Forest Flora Blog Hop!
Welcome to my day on the Forest Flora blog hop! Deb has designed a brand new collection for Island Batik that was inspired by the warm colors of fall. The patterns on the fabrics are reminiscent of the flora you find while strolling through the woods on an early fall day.
The theme for this month's blog hop is Let It Grow. My fellow CIs and I were challenged to make projects that reflect the nature inspired fabrics of Forest Flora. My inspiration is the pattern Water Lily from Studio 180. This project uses the Lemoyne Star tool to make beautiful Blooming Lemoyne blocks. What better way to show off these fabrics?
As you can see, the original pattern uses stunning blues and greens and I think reimagining the Blooming Lemoynes in the Forest Flora earthy tones brings a new flare to the blocks.
I chose to make placemats for my project that focus on a single Blooming Lemoyne block surrounded by flying geese. This allowed me to choose several different fabrics in the collection.
I started with bold orange, red and brown fabrics for the Blooming Lemoynes. The key to this technique is a nice contrast between the diamonds and the spikes that give the block the blooming effect.
Once the blocks were completed I could focus on the flying geese. The Blooming Lemoynes are 9" finished, so I made flying geese that were 1 1/2" x 3" finished to compliment the other blocks.
I worked with several different fabrics and values for these units.
Since these units are so small they are perfect for the Pint Size Wing Clipper. I love the compact size of this tool. It's perfect for taking along to retreats and classes.
Now that I had my blocks and units made it was time to determine the layout of my placemats. The average placemat is 12" x 18" so I tried to stick close to that size. I worked with spacer rectangles and small borders of the background fabric. I then added a final small border of dark green to frame the finished project.
The placemats finish at 12 1/2" x 21 1/2". The size makes them perfect to use at the table or even as a small wall hanging or throughout the house as decor.
I've decided to make two more and gift them to my immediate family members. I love the idea of all of us having them to use for fall decoration.
That's it for my turn on the Forest Flora blog hop! Be sure to stop by the blogs of my fellow Certified Instructors. Everyone has come up with beautiful projects for this fall themed collection. You're sure to find great inspiration!
Saturday March 29th - Studio 180 introduction
Monday March 31st - Amy Costabile of Amy's Quilt Room
Tuesday April 1st - Becky Malarski of Sew Wise Quilter
Wednesday April 2nd - Carla Alexiuk of Quilting by the River
Thursday April 3rd - Kathy Tucker of K&S Quilting
Friday April 4th - Diana Mann of Murgaboo Quilts
Saturday April 5th - Tina Dillard of Quilting Affection Designs
Monday April 7th - Studio 180 wrap up