If I had to pick a favorite from all my samples it would probably be this one. The Ruby + Bee solids sample. It is just SO GOOD.
For a little background on the Ruby + Bee Solids - it is a color collaboration for Windham Fabrics between Annabel Wrigley and Heather Ross. This team up is like a color filled match made in heaven. I personally have been obsessed with everything Annabel does for years now. Her interpretation of colors and how to mix them and make all of these stunning organic quilts just blows my mind. It is not how my mind works but you can tell she loves to play with color. I think we would be best friends in real life. Or I hope. ha!
So because of my said obsession with Annabel, I really really wanted to try out the new Ruby + Bee Solids for this launch. I love their level of saturation and purity. I downloaded all of the fabric swatches available online and went to town making mock ups trying to decide what color combo I really wanted. And let me tell you, I would have made every single one of these mock ups if I could. Maybe I should? Wanna see? Let's do it!
The last one is the one I decided to go with but I would honestly love to see any of these made. Maybe one day I will make more and kit them? That would be so fun!
Okay, so now to see the fabrics in real life!
Okay, not going to lie here, I was nervous when I got these in the mail. I am not use to sewing with no background fabric at all - solid or scrappy. And these felt a little too in my face and I worried the final look would feel juvenile or too primary. But, I took a deep breath and said if Annabel and Heather made these colors, then they will end up looking amazing all sewn together in this quilt.
I made this sample after I had made the real fabric labels included in the pattern and holy smokes were they helpful! I have them flipped over in the photos because they have the cut measurements printed on them and I am not going to give away that info for free - ya gotta get the pattern! ;)
But, regardless of what size quilt you make, every single quilt will have a total of 28 cuts of fabric that need to be labeled. I know it may sound like a lot but some are the same size but they belong to certain color or placement in the quilt top. So here is all 28 little piles, all cute and labeled.
Then, each label always says which block every specific cut goes to. So then you match up your pieces and build our block stacks!
So you go from 28 individual stacks to 4 stacks. Pretty manageable right? Each one of these stacks will make a specific block in the quilt.
I started to get more and more confident in my color choices as I moved through this quilt. There is something about seeing all the colors cut up, then sewn together in different combos and then all next to each other. So much color magic.
See how each block is the same design but a different color combo? Well, the fun part of this pattern is you can totally chain piece an entire set of blocks and make the sewing go faster. Once the blocks are done, you lay them out in a specific order (diagrams in pattern) and then sew your rows up!
Even though you do need to use pins (a good amount) for all the seam matching, this top comes together quicker than I expected. And every seam in this pattern gets pressed open since there are several in a block and it makes the bulk less and it looks GORGEOUS from the back.
Before I knew it, I was on my final seam for this quilt top and had to stop and grab photos because the colors told me to.
If you can't tell, I had a blast photographing this quilt. Sometimes that's how I can tell what quilt is my favorite - how many images do I end up getting of it while I am making it?
We took this quilt all around Portland trying to find a great spot to shoot the full quilt top. We ended up at several different spots. Of course, my favorite pink wall ended up being amazing and it is actually a small loading dock at a vintage furniture store here in Portland.
We also ended up at Laurelhurst Park here in Portland. It is this beautiful tree filled park with a little pond in the middle and soft rolling hills. While we were there we saw a little boy fishing, we saw a group of people working out, saw runners, saw little kids biking but overall people were just quiet soaking up the peace of the park.
I kept stopping Luke all over the park to try different shots and one of them as down close to the water with me shooting above. The light was making the quilt top look like stained glass and I had to take several shots before we found the perfect light to capture that without Luke's shadow being the dominant thing in the shot. But wow, this photo makes me calm.
The last photo is from the bathroom building at the park. You never know what will capture your imagination!
I knew right away I wanted Michelle of Mariposa Quilting to work her magic on this quilt. She does all free motion quilting on her longarm and it creates the most beautiful organic texture you can find! I told her I wanted dense quilting and something fun and not harsh since the quilt has so many straight lines and angles. She said I wanna do swirls!
THOSE SWIRLS. I love them so much. It creates such fun movement. And I bound the quilt in this super fun out-of-print Allison Glass fabric from Diving Board.
I created a kit of this quilt top! I just had to provide a kit for this, it is too good for a color palette. This kit includes the (8) fabrics used in the 7/8 yard cuts for a throw size. This quilt finishes at 62 1/2" x 75".
I am not sure how long these kits will stay in stock but if there is enough interest, I can try and restock if it sells out.
We shot all of these photos at a new studio! It is gorgeous in downtown Portland in an old building with gorgeous FUNCTIONING windows. And the light was stunning. I am really in love with some of these more environmental photos.
Here is a sneak peek too of my Rainbow Backyard Party Quilt. Another blogpost for another day.
This was one of the first times where I wasn't holding the quilt during the photoshoot. I actually had Luke hold theses because he is slightly taller and then I could sort of direct him where to stand and Amy could photograph. Then I tackled him.
Amy told me to shop in front of these windows right before we left because she loved the light and yes! Now I see why!
Don't forget to tag me on social media! #rosecityquilt #thencamejunepatterns
