In every regular issue of Quiltmaker, the QM Scrap Squad takes one pattern and creates scrappy versions of it to inspire and delight our readers. The featured quilt in Nov/Dec ’11 is Dream Catcher, which was part of the red and white “Infinite Variety” exhibit in New York City last March. The exhibit was mounted through the American Folk Art Museum using the quilt collection of Joanna S. Rose.

Over the coming weeks, we’ll reveal here the Scrap Squad’s versions of Dream Catcher from the Nov/Dec ’11 issue of Quiltmaker. Here’s the antique version of Dream Catcher.

Courtesy American Folk Art Museum, New York. #76 Daisies Quilt; Artist unidentified; United States 1890-1930. Collection of Joanna S. Rose. Photo by Gavin Ashworth.

Today’s featured quilt is by Carol Vickers.

Carol Vickers

Nearing the end of autumn with Thanksgiving upon us, the timing is perfect for Carol’s fall color recipe. Here’s what Carol shared with me:

After paper piecing all the blocks, I laid a few out in the original setting.

And then I found that by simply turning every other block 180 degrees, a completely different pattern emerged.

Playing with the possible settings was really fun! I went with the alternate setting because I liked how the multi-colored circular patterns alternated with the ivory. And this is how my top turned out.

Carol’s Dream Catcher in rich autumn hues

I learned a lot making this quilt. Although I had done a lot of paper piecing, I’d never made a whole quilt that way.  In the beginning I removed the paper too early and found that it was hard in places to make the bias edges line up as they should so I began leaving the paper on until I’d sewn the block to its “neighbor.”

I quilt my own quilts on my domestic machine and have never been very adventurous with quilting designs. Usually I do a simple echo pattern, stitch in the ditch or an overall meander.

For this one I did an edge-to-edge design of “fluttering oak leaves” similar to a pattern I saw in one of Mary Covey’s Follow the Line Quilting Designs pattern sets except I didn’t “follow the lines,” mine is all free motion.

Definitely a big step for me and although a few of my leaves may be a little “windblown,” I am pleased with the result!

Three cheers for Carol’s machine quilting! We’ve all been there, trying something new in the free motion realm, concerned that we’ll ruin a perfectly wonderful top. But Carol forged ahead and the quilting looks spectacular, windblown parts and all!

Carol’s print border serves to tie all the block colors together, and its use in the quilt center introduces it early enough so that it doesn’t look like an “add-on.”

What would happen…? ? ? ? ?

Another three cheers for a “What would happen if I…?” attitude. By playing with her blocks, experimenting, fussing, mulling it over, she discovered that turning every other block did something interesting. Sometimes we make the mistake of being unwilling to play because it feels like a waste of time. It isn’t! Not ever! Take time to play and your quilts will improve because of it. Take your cue from Carol and her autumn version of Dream Catcher.

More Scrap Squad Dream Catcher quilts in the days to come!

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Other Scrap Squad projects to see:

Raspberry Dessert

Spinout

Linkin’ Logs