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QUILT PATTERN UPDATE:
Moonlit Garden pattern is now also Capri Gardens as it is updated with a quilt version made with beautiful Capri collection by Katarina Roccella. You can get your updated pattern by clicking below:
Second free pattern using the Floralish collection is a wall quilt, Blooming. Get your free pattern by clicking on the button below:
What follows is my original blog post about making the Moonlit Garden quilt with Floralish collection and making the Blooming wall quilt as well (you will need to scroll down to the second part of the post for the writing about Blooming wall quilt!)
Hello friends,
Well as if it is any surprise, my wildly talented friend Katarina Roccella did it again – her newest, beautiful, summery fabric collection, FLORALISH, is arriving at stores!!
To be inspired and have many new ideas and patterns to use with it, today Art Gallery Fabrics just published the Floralish Lookbook!
I am so excited and honored to have two different projects in this Lookbook!!
I made a large lap-size quilt, Moonlit Garden (72″x72″) and a wall quilt called Blooming.
Floralish is soooo beautiful, I kept doodling and doodling and making up quilts in my EQ8, but Moonlit Garden was one that stood out from the start! Here is my EQ8 version:
This design is based in a very classical, vertical row quilt, where blocks are arranged “on-point” and in vertical rows, with two little twists: 1. every other row is staggered for the half-block size and 2. Some blocks (and one row!) were skipped, to have space for floral appliqué and achieve a visual of hanging lanterns. You can see what I mean a little more clear on this EQ8 diagram (light background so that you can see block lines better)
Here is the real quilt!!
It is really a simple quilt to make! Blocks are just simple uneven 9-patch blocks, even though they might not look like one at first glance. That is because I colored two of the corner squares with background fabric and block is placed on point! This way, it looks like a floral lantern – agree??
Below is a diagram of a regular uneven 9-patch and one with two opposite corners colored in dark, background fabric
And this is how this block looks when turned on-point
Simple block, strategic coloring and placement and voila -you have an effect you want!! Gotta love patchwork!!
Line the blocks in a quilt, leave some negative spaces and add some easy, fusible raw-edge appliqué of flowers (cut out from the gorgeous floral print from the collection), – that is all my friends!
But of course I did all the math and stuff and wrote it all down for you, if you want to make your own Moonlit Garden!
Below is my quilt top finished, with all the cut-out flowers pinned on it:
Flowers were appliquéd using raw-edge fusible appliqué method:
– I simply ironed fusible interfacing to the back of one larger piece of fabric (large enough to have all the flowers I might want to use). I love using Mistyfuse . It is the thinnest, lightest fusible you can find. It doesn’t come with paper backing, so slightly different in how you apply it (I use the Goddess sheet, it is amazing! ) but it is so thin, almost un-noticeable in your quilt and that is what I love.
Photos below show you what I did, but you could of course use ANY fusible interfacing you like.
See how thin Mistyfuse is?
After you place it on the BACK of your fabric, you can use parchment paper or any appliqué Teflon sheet you have – years ago I treated myself to the big size Goddess sheet and I just love it! And use it for many other things too (pressings any heat-sensitive fabric, etc)
After you pressed all areas well, you have to wait for everything to cool down and then just peel off your Teflon sheet (or paper ) gently:
http://maraquiltdesigns.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img_4879.movYou are left with a piece of fabric that is now fusible (has a sticky back) and also still very soft.
Next is a fun step of cutting out all your desired flowers, leaves… whatever you think you will use. I cut out every single flower from my piece of fabric, nothing was wasted!! (and did it all in the car, while husband was driving, yay!)
After I had all my flowers, I arranged them on my quilt top. I did it while quilt top was pinned on the design wall because seeing it upright is much easier for me to judge the placement and composition than if it is on the floor or bed. I pinned every little flower in place (my design board has a foam board behind the felt) and once I was happy with the arrangement, I simply fused everything in place with the iron.
Here is a short little time-lapse video – tried to show you how I did that:
http://maraquiltdesigns.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/img_4997.movAfter that it was time to baste and quilt!!
Aaah quilting…. is the question on HOW to quilt something a daunting one for you?
I find that process a fun one. I do look at my quilt (or a photo of it, if not home) for a while and just let the fabric, blocks or name/feel of the quilt guide me. Sometimes it is easy and obvious, sometimes not. Sometimes my idea works out splendidly, sometimes I have to change it as I go…
In this quilt, I knew I will do free motion botanical, organic quilting in the area of appliquéd flowers, in high contrast, beautiful green 50wt Aurifil
And initially I planned to do diagonal lines (like a cross hatch but just in one direction) everywhere else, in blending blue 50wt Aurifil. I started that (luckily!) in the background of all the flowers and organic free motion quilting (hello million starts and stops and tie-offs… ugh), and then after doing it on that area, I kinda had enough of that. LOL!
Confession time – I really do NOT enjoy straight line quilting on a large quilt. Not on my regular machine… (long-arm would be just fine, but I don’t have one… yet.) So – change of plans!!
I decided to add some more organic, floral FMQ in that contrasting green thread, in the upper left corner of the quilt – kinda like shadows of the flowers that are opposite and then fill in the rest with more of the same, but in blending, blue thread.
So the straight diagonal lines I did, somehow emphasize the diagonal movement of the whole design, and this “division” of quilting designs adds to that – do you agree??
At the end, I am really happy with how it turned out!! Yay!
Oh and this binding!!
I almost knew this beautiful print will be a quilt biding before I even designed the quilt!! Just love it!!
