So, you know my friend Juliet, who's incredible paper piecing design talents I'm always harping on about? Well. Between taking over the world with her amazing patters (ahem - have you seen big bear??), getting published and being a great mum, she set a wee challenge last month around her Butterfly patterns. I do so love a good challenge... :)
A few ideas came and went but this one stuck the most... Turn those little butterflies into a flower :) I had a slightly bigger vision... of three butterfly-flowers in different colours, and perhaps turning them into a wee quilt... but you all know what time often does to grand dreams... Anyhoos - I present my one flower :)
The details:
- I used Juliet's small butterfly pattern and reduced it to 80% - in order for the flower not to be humongous once all the small butterflies were combined. The total size as pictured is 18"x18".
- The petals were hand-drawn - I do like how they all ended up looking a bit like hearts :)
- I quilted the middle with pebbles - a first! My eyes actually started tearing up from not daring to blink while at it - didn't want to break the momentum!
- The wings have wee twirly-whirly bits quilted in them too - spurred on by not totally screwing up the pebbling, I thought I'd give it a go.
At one point I also envisioned there being extra petals between the butterfly ones. So I set about drawing a paper-pieced pattern to make it so! Was a bit happy with the result, though I decided against adding them in the end, and have the quilting make the picture.
So who knows what it will become - a large cushion? A bag? Maybe there will be some extra "flowers" one day to make it into a quilt? Or something else entirely? For now, it's a completed block for the challenge. A butterfly flower :) Or perhaps it's an inverted four leaf clover? Will it bring me luck? :p
Did you get into the challenge and do something a bit different with Juliet's butterflies? There's still time if you're keen! And did I mention the awesome prizes??
Looking forward to seeing what you've been making this week!
L xx
Amazing - both yours and Juliets talent - time hmmmmm def lacking in this house !
ReplyDeleteIts beautiful Leonie. Go you with your fancy quilting! I tried pebbling once an swore never again! Its one of those things that I love when other people do hee hee.
ReplyDelete(i told you I'd get you designing didn't I!?!- make sure you do something with the wee petal that you designed- it'll be beautiful!)
Beautiful work - I love the colours you've chosen together too. If you end up making a quilt you could scatter some of your petals around the design.
ReplyDeleteWoohoo! Fabulous, cool fabric choices.........I hope you are back to blinking after all those pebbles! Looks great.
ReplyDeleteWell done getting into the challenge. I often aspire to but never actually get there
ReplyDeletesuper clever drawing up your own paper piecing pattern :-) And this is such a fun design - the pebbles are so tiny, no wonder you didn't want to blink!!
ReplyDeleteAmazing...it took me ages to just make one!
ReplyDeleteFabulous idea Leonie - I love what you did with this pattern! Beautiful!! It's begging to be completed now - looking forward to seeing what you do next!
ReplyDeleteYou girls are all so CLEVER!!!
ReplyDeleteYou are so clever... This whole paper piecing thing is like a magical foreign language to me! I love what you did with your block, you really made it into something different and "yours". Xx
ReplyDeleteClever clever you.. I admire anyone that has the patience to do this .. I am not about to try it.. xx
ReplyDeleteA four leaf clover it was, lucky you and so cute that Rascal painted a picture of it :) P.S. your paper pieced leaf is amazing!
ReplyDelete