Rhonda Bracey: At Random

This small dark quilt was a challenge. How to quilt it to enhance the depth of the colours, while not overpowering the quilt with the quilting?

The first decision was what thread to use. I didn’t want a very dark thread as that would’ve hidden the quilting, so I opted for a variegated thread in rich orange, copper, ginger, red, and peach tones.

I started by doing straight line quilting from the piano key border into the adjoining row of blocks, following the existing seam lines of those blocks. But when I looked at the other side’s piano key border, it didn’t marry up with the seam lines of those blocks, so I had to abandon that idea for the other side. What to do?

I’d seen quilts that blended one motif into another but hadn’t tried it myself, so I sort of did that. The motif I used for the blocks next to the straight line blocks was a curved open headband motif with squared off edges, and then the one for the blocks and piano key border adjacent to that was a full circular spiral design, thus varying the quilting from one edge to the other from straight lines to circular lines.

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I loved the colours in this quilt! And as soon as I pulled it out of the bag, the cream centre just screamed ‘McTavishing!’ to me, so that’s what I did. I also stitched around the main parts of the appliqued flowers in the centre to make them ‘pop’ even more.

I left the dark green borders unquilted, and did my quick and easy cathedral windows motif in the checkerboard borders using a variegated orange/copper/pink/ginger/peach rayon thread.

I was really pleased with how this quilt looked after I’d quilted it.

(Click on a photo to view it larger)

Threads used:

• Top: Fil-Tec Glide ‘Cream’ (40 wt, trilobal polyester, colour 20001) and Wonderfil Mirage (30 wt, rayon, colour SD31)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Glide pre-wound bobbin (white)

I thought this very geometric quilt top needed something to soften the edges a bit, so I quilted it in a squared-off variation of the ‘open headband‘ motif I’ve used many times before. I stitched this design all over the quilt, using a cream thread.

(Click on a photo to view it larger)

Threads used:

• Top: Fil-Tec Glide ‘Cream’ (40 wt trilobal polyester, colour 20001)
• Bottom: Fil-Tec Glide pre-wound bobbin (white)