I did sew two triangles on top two corners of the quilt back – this makes it easy to insert a pole of some kind either for good photography or even for hanging on the wall, if I ever decide to do that. (and yes, my little fancy label is there too – makes me giggle!!)
And then it was time for the fun – photoshoot!!
I took this quilt to the same place I did for the Everlasting Garden, and of course had help from the best, most patient husband ever! Took a LOT of photos, but here are just few…
The second quilt I made for the Lookbook is a wall quilt (35″x35″), called BLOOMING.
Originally I designed this quilt also as a large lap-size quilt, inspired by a lovely pattern I have by Sharon McConnell, called Picnic, that uses her Classic Curve Ruler for all the piecing. I really LOVE that ruler and all the creative possibilities it gives!! My plan was to adopt the Picnic pattern for this quilt, however once AGF folks asked if I could make a small, wall quilt, I had to change the plan a bit.
Blooming wall quilt is still inspired by Sharon’s pattern and I still used the CCR a little bit (you will see) but I made the curved, petal shapes in this quilt again by using fusible appliqué.
First I made some HSTs (half-square triangles) that are 3.5″ (finished), in color combinations I needed
And just a few Tri-triangle squares (also 3.5″ finished) that I needed for those non-circular flowers
Then I cut 5″ wide strips of all different fabrics that petal shapes will be made of, and ironed the same fusible interfacing like for the big quilt, on the back of those strips. I then used the CCR to cut my petal shapes.
Photos below show how I did that, but you can just use a template (provided with the pattern download) to cut your shapes.
On the 5″ wide strip, I was using the 4″ groove of the CCR to cut one side first, then turn the ruler and cut the other side: 
After cutting all my petal shapes, I just fused them to the appropriate HSTs and Tri-triangle squares:
After that, it was time to lay all blocks on the design wall and assemble the wall quilt!!
I pinned my printout on the design wall and just started placing blocks as well as white background squares (AAGF’s Pure Solid, Snow), where they need to be:
And after seeing it all together – it was time to quilt!!
I went with some simple circles in the flowers and then some “shadow” leaf motifs in the white background… I kinda kept it simple here. From the above choices of Aurifil, I only used the yellow variegated one and 50wt white in the background (not the 40wt shown above).
So again – this is an easy little quilt to make and I think these Floralish fabrics are just perfect for it!!
REMINDER: You can download your complete free pattern by clicking on the form at the top of this blog post!
If you want to use a paper template for the petal shape, you will find it in the pattern. Since I used raw-edge fusible appliqué, this template is the EXACT size and does NOT have (or need) any seam allowance. If you choose to use a different method for appliqué, you would need to add seam allowance to it.
Photoshoot this time was only around my house and garden – I realized it is not easy placing the wall quilt in nature… you actually need a WALL!! Haha!!
So after I finished it all and sent photos to AGF, I hung my little quilt in my living room, right over the sofa where the big quilt was… and few days ago in the early morning, I found miss Tesla kitty staring at it!!
I quickly unfolded the big quilt to snap few of these photos, that really make me smile!
But you know what’s the best part? You can have so many more inspirations and patterns for this beautiful collection in AGF’s LOOKBOOK!!!
I can wait to see what you make!!!!
Love,
Marija
This quilt is magnificent and your tutorial is above and beyond. I love the videos. I have used the beautiful fabric for some totes, but I’m just getting into this quilting. I am excited about this one!
Hello Kat, thank you so much for your kind words!! I am so glad you like the pattern and I hope you give it a try! If you have any other questions about it, just let me know.
Love BLOOMING so much! But the links don’t work for me either. I’ll be checking back regularly because I’d love to start making this for a swap I’m in!
Thank you so much Lorrie!
My sincere apologies, link has been corrected now and it should work! Please let me know if you have any further problems with it – thank you and sorry for the inconvenience!!
Hello,
I love your blog! I wanted to let you know the link to the Moonlit Garden (where you say “download HERE” is broken. I can’t get to that information! These two quilts are both terrific, I haven’t been inspired quite this much in a while!
I just tried the other link to the BLOOMING and that doesn’t work for me either. It must be something I’m doing. I love these quilts and really want to try them!
Well it also might be me! I am so sorry, I will let you know as soon as I am home!!
My sincere apologies, it has been corrected now and it should work! Please let me know if you have any further problems with it – thank you and sorry for the inconvenience!!
Hi Kelly, thank you so much! I just got similar information about the links and I will look into it as soon as I get home today (currently on my phone and it works, but that can that it works only for me!) – I apologize!!
they did not work for me either
My sincere apologies, it has been corrected now and it should work! Please let me know if you have any further problems with it – thank you and sorry for the inconvenience!!
The quilts are absolutely lovely. I’d love to make both but I’m having trouble with the links to the patterns. Is it something I’m doing wrong?
Thank you so much Carol! I will check on those links as soon as I get home (right now doing this in my phone and can’t see anything wrong…) and let you know!
They did not link me to anything either, must be she will have to fix it.
My sincere apologies, it has been corrected now and it should work! Please let me know if you have any further problems with it – thank you and sorry for the inconvenience!!
My sincere apologies, it has been corrected now and it should work! Please let me know if you have any further problems with it – thank you and sorry for the inconvenience!!
You really made Flourish Shine in all its glory! Fantastic job! I love your picture of your kitty looking up at the wall Quilt best! So cute! Only if animals could talk! Beautiful
Thank you so much Barbara! Tesla kitty is a spunky one and very diligent sewing room supervisor too – I wish they could talk also! 🙂