Drip.

Drip., a photo by badskirt - amy on Flickr.

I'm absolutely loving March right now. I hope this early momentum isn't short lived. I've managed to put a border on all those HSTs and I'm still smitten.

For the curious, I thought I'd share a little more about the evolution of this project. The inspiration for this quilt was Kaffe Fassett's Fonthill in Passionate Patchwork and Katherine De Paolo's Framed which I had the pleasure of seeing at a local quilt show a few years back.

My small number with 3" HSTs has nowhere near the impact of their sprawling and beautiful quilts. The multiple rows of HSTs and pinwheels with internal 'borders' in their quilts are completely captivating. I checked the Kaffe Fassett book out of the library a few months ago, and have long since returned it. So I didn't have the pattern at hand as I worked. What I remember of the Fonthill pattern led to this quilt top. I took Kaffe's ideas and separated my fabrics into color tones - pinks, oranges, neutrals, and yellows. The whites and yellows made camp in the upper left corner of the HST squares. The oranges and pinks mingle in the bottom. And then because I like the unexpected, a few prints were pulled out to break the rules. They dance across the quilt immune to the color scheme. There's a planned randomness to the squares. I tried not to over think it which led to subtle pockets of color.

I knew before I cut the first triangle that I'd be using the raindrops for the border. I think they really work. Rather than matching the colors of the border, I choose colors harmonized with it. The border is olive green, citron and bubble gum pink. The HSTs have lime, a sunny light mustard, salmon and burned orange. It sounds subtle and perhaps hard to pick up on in the pictures. By avoiding perfect color matches, I hope I've made the quilt slightly more dynamic - a subtle, yet acceptable clash.

I did make a mistake with planning. I wanted to get a nice aspect ratio in the center and settled on 13 squares by 15 squares. It was only after that last row was added that I realized I'd need to piece the borders to make them fit. I'd accidentally pulled up at 45 1/2" and my fabric was just 43" wide. So I pared it back a little opting for the less aesthetically pleasing 13x14 layout. A creative sacrifice, but the quilt is better off for it. I could go a little bit bigger with this quilt and add pinwheel borders as Kaffe and Katherine did, but I know I'd never get it quilted. Now, it's a respectable 51"x54".  I'm happy.

I'm absolutely loving March right now. Projects are falling right out of my fingertips...