Tuesday, April 30, 2013

Liberated Star Quilt - Collage by Carrie Bloomston


"In the spirit of collage the debut collection by Carrie Bloomston is filled with letters, textures and hipster imagery ..  with an essence of handmade and artful."

At first glance I felt a little intimidated by this out of my comfort zone collection, but on the other hand I was immediately taken by the unique designs, and even more so by the fun use of a letters and text.  With twenty 10 inch squares to play with it didn't take long to start creating.

Liberated Quiltmaking II by Gwen Marston

Inspired by the Liberated Star Block from the book Liberated Quiltmaking II by Gwen Marston as well as quilts from the Liberated Quilts Flickr Group (in particular this one and this one), I cut into my Collage fabrics in a style that isn't often seen here.  Liberated.  Improvised. Freehand.  
Unfortunately my plan of action at first proved to be a little wasteful of the fabric, but along the way I did salvage a few pieces and learned to make fabric placement more efficient with less to trim off.  Not a scrap was wasted.  I have added several fabrics from stash, including matching solid fabrics in purple, red, teal, and lime green.


This freehand style of fabric placement and piecing does not come naturally to me, and there were moments along the way where I felt entirely out of my depth.  It helped to take a step back - breathe - and not over think the process.  


For the back of the quilt I have used a single black/white text fabric by Kumiko Fujita (from the Infinity Collection), which I thought appropriate for the overall style of the quilt and also complements the design of the fabric.


Quilted with a grid of intersecting straight lines (one inch apart): the lines were not marked on the quilt, instead I used seam lines as a guide as well as a quilting guide attached to my walking foot once the distance from the seam lines became too great to judge the accuracy of the spacing.  


For the binding I have used a solid purple fabric from stash, and have also added small pieces of solid fabrics used in the quilt as a fun extra detail.  

I have listed this quilt in my Etsy Store.  You can view the listing details here:  Modern Liberated Star Quilt.


Collage by Carrie Bloomston fabrics supplied by Windham Fabrics without obligation.  All other fabrics and supplies are from my stash.

Thank you for stopping by,
Rita

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31 comments:

  1. Rita, I am a regular follower of yours and love your work. This is one of my very favorites!!

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  2. Wow...I am always amazed by your lovely quilts! You inspire me!

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  3. Gorgeous; I especially like the binding with the addition of the fabrics from the quilt. Perfect touch.

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  4. Ahh! I know that weird feeling the first time you piece freehand. But it's fun and really engages the brain, doesn't it?

    Love the quilt and nice touch adding some extra fabric to the binding.

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  5. You may have been out of your comfort zone, but of course it still looks fabulous!

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  6. I love it! Great design for the fabrics and I really like the grid quilting!

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  7. It's gorgeous. I know what you mean about these blocks. I just made a few recently.

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  8. This is a wonderful quilt :-)

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  9. I know exactly what you mean about Freestyle and wonky ;-)

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  10. Amazing quilt! I want.

    Those fabrics are on my list to buy for sure!

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  11. This is so stunning Rita, I love that you have pushed yourself out of your comfort zone and created something so beautiful (and learned along the way)! Pinning this immediately, it is gorgeous!

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  12. Great purple on this one! Love the pattern and your use of prints and low volume =)

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  13. That is just terrific and such a "fun" quilt. Very inspirational.

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  14. I love to "improvise" piece.... just a matter of using the "right brain" and getting out of the way.

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  15. This quilt is really lovely!
    While I love the look of the liberated quilts I also have a really hard time not being organized with them. I like what Barbara said ~ use the right brain and get out of the way. Easier said than done for me.

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  16. LOVE what you did with this collection. Wonderful choice. Gwen Marston's book is amazing. You, as always, Rita do incredible work. Such a fun quilt, love the colors. I love the way you stepped out of your comfort zone!

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  17. I think that working outside of our comfort zones often leads to the most creative and interesting results. This is beautiful, Rita!

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  18. I love the purple in this quilt. Adds an extra modern touch to the quilt I think. How do you make your pictures look so perfect without anything in the background...just white?

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  19. This is fabulous! I think this is a perfect pairing of fabric and quilt design. I especially like that you used a variety of solid neutrals rather than just one -- it gives the quilt a lot more interest and depth than it would have otherwise.

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  20. comfort zone or no, I think this quilt and fabric are fabulous!

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  21. Just beautiful! I love Gwen's ideas...

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  22. This is one of the most inspiring pieces you have posted--it's an incredible quilt! The balance you achieved with the colors is truly artistic! Thanks for sharing your labor with us!

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  23. Great quilt! I've been gazing at this collection (and wanting it soooo much). Perfect for a Gwen Marston-inspired quilt!

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  24. I just love this quilt! Its absolutely beautiful. Thank you for sharing.

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  25. You use a lot of white in your quilts. Is is Kona cotton? What's the color name?

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  26. This is wonderful! I really like this quilt! I have never seen these fabrics. I would like to see the full back of this quilt as well. Are there pictures available?

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  27. This is amazing, I love the balance, design and the splashes of bright colours....truly beautiful.

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  28. Brilliant! Just the right treatment for this fabric!

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