Baby Bites Free Modern Baby Quilt Pattern

Marny here...Using the Random Number generator we declare the winner of a copy of Lunch Boxes is Char!  Send us an email Char and we will arrange getting your pattern to you.    

Surprise!! Here is Baby Bites, a free modern baby quilt pattern.  We promised that we would share this a few weeks back.  It was part of our submission to the Online Quilt Magazine published in Australia.  We love this little quilt.  Maybe you remember the quilt backing tutorial Jill did a long time ago.  True to our mission, Baby Bites is a simply sophisticated design that reflects a modern aesthetic.  Asymmetry, exaggerated scale of simple shapes and negative space are all parts of that aesthetic.  

Click on this link to get to an easily printable version of the pattern.  Below is a complete set of directions as well.

Baby Bites from Modern Quilt Relish

Baby Bites is a quick and easy baby quilt any modern baby/mom would love receiving.  It measures 38” x 48”.  Simple geometric shapes are set asymmetrically on negative space. The somewhat oversized large squares feature a high contrast fabric.  These squares are clearly the focus of the quilt not only because of their size and placement, but also because of fabric selection.  The fabric is more saturated (intense) and more complex in motif design than the neighboring backgrounds. Merging the two different valued backgrounds between the squares both isolates the squares and makes them appear to float above the surface.  This added depth gives the quilt interest and an element of the unexpected.  

Fabric Requirements:  we give suggested yardage.  It is possible to piece the large background areas and save yardage, but if you purchase the suggested amounts and cut as directed you will have enough remaining to complete the back of your baby quilt.  LOF=length of fabric.  WOF=width of fabric.

Squares-Floral Focus...⅓ yard…cut an 8” WOF strip…sub cut this strip into five 8” squares.

Left Background-Medium Blue…1 ½ yards, sub cut this into:  one 22 ½” LOF strip  (will be cut later to 22 ½” x 48” or the length of your quilt) and one 3” LOF strip (sub cut this 3” strip into four 3” x 4 ¼” rectangles).

  

Right Background-Light Yellow…1 ½ yards, sub cut this into: one 9” LOF strip (will be cut later to 9” x 48” or the length of your quilt) and one 3” LOF strip (sub cut this 3” strip into four 3” x 4 ¼” rectangles).

Binding…1/2 yard (you are only using 12 ½” so perhaps you can get by with 3/8 yard)…cut five 2 ½” WOF strips.

Piecing Instructions:  Refer to the photos.  ¼” seams throughout.  Press seams open for a flat finished look.  Remove selvages.

Step 1.  Piece a 3” x 4 ¼” rectangle of Left Background and a 3” x 4 ¼” rectangle of Right Background together along their shorter edge.  Repeat three times for a total of four Step 1 units.

Step 2.  Checking the orientation in the photographs, piece a Step 1 unit to the lower edge of four of the 8" Squares.

Baby Bites full view from Modern Quilt Relish

Step 3.  Again following the photographs, piece four Step 2 units into a column.

Step 4.  Add the fifth 8” Square to the lower edge of this column.

      

Step 5.  Measure the length of your completed column.  Either cut the 22 ½” x LOF piece of Left Background appropriately and then add it to the left side of the quilt, or add first and then trim to fit.

     

Step 6.  Either cut the 9” x LOF piece of Right Background appropriately and then add it to the right side of the quilt, or add first and then trim to fit.  

      

Step 7.  Quilt, bind and savor.

  So till next Tuesday!

Process Promises & Pattern Give Away

Lunch Boxes, child size 

jill here....A few weeks ago, before introducing our newest pattern, I alluded to our design and fabric selections.  There are so many wonderful positive and negative fabric patterns on the market so finding ways to use them is a fun experiment.  Graphic blacks and whites with saturated colors create kid-friendly quilts.  And the asymmetrical nine patch is perfect for that intersection of transparency.  In this case, the yellow orange and the red orange intersect to create orange. The colors don't have to make accurate sense:  they could be just three fun colors that define the lines for the "gridded" appearance. Just keep in mind the values and their backgrounds.

