July 10, 2016

Social Butterfly Mini Quilt

Beautiful butterflies are one of the best parts of summertime!
They inspired me to stitch a new mini quilt


I first fell in love with this project
when I watched the YouTube video
which featured the full-size version of the quilt.
You can see that project and lots of other
inspiration on the Lella Boutique blog.


I was looking for instant gratification,
so I was super happy to see that the pattern
was available in the "mini" size,
in a downloadable PDF format.

I got started as soon as the file was delivered
to my email account!


I chose some favorite prints from a
Riley Blake line called The Cottage Garden,

I've used this fat quarter bundle a lot,
 most recently to make this little pincushion.


Before long, I had my pieces cut out for the block.
Usually I like to do my cutting in the evening,
then stitch my projects another day, when I have more time.


At first, I was a bit disappointed in myself,
for not choosing fabrics with lots of contrast.


Once my little butterfly was completely finished,
though, I learned to love her more each time I see her.


So...quilting is always a challenge, right?
"Quilt as desired," the patterns always say...
ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!

Since this was a mini quilt,
I let myself go and tried something new...
free motion pebbles.


This was not within my comfort zone,
but I'm really glad I tried it for something I intend to keep.
I like to think I did an "okay" job with it...
my husband actually admires the rich texture.


I don't plan to do this pebble quilting any more, though.
Why? Two big reasons:

1 - I don't prefer heavily quilted projects,
because they interfere with the feel and drape of the fabric.
The thread can also sometimes interfere with the fabrics,
in my opinion.

2 - This. Took. Forever.
And it's only a MINI quilt!
My patience wore thin, and I was afraid
my circles would grow bigger and bigger,
 just so I could finish it.

{Note to self: try making bigger circles on even a smaller project.}



All the same,
I'm very happy with my pink and teal butterfly,


Can you see my little faux pas?
I forgot to create a hanging sleeve!
In my rush to photograph,
I just used some Clover Wonder Clips to attach  my mini
to the cute little display frame.
I have a strip of binding left over that I'll add to the back,
to finish it off more professionally.


I loved making this pattern,
and I hope to use it again to make more pretty butterflies.
Mini quilts are great gifts...
if you can bear to part with them!


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8 comments:

  1. Beautiful. I think your pebble quilting is perfect though I agree, it is SOOOOO time consuming. I like the fabrics and the subtle contrast. It works really well.

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  2. I do like your butterfly. And the dense pebble quilting looks good on it. As to the hanging I thought how cleaver (or is it clever) because there doesn't appear to be away to hang a mini quilt on that rack using a hanging sleeved using the clips is cute.
    You if you hang minis regularly could buy cute wooden cloths pins (Michaels Crafts) and either decorate them or paint them.
    Anyway thank you for sharing
    Colleen
    Left coast San Francisco Bay Area

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  3. I think your pebble quilting is fabulous! I would not have known you did not do this on a regular basis. I have a question, when you make a mini do you use the same size binding that you would on a regular size quilt. It doesn't seem that this is something anyone seems to touch base on.

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  4. I love you little butterfly, Amy! This was a perfect project to practice your pebble quilting on. It gets easier with time, but it does require patience! Julie@TheCraftyQuilter.com

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  5. What a gorgeous butterfly! You make the fmq pebble quilting look easy!!
    Your photos are gorgeous, too, showing off this beautiful butterfly to the max!
    Susie

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  6. Your mini quilt is so beautiful! I didn't see the clips, your quilt is eye catch :), fabrics, colors,quilting. About free motion pebbles, it was up to you, ha, ha, ha...but the finish is wonderful!

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  7. I love this butterfly and think your pebbles look GREAT! I feel the same as you...I may try them at one point on a small project, but probably will also be one and done. :) As always, you are SOO inspiring, Amy!!

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