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Marci Girl Designs

2014 Pantone Quilt Challenge - Radiant Orchid

3/20/2014

19 Comments

 
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I started the New Year out wonderfully by winning this gorgeous bundle of Radiant Orchid fabrics from Hawthorne Threads.  You see I had planned on entering the 2014 Pantone Quilt Challenge hosted by On the Windy Side and Play Crafts, but I had a very different idea in my head, that included only one Radiant Orchid print, because honestly I didn't have any of this color in my stash, which is odd because purple and pink are my favorite colors.  Once I won the bundle (thanks so much Hawthorne Threads) a new plan started to form and I immediately ordered three black and gray prints, also from Hawthorne Threads.
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I started to sketch, form a plan and design some blocks.  I knew I really wanted a very graphic modern quilt.  One that only featured two colors and a design that was based solely on triangles and arrows.  Right away I realized that some of the blocks were not going to be able to be pieced traditionally and I hoped they could be accomplished by paper piecing them.  Well it worked!  I drafted two different paper pieced blocks for this quilt, totally designed by me!  The "arrow" shaped and the large "zig-zag" blocks are paper pieced.  The rest of the blocks are traditionally pieced, mostly a lot of triangles.
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I am so proud of this one.  My first original designed quilt!  She measures 54" x 63," a good lap quilt.  It did take me longer to get the top finished than I originally planned, those paper pieced blocks took a while and then the actual layout of the quilt took longer.  I thought I was being clever by having both 16" and 12" blocks, but when it came time to lay them out, it just wasn't what I had pictured in my head.  Then I decided to turn the blocks on point and voila, it was perfect, except I had a lot of gaps to fill in.  Thus meaning I made a lot of (10 to be exact) 4" x 12" filler blocks.  Oh and all those outside triangles to figure out!
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When I was about 3/4 of the way done with the top I realized I was going to run out of my three background prints.  Paper piecing eats through fabric and I had only ordered 1 yard each of the three prints.  I started to panic because I realized I now needed to try and buy more of the three or add in another.  Late one night I started to dig through my stash and found the perfect fourth print, which I had a little less than a yard of, it was the text print seen above.  Actually the four background fabrics are:
Art Gallery Chromatics (the lightest gray print)
Art Gallery Oval Elements (the black print with large ovals)
Timeless Treasures Dream (the black with tiny metallic dots)
Michael Miller Madrona Road by Violet Craft (the black with white text, the one I added last minute!)
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I am really glad that I added in the forth background print and since I still had to make a lot of those 4" blocks, plus the outside edge triangles, I was able to blend in that print without it being noticeable that it was a last minute add in!  I used every single print from the Hawthorne Threads bundle, and I tried to scatter the prints throughout the quilt randomly.  Some blocks are more successful than others, but the majority have a high contrast, which I really enjoy.
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Oh and I don't want you to think I am some super math genius to figure out the different sized outside triangles, otherwise known as quarter square triangles or setting triangles.  I used a great free app called, The Quilter's Little Helper Essential Quilting Calculators by Robert Kaufman.  This app was a lifesaver and I was able to figure out every one of those triangles without any problems.  I highly recommend it!
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Here she is in all her Radiant Orchid beauty!  This is my entry into the 2014 Pantone Quilt Challenge - Radiant Orchid hosted by On the Windy Side + Play Crafts.  I am entering it into the "Just The Top" category and it measures 54" x 63."  Click on the little circle below to go and see all the other entries, trust me, there are some beautiful quilts being entered in this competition!

2014 Pantone Quilt Challenge: Radiant Orchid
Linking up to My Go-Go Life: Sewjo Saturday!  This was my only finish this week, heck this was the only thing I really worked on this week period!  Glad to have the quilt top done and looking forward to working on new projects!
19 Comments
Becky M link
3/20/2014 10:10:54 am

This is spectacular! I love all of it! Great design work, and the colors are my favorite!

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Leanne link
3/20/2014 01:16:55 pm

Marci, this is stunning. I love all the details, you rocked this challenge!

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Jess @ One English Teacher link
3/20/2014 05:10:12 pm

Great job! I'm so glad you were able to find that text print; it looks like it belonged from the beginning. Congrats on seeing your first design come together in real fabric; it's SO exciting to see something morph from a paper sketch to a real quilt top.

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Pamela Banis link
3/20/2014 06:28:29 pm

Beautiful & Stunning Quilt!

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Spontaneous Threads link
3/21/2014 07:24:16 am

Hooray! LOVE original quilts! They are so, unique. I love looking at all the blocks and the details you put into this, even the bits of paper piecing! Congratulations on a job well done. Show more pictures when your quilt it!

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Malini link
3/21/2014 06:06:08 pm

I love your design. These fabrics are just fabulous. Clever background idea, looks absolutely stunning!

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Ashleigh Reese link
3/22/2014 12:06:31 am

That is really quite lovely! It is really striking, which is my favorite kind of quilt. I know what you mean about the paper piecing taking forever - I'm madly trying to finish mine this weekend! :) Beautiful quilt & best of luck!

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Tiffany link
3/22/2014 04:08:31 am

This is really cool. I love it!

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Paula link
3/22/2014 08:03:12 am

A really stunning desing. It has turned out wonderfully. Best of luck with the challenge.

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gogokim link
3/22/2014 09:41:31 am

WOW!!!! LOVE the color POP! Thank you for linking up to SEWjo Saturday!

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Esther F. link
3/22/2014 10:44:50 am

That is a very original quilt! I wish you lots of luck in the challenge!

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Rachel link
3/22/2014 02:26:02 pm

Stunning!

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Debbie link
3/23/2014 04:52:16 pm

OH MY GOODNESS! Marci! With leaving on my retreat, I never saw your post till now - this is totally awesome! I am SO impressed with your self-designed blocks, and just the overall layout. The palette is stunning. I agree with Leanne - you rocked this!!

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Cynthia link
3/24/2014 05:07:18 pm

Very cool quilt! So fun to look at all the different blocks! Well done!

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Paula@TheSassyQuilter link
3/25/2014 12:11:31 pm

This is just gorgeous! I love all the different prints in the background. Your design and layout is so fantastic!!! Great quilt.

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Mara
3/26/2014 04:04:37 am

Fantastic Job on the Design and use of your winner's bundle, this is beautiful and unique.

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gogokim link
3/26/2014 10:28:51 am

Hey! You won the SEWj Saturday giveaway! shoot me an email please :o)

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Anne link
3/27/2014 02:55:58 pm

Holy wow, this is an incredible design! It reminds me a bit of Jen Kingwell's work with all the different things going on in there. :) The colors are beautiful as well, I love those dark greys and blacks with the radiant orchid! Beautiful work. :)

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Adrianne link
3/31/2014 06:17:26 am

This is really spectacular! I LOVE that it's an original design, and your first one at that (well done!!!). I think the use of the different background fabrics, and setting the blocks on point, really adds interest. You should be really proud!

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