With Spring slow to arrive, I was in a bug to create a table runner that was fresh and colorful. I discovered several fabrics from a designer that had special meaning.  At International Quilt Market, three years ago, we were given the book Scatter Joy, written and signed by artist Kathy Davis.  Her fabric line is "Happiness" for Free Spirit.  She creates wonderful water color images, often flowers with geometrics and written graphics.  This more stylized floral appealed to me.

Lunch Boxes corners. 

Lunch Boxes "opposite"... really more of a change
 in value, pattern and scale...a nice accompaniment. 

This is the small scale aqua chosen for the background.
It's directional but the pattern is written to
maintain its vertical orientation.

Mocking up choices is a good test to finalize selections.
The yellow green works well but the" intersection" fabric
and the medium value leading into it are too close in value.

This variegated stripe had just the right saturated colors.

Too many strong patterns and saturation
...took away from the emphasis.

Switched again but the light vertical was just too light.
The aqua near solid was a relief to the eye and brought in
more of the darker tones.

The yellow green vertical was again too strong
for the more subtle look I was aiming for.

Final choice:  Small scaled plaid as the vertical with the aqua
as both the intersection and medium value.  Using the aqua in
both places simplifies and reiterates the darker value.

Stitched in the ditch quilting....more later.

Ready for spring...

Into the yard.  'Till next Tuesday....

To win a copy of our newest pattern, Lunch Boxes leave a spring filled comment!  Drawing will be at 5 pm Central Time, Monday, May 20th.

New Pattern from Modern Quilt Relish

Drumroll please...Here, as promised, is our about to be released, never seen before pattern, Lunch Boxes.  

We love how it turned out.  Hope you do too!

Lunch Boxes pattern from Modern Quilt Relish

The yellow and gray quilt on the cover features a brand new line of fabric from Benartex.  It is called What's the Buzz from the Kanvas designers.  We used five sets of "opposite" fabrics in the blocks, a wonderful directional stripe as the background, and another print fabric that served as the "intersection" of the horizontal and vertical lines running through the quilt.  Such cute names.  Such cute fabric!!! This quilt will be in the Benartex booth at Quilt Market in Portland this month.  Again thank you Benartex!

• Daisy Buzz, the opposite set of Yellow and Black, with Gray being the intersection fabric

This one was a good
 intersection because
 it merges the gray
 vertical with the
yellow horizontal.

• Dotz, the opposite set of Black and Yellow

• Buzz Words, the opposite set of Black and White

• Flower Buzz, the opposite set of Gray and Yellow

• Buzzy Bee, the opposite set of Gray and Yellow

• Styx, as the background in white

• There are also solids in gray and yellow from Benartex

In the yellow version we kept the darker fabrics of the opposite sets at the Lunch Box corners and the lighter fabrics in the Lunch Box middles.  The dark blocks are on a light background.  The dark solid runs vertically in this quilt and the lighter solid runs horizontally through the lighter Lunch Box middles.

The pattern makes four sizes; Table Runner, Baby, Child and Throw.  It is written to take into account the incredible backgrounds you find that are directional fabrics.  Hooray!  If you don't want to use a variety of opposite sets the pattern is also written for all sizes using just one set of opposites as pictured in the Child size quilt on the cover.

We will begin shipping patterns Monday, May 13.  

Next week we'll be discussing the fabrics in the Child size quilt, and why they were chosen.  We always like to learn and teach from our own experimentation.  Not to mention, give away patterns!  Yep, pattern giveaway announced next week.

Till then.... 

Spring Beauties

jill here... We recently had an article published in the May issue of Online Quilt Magazine, (an Australian publication).  Here's the link:  www.OnlineQuiltMagazine.com . You will be able to view the article and then access further information for a bargain fee.   The premium issue includes a quilt pattern for the modern baby quilt you'll see pictured.  We will share the pattern with you in just a few weeks.  You may recognize it!  

Spring has sprung and the out of doors called this past weekend. Besides suffering blisters and a  backache purging buckthorn, this green fuzzy stage of life is wonderful.  Check out the wildflowers!

Can you name this one?

This is the same as the one above in the bright sunlight.

