AGF Stitched // Fractal Quilt
Once again, I was so pleased to be asked to participate in the AGF Stitched series. This time around we used the Kites Plus Ruler by Creative Grids to create the Fractal Quilt (this link takes you to the free pattern). Despite there being quite a few Y-seams, the quilt went together ridiculously fast! It ended up taking me two days, but only because I got a late start cutting on the first day, otherwise it could easily be made in a day.
As with the last quilt in the series, I wanted to go with fabrics that were light and subtle, and these fabrics from Wanderer by April Hordes were just the ticket. I have found that Aprils prints tend to be a little larger in their scale, so I felt they would be perfect for this quilt where the pieces are large enough to really display them. When I initially select fabrics, i’m always nervous how they will come together once they are actually in hand, but I had nothing to worry on this quilt, I absolutely love the fabrics and their placement.
As I mentioned, there are Y-seams, but don’t let that scare you. Y-seams are not as hard as they sound, and if you haven’t made them before, I think you’ll find that the Kites Plus Ruler is a big help. The ruler has holes in it for you to mark on your fabric where you will stop sewing as you bring your seam together. As with the last quilt, Fat Quarter Shop has a video all worked up showing you how to work with the ruler to make this quilt. I’ll slip it in at the end of this post for easy viewing. The ruler was great, and a must when making this quilt. As you can see from the graphics printed on the ruler, there are several ways to use this ruler to create fun quilts.
I ended up adding a little extra to the end of my quilt top to finish out that third row of hexagons. Sometimes i’m all about the symmetry, and I just couldn’t leave that thrid one unfished, as the pattern calls for. I was just careful with the cutting of my fabrics, and I was easily able to get the extra pieces I needed. I’m very happy with the extra bit and glad I added it in.
When it came time to quilt this I hemmed and hawed for a long time (nothing unusual there). When it’s my own quilt I love to do custom quilting, and I played around with a lot of ideas, but ultimately I kept coming back to this all over design. It just seemed to fit the feel of the quilt so perfectly, and I have to say once it was quilted up, it was just what it needed. Not only do the angles work well with the piecing, but it is a great fit with the theme of the fabrics.
The back of the quilt is another print from the Wanderer line (Charlotte and the Runner’s couldn’t resist getting in the way helping).
I wish I would have thought to get a little extra fabric for the backing so I could have had the seam run the other direction, but in all honesty, it’s the back of the quilt and no one will even notice but me.
The quilt is being bound in this beautiful print with hints of pastels as well as earthy tones. I’m still finishing that up, but looking forward to using this quilt.
It’s just the perfect size for sitting under on the couch, and I know it will get lots of use in my home. The Fractal Quilt is a free pattern for AGF Stitched with Kimberly and can be downloaded here. Fat Quarter Shop offers a kit for purchase to make this quilt here and the ruler can be found here.
Art Gallery Fabrics graciously provided the fabrics for me to make this quilt. The prints used in this quilt are, from top to bottom: Temple of Allanque (WAN-23302), Dreamcatching Celeste (WAN-13306), Crochetting Crops (WAN-23304), Gust of Leaves Silver (WAN-13305), Diamond Cloth Cereus (WAN-13308), Serape Dream (WAN-13300), Wandering Lands Boreas (WAN-13309), Diamond Cloth Nopal (WAN-23308), Crochetting Clouds (WAN-13304), Sacred Seeds Brittle (WAN-13301).
Edited to add: Here is a link to Fat Quarter Shop’s blog post, which also has links to the other bloggers making this pattern with other Art Gallery Fabrics.