Category Archives: table topper

Spinning Away

by Dawn Posted on June 5, 2014

My little Spinners table topper (from Heather Mulder Peterson’s new book On the Run Again) was a breeze to make. What took me a while was cutting out the pieces. The pattern calls for a 60° triangle ruler, which I don’t have (note to self: buy one!), so I cut out each triangle separately using the 60º marking on my favorite 4″ x 14″ acrylic ruler and the lines on my cutting mat.

Here is my top with the six triangles sewn to the hexagon in the middle:

Spinners topper in progress

So far so good! Here it is with the outer border:


Spinners top

The more I work with these Kate Spain fabrics (from her Sunnyside line for Moda Fabrics), the more I like them. Happily, I have quite a bit left of the fat quarter packet I started out with, so I may use the fabrics for another project in Heather’s book. I’m not sure what company makes the aqua solid, since the fat quarter didn’t have any selvage information, but I have enough of it to bind the topper.

Now comes the hard part: how to quilt it?

 

 

 

Posted in hexagons, table topper, update | 4 Comments

Topping it Off

by Dawn Posted on June 4, 2014

I know I shouldn’t start something new but — I just can’t help myself! Heather Mulder Peterson’s newest book, On the Run Again, arrived in my mailbox a few days ago, and ever since then I’ve been oohing and aahing over the table runners and toppers pictured inside. Take a look at Granny Square Stars, the runner on the cover of the book:

On the Run Again book cover
Featured runner: Granny Square Stars, 18″ x 56″

Copyright Heather Mulder Peterson. Used with permission.

Wouldn’t that be fun to make? What a great way to use up scraps! I see it with dark stars in the centers. Granny Square Stars is definitely on my list but the one I am going to make first is a little table topper called Spinners:

Heather's Spinners Topper
Spinners, 18 1/2″ x 20 1/2″

Copyright Heather Mulder Peterson. Used with permission.

Anyone who loves hexagons as much as I do needs to make this design! As soon as I saw it, I knew what fabrics I would use. A few months ago I bought this combo of prints in the Sunnyside line by Kate Spain for Moda Fabrics:

2014-06-04 11.13.08

The way the fabrics were cleverly packaged by the shop, Pioneer Quilts, was a selling point. You can see why I can’t wait to get started!

If you’d like to see more of the charming toppers and runners featured in Heather’s new book, check out her blog, Trends and Traditions, which happens to be one of my very favorites.

I hope you’ll check back soon right here at First Light Designs to see the progress on my version of Spinners. Thanks for stopping by!

 

 

 

Posted in hexagons, table topper, update | 2 Comments

Mission Accomplished

by Dawn Posted on August 18, 2013

I’ve been working on a quilt top based on the pattern Urban Tiles by Jenny Pedigo of Sew Kind of Wonderful. The top is done, and here it is:

UrbanTiles 600
Urban Tiles Quilt Top, 58½” Square

 

This was fun to work on because the fabrics are so bright and cheerful. I could see this as a table topper or a little girl’s quilt.

Now to consider quilting motifs. . . . I could go with an all-over design. On the other hand, maybe I should choose a motif that highlights the secondary design in the white fabric around the blocks. What do you think?

 

 

 

Posted in table topper, update | 4 Comments

A Table Topper for My Twin

by Dawn Posted on December 21, 2012

I drew my sister Diane’s name in the siblings and spouses Christmas gift exchange. And — she drew mine! That doesn’t happen very often. This is what I am giving her:

2012-12, table topper
It’s a table topper. You may remember seeing the unfinished top in an earlier post. Diane saw that post and fell in love with the fabric (from the Ainsley line for Northcott Fabrics) and the kaleidoscope block. When I drew her name, I decided to finish the table topper for her.

I didn’t want the topper to be poufy so I used flannel for the batting. It’s quilted very simply. First I stitched in all the ditches and then quilted on both sides of the straight lines in the center and outer edges. Then I quilted a triangle in each of the eight wedges of the kaleidoscope. The simplicity of the quilting keeps your eye focused on the flowers and leaves and vines in that gorgeous Jacobean print:

table topper detail
Here’s the back of the topper:

2012-12, table topper from back
I had never before applied binding to a quilt with obtuse angles (greater than 90 degrees but less than 180). Thanks to Heather Mulder Peterson of Anka’s Treasures, who posted a terrific tutorial on her blog, Trends and Traditions, it was a breeze.

Diane’s table topper — #5 in my series of kaleidoscope quilts — measures 22″ across and 22″ top to bottom.

I hope she likes it — and I hope she doesn’t see this post until after she opens her gift!

 

 

 

Posted in family, kaleidoscope quilts, table topper, update | 6 Comments