A Huge Leap of Faith

Before I totally commit to a new quilt project, I almost always make a test block to confirm that I like both the design and the fabrics I have chosen. More than once I have shifted gears, changing either my fabric selections or tweaking the pattern.

No test block this time. I’m about to embark on a big quilting project that is requiring a huge leap of faith on my part. And I’m unbelievably excited about it.

The project is in Victoria Findlay Wolfe‘s new book, Modern Quilt Magic, published by C&T Publishing:

Back in August, when Victoria was promoting her book on social media, I fell in love with one of the designs in it, Cascade, made with a curved braid strip ruler. I ordered book and ruler on the spot:


Notice how the quilt gradates from dark to light and back to dark again? The gradation is a function of both color and value. After studying Victoria’s version, which is very colorful and scrappy, I decided to go with a restricted palette of black, grey, gold, and white. I rarely work with all neutrals in a quilt so this is quite a departure for me. Despite the restricted palette, this quilt is going to be very scrappy, also a departure for me.

I started collecting fat quarters and quarter-yard cuts — yet another departure, as I am usually incapable of buying cuts of fabric smaller than a yard. In this case, I kept finding fabrics in my color range that seemed like good candidates.

As I looked over the instructions, I realized that I was going to have to cut lots and lots of curved braid strips from lots and lots of fabrics before sewing a single seam. That’s because of the way color and value gradate in the quilt: it’s essential to lay out the curves on a design wall and determine the final placement before sewing any of the curved braid strips together.

So I started gathering fabrics and cutting curves:

That’s a lot of curves, isn’t it? You’re looking at about 250 of them — roughly half the number needed for a twin size quilt. No going back now!

Every day I try to cut out a few more curves. By the time I finish my current project, a quilt for one of my granddaughters, I hope to start working on this new one.

I’m stepping far outside my comfort zone in every way with this quilt. Could that be why I find it so exciting?

 

 

 

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7 Responses to A Huge Leap of Faith

  1. Sandy says:

    Good for you Dawn. I can hardly wait to see it sewn together. It’s always fun to step outside the box.

  2. Venita Davis says:

    Hi Dawn,
    I too love that pattern! I haven’t bought the ruler yet, but would love to. Enjoy..this may evolve into a class.
    Happy holidays, my friend…

  3. Jeanne says:

    Looks promising! Classy color combo.

  4. Cathy says:

    Hey Dawn!! I love this pattern as well and really almost all that VFW does! Your fabrics are gorgeous and I can’t wait to see your quilt!!! Go for it!!!!

  5. Colleen Coffman says:

    It’s going to be beautiful!

  6. Diane says:

    Stepping out of your comfort zone is something I totally get because it offers a promise of satisfying achievement and is the root of creativity. But, you and your quilting buddies all seem to know from looking at your fabric stacks that the end result will be wonderful. This mystifies me, but I’m awed nonetheless!

  7. Diane says:

    P.S. Have fun with it!!

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