Rhonda Bracey: At Random

I’m donating these two pink quilts I made to the McGrath Foundation (for breast cancer). The first one is made from pink scraps I joined together to ‘make’ new fabric.

The second was made from 6 pinkish fat quarters I didn’t particularly like (main top) plus other pink and yellow fabrics for the borders, and a lone deep pink square (my 6 fat quarters only made 47 six-inch blocks, and I needed 48). I made up the pattern — see below for my sketches of how I designed it. These instructions are based on 21 x 22″ fat quarters — you may need an extra one if your fat quarters are a less than this. Cut your fat quarters into long 3.5″ strips. Pick 16 random strips, pair them up on the long edge, stitch each pair together, and press the seam in one direction.  Cross-cut these joined strips every 3.5″ to make 48 blocks of two squares each. Cut 48 6.5 x 3.5″ strips from the remaining fabric. Join a 6.5″ long strip to the side of a 2-square strip. For a random pattern, mix up the fabrics you join, and when you put the block together add a 6.5 x 3.5″ strip from another fabric.

I have previously donated three other pink quilts to the McGrath Foundation — two small rail fence quilts, and a big one made from a jelly roll of pink batiks.