Thanks to everyone who left comments on Monday’s post which showed the following picture of nine “Economy Blocks.”
I asked for suggestions of colors for the sashing and border. The answers: yellow/red, green/yellow, green, fuchsia (to match the number “1” in the taupe print), yellow/blue, medium gray or blue, yellow/gray, pale pink. I had fun imagining how each combination would look! I decided on yellow sashing, green print cornerstones, and a scrappy border of leftover sample fabrics with a base of blue batik.
The yellow sashing contrasts well with the outer triangles of all the blocks, and I followed Lyna’s suggestion of throwing a little green in the mix. I had enough green floral for the cornerstones as well as for rectangles in the outer border. Planning a scrappy border allowed me to use the half-bear-blocks cut from the two sample panels as well as bits and pieces from the other fabrics in the sample pack.
For quilting thread color, I considered royal blue (which would show up strongly against the lighter fabrics), gray (which would blend fairly will with all the fabrics), and pale yellow (which would sink into the lighter fabrics but would show up against the blue and red). I chose yellow and quilted a meandering pattern with loops. More blue batik serves as the binding. The back is a navy flannel, inherited from my mother-in-law’s stash. Of course, the yellow thread shows up really well against the navy, LOL. The NICU at a local hospital actually prefers dark backings on the quilts we donate since they are calming for the preemies.
I enjoyed making these “Economy Blocks” following my own stress-free instructions which are found on the “Favorites BOM QAL” page of this blog. Stats: Blocks are 8″ finished, sashing is 2″ finished, outer border is 4″ finished, quilt is 40″ square.
If you are quilting along on the “Favorites” project, please send a picture of your “Economy Blocks” since I plan to post some pics of your progress next week. aby.quilts@gmail.com