Colorful Slices
Some colorful slices showed up on my design wall this last week. Over the past few months, I’ve been working through the Block Study Collective with Tara Faughnan. You can see some of my earlier block studies in this post. February was the month for working with big slices. Tara walked us through several variations, one of which was improv slices, and of course I had to give that a try. Tara also gives us a suggested fabric pull for each month, but I opted to use my solid scrap stash for these.
Before long, I had 12 slices up on my wall, arranged in circles. There are four slices in each circle; I forgot to take a photo of a single slice. I made four additional slices to create one more circle, then chose background fabrics for each circle. Each slice was sewn using a paper foundation. I tried not to think too much about what color should go where, or how wide or narrow the strip should be. Cutting the arc of the slices freehand on the background fabric was easier than I thought it would be.
I chose background fabrics by pulling fabrics from my stash and just going with colors that made the circles pop. The navy block is Grunge, the orange is a Kona solid, the pink and green are prints from my stash. Stitching them together, the slices didn’t match up due to the freehand cutting, so each circle has its own wonkiness.
I had some fun with straight line quilting, using three 50 wt neon-colored threads from Aurifil – neon orange (#7000), neon yellow (#7001) and neon yellow (#7002). The quilting is spaced roughly one-half inch apart.
The backing is a bold print from Frond Fabrics. It is a very dominant fabric and difficult to use, so it’s perfect for the back of this bold quilt. I used Hobbs 80/20 for the batting.
And last of all, the binding. I considered a multi-colored stripe, but it was too distracting. So I decided to match the binding to the squares. It was pretty easy to do with some careful measuring and pinning.
The colorful slices were fun to make, decreased the solid scrap stash just a tiny bit, and satisfied my itch for some improv play. I have no plans for this quilt. It finishes at 28 x 28.5 inches, and I still need to give it a name – I’m waiting for one to come to me, so for now it’s just Colorful Slices.
A finished quilt is a great way to start the week!
Wendy
SAHRR Border 6
19 Comments
Barbara J Stanbro
Oh my gosh! That is perfect. I love it!
marissthequilter
Oh Wendy, this is absolutely stunning. You have made a spectacular piece. If it were mine I would hang it in a visible place and smile each time I looked at it.
Quilting is in my Blood
Wow! Your improv skills are through the roof! What a stunner of a project!
Kate
Wow! Bold, bright and fun! That backing fabric is just perfect. Congrats on a stunning finish.
J Mur
What fun, Wendy!
texasquiltgal
Wow I am so impressed! Those “wonky” circles are amazing, and you did a great job making the circles pop with the backgrounds. Matching the background for your binding = genius. How neat that backing worked out so well. I would hang this up in an art gallery!
Cocoa Quilts
Wendy you are becoming such a improv queen. This piece is beautiful and so bright.
aquilterstable
oh this improv play is so fun! I love what you did with this big slice shapes.
Karen
beautiful bright colors and designs
Vicki in MN
Oh this was just right up your alley in both color and design. I know you had tons of fun with it!
Helen
Wow! These will wake you up! I think it’s more powerful because the slices are solid. I love the improv, non-pattern of the colors!
Vicki Welsh
What a fun quilt! You are so clever!
Diann@LittlePenguinQuilts
Colorful Slices is the perfect name for this beauty, Wendy! Thanks for explaining how the circles were made, because my first thought was “how did she make those circles so perfectly?!” It sounds like it was fun to experiment with the slices, and I love all the color you used, the contrasting backgrounds, and the backing, too. Your finish is just great!
Grace Thorne
wow indeed…those are gorgeous….i so love working with solids and you have inspired me to continue….love love love it..
Tracie
Wow, I love this quilt! The movement and color are great.
Kathleen McCormick
So impressed with how gorgeous this piece is. The neon threads are so much fun too! It is a great quilt and a great finish and way to start a week.
Yvonne @Quilting Jetgirl
Oh, I really, really like this! I really like the variation in background fabric and you did a fantastic job matching the binding. Even better, this looks like a lot of fun. 🙂
Cindy Berry
As always, a creative, darling finish – one day I will get to your creativity level – I hope. Enjoy!
Nancy @ Grace and Peace Quilting
Your colorful slices are so colorful and fun, Wendy! I especially like the fun background colors you chose!!! Clever binding application. And perfect place to put that fabric–on the back and not cut up a smidge!