Happy March 1st! And because it is the first Wednesday in March, we are once again opening our monthly theme for the Modern Quilt Along series that we are doing in 2017.
If you need a refresher of what this series is, go HERE to read the introduction post on the why’s and how’s.
The theme for the month of March is…..BOLD PRINTS! And this is a theme that we get excited about….we LOVE BOLD PRINTS. If you will remember that the modern quilt along this year isn’t about using one specific pattern or one specific block to make a quilt around, it is meant to introduce each of us to the tenets of modern quilting through our OWN creativity and our OWN projects. This could be making one quilt block this month based on the theme of bold prints, a bold print mini quilt or even a new quilt. We just want us all to be thinking and sewing with BOLD prints this month!
Bold Prints. I think we all know what those are….and in a world where I don’t have hours and hours to quilt and piece tiny patchwork blocks, I LOVE using bold prints. They showcase fabric! They showcase design! And let’s face it the are fun to buy and just look at on the shelf too.
So, all month long let’s celebrate being bold. For some this may mean stepping out of a quilting comfort zone, but let’s do it together. Let’s quilt with a print we never thought we would ever use!
(And step out of my comfort zone I did this month—I have a quilt cut out that I never would have thought I would have chosen–and I am embracing it! Can’t wait to see how it turns out.)
Here are some examples from the modern quilt world that are using bold prints in ways I never thought of.
This first example is from our book and the credit for picking this fabric goes to liZ (she helps me along with bold prints a lot of the time). We sewed up this quilt top together one Saturday afternoon and it was so much fun to sew. And it turned out to be one of my most favorite quilts from our book. It’s bold and still so simple all at the same time which I love.
This month our guest host is Angela Pingel and she is a master of modern quilting. She did a bold print for the back of her quilt and it is amazing…go see it all HERE!
Here is another block that Angela made recently that also fits the theme…
I think the biggest inspiration from Angela that I see is that bold prints don’t always have to be bold colors. I LOVE the way she uses such a soft color palette but still puts bold prints to use. Such great work!
This Field Trip Quilt by Modern Handcraft is another great example of how bold prints can be used in a simple pattern to make a statement. And I love that Nicole wasn’t afraid to cut bold prints into smaller pieces—and some of that inspiration I am doing in my own quilt this month!
And one more example that I love from One Shabby Chick, I LOVE her bold print mixing in this quilt. It gives it movement and makes it so your eye bounces all over the quilt…..so fun. My inspiration take away is more is more in this quilt! And more is more can work so well in modern quilting.
So, this month, pull out some bold prints in your stash (or take bold prints as an inspiration for fabric shopping) and start a new modern quilting project. Then link it up to our link up party below so we can all be inspired by your beautiful work! And one lucky person that enters will be chosen to receive a full quilt kit (including fabric, batting and thread) as a prize!
Or if you have an older quilting project that fits the theme super well…please put it in!!!
(The same link-up party will be up for all the themes this year. At the end of the year we will have one GIANT modern quilting link up inspiration board!)