My neighbor calls this Spring Beauty.  The book names it Bloodroot!

??????

Such a gift to see the green after the long winter!

Virginia Bluebells getting ready to open.

Enjoy a walk in the woods.

Next Tuesday we'll introduce our newest pattern!  'Until Tuesday.....

Modern Quilt Relish kits for sale.

Remember our Quiltcon retail experience in February?  And now we have 'leftovers' really!  Kit Shop will be appearing in the tabs above our blog.  It will contain just kits for now.  Check it out please.  We ask that you email us your requests and we will invoice you once we have communicated with you.  It will be fun to meet you!

Kits that are available on first come first serve basis:

Leftovers in Benartex,Googlies by Michele D'Amore and solids SOLD OUT

Nibbles in Benartex, Googlies by Michele D'Amore and solids

Cheddar No Crackers in Benartex, Googlies by Michele D'Amore and solids

Recipe Cards in Organic, Monaluna by Jennifer Moore fabrics.

Brioche and Baguette in Organic, Monaluna by Jennifer Moore fabrics

Another version of the above Brioche and Baguette kitted.  So cute!

Leftovers in Robert Kaufman Architextures by Carolyn Friedlander.

We've been working on a new pattern made from a brand new Benartex fabric line.  Hope to get to share it soon.  

Till Tuesday...

The Juxtaposition of the Positive/Negative

jill here...Hope you've had a chance to check out REPEATED and the fabric designing that has been taking place!  The designs are creative, inspiring and it's fun to read the feedback from the judges.  I appreciate the comments and find it interesting on what appeals to them.

 Wholesale quilt market is just a month away.  We have some new designs in preparation.  And sometimes its the fabric that does the talking.....Many of the new designs are the same print, presented in different values or colors.  Many of them will work perfectly for this pattern.

 You know we love the graphic blacks and whites as shown on the bolts below.

"Alligator Tales" from Red Rooster Fabrics

Strips of the black juxtaposed on the same white print.
Some of the little circles appear to cross over.
It's that fool the eye happenstance.

Value testing for just that right amount of color.....

Intersecting lines....you know we love transparency.

The perfect non directional background:
"Night and Day" by Skipping Stones Studio for Clothworks Fabrics.

Stay tuned for the reveal before market.  'Till next Tuesday....

Hooray, it's REPEAT(ed) again time!

Marny here...our incoming email has become even more interesting recently!  
Ellen Rushman and Madeleine Roberg have their fabric design contest REPEATED(ed) underway and we've signed up to receive all the posts.    

If you are interested in the process of fabric design, or for that matter, the process of design period, take a look and sign up for yourself!  It is amazing to see how each competitor responds to each challenge.    

Maybe you remember our mentioning The Printed Bolt (an Ellen and Madeleine web site) and their first fabric designing contest, REPEAT.  The winner of that contest, Michele Rosenboom, is a judge for this year's contest.  We were fortunate to meet Michele and to have a couple of quilts made from her fabric (pieced and quilted by Ellen) displayed in our booth at Quilt Market last year. 

Recipe Cards in Michele's fabric.  Ellen Rushman holding the quilt.

Taffy Twists in Michele's fabric.  

Carolyn Friedlander is judging too.  We just got to spend time at Quiltcon with Carolyn.  We carried her patterns in our booth and are in love her Architextures fabric for Robert Kaufman!!!  Carolyn is wonderful; a great designer and an interesting and sweet person to talk to.  

(Secret heads up here...we'll be having a limited number of Leftovers throw kits coming soon.  We sold out the first day at Quiltcon.  Email us for details.)

A third judge we have a connection to is Greta Songe.  We met her through Quilt Market too.  She is a talented designer and a delight to spend time with!  Here is Greta's website.  She is one busy lady, teaching and designing.  Her blog is inspirational.  Greta has two fabric collections with Marcus.  (I couldn't get the links to Greta to work on the Printed Bolt site so I thought putting them here would make it easier for readers.)

So sit back, relax and watch the designers hard at work!  You actually get to be part of the elimination process by voting for your favorites.  Check it out!

Till Tuesday...