are already folded under. Another option is to needleturn, where you use the needle to gently fold under the edge of the shapes as you hand sew it down (see top right). Then there’s machine applique, where you machine stitch the applique…

MM 49 TERRIFIC TRIANGLES This minimalistic quilt is fabulous in its simplicity. Featuring a monochromatic palette with a simple star in the middle that radiates out with the placement of the triangles, it’s a great quilt for those who prefer understated style. materials 3 ¼ yds of dark grey background fabric¼ yd each of six different low volume prints: two white, two light grey, two medium grey½ yd of binding fabric4 ¼ yds of backing fabric75” x 75” piece of batting¼” bias tape maker Quilt Size: 63” x 63” fabricnote: Anke made her quilt using Quilter’s Linen in Onyx by Robert Kaufman as background fabric and various low volume fabrics in white, light and medium grey, eg. Script Grey (Jennifer Sampou Chalk & Charcoal for Robert Kaufman), Stitched (Alison Glass), Hashtag…

Now that you’ve watched me take a quilt from inspiration to pattern, I thought I’d talk to a few other Ndesigners about their process so you can see there is no ‘right’ way to go about it. Here I chat to Jenny Haynes of Papper, Sax, Sten; Jemima Flendt of Tied with a Ribbon; and Christine Slote of Tessellate Textiles about a recent project. Where did you get the inspiration for your latest design? JH: The Dazzling Roundel pattern is based on a technique I developed a couple of years ago – the twice-cut drunkard’s path. My designs tend to follow on from a previous technique and the templates are always the base. With this design, I have a new set of templates and I was wondering if I could…

MM 49 SCRAP HAPPY Designed as a gift for a teenager going away to study, this quilt represents the brightness and energy of a new phase of life. Featuring vibrant colours and a cool grey background, it’s a great scrap buster, and the triangle base block makes a refreshing change from squares. materials About 18 fat quarters (or 4 ½ yds) of various prints in shades from white to dark grey. You need more lighter fabrics to get the ‘shimmer and fade’ effect of darker in the middle and lighter around the edges.About four fat eighths (or ½ yd) of various blue fabricsAbout five fat eighths (or ⅝ yd) of various yellow fabricsAbout two fat eighths (or ¼ yd) of various hot pink fabricsAbout six fat eighths (or ¾ yd)…