The Magic of Quilting: Grandma's Dress/ Kaleidoscope Quilt top

Kaleidoscope Pattern/ Grandma's dress

This little scrappy, mostly pink and white quilt top started out last winter as blocks for a comfort quilt for our Quilt Guild. We have regular get togethers and make simple quilts to give away to people who are ill or in the hospital for whatever reason, just to wrap them in comfort and love, and bring them some cheer.

Some of our blocks are sewn at home, using Guild fabric in a predetermined design, and some are made from our own fabrics. Then we have a 'Sew Day' where we meet and sew the blocks together.
(Some of my fabric scraps were from a sundress that I had worn and loved about 20 years ago. I didn't have the heart to part with the dress, I enjoyed the fabric so much, I decided to use it it a quilt. Hence the name "Grandma's Dress")

Back in March, we were directed to make 8 1/2" pinwheel blocks from 4 1/2 " inch half square triangles, using white and any other bright coloured fabric scraps that we had available. Using the same fabric, we also had to make 48 two inch fabric squares sewn to a 2" inch white square,. We then trade these at one of our meetings to get a variety of scrappy fabric squares. Then we sewed them together into six '8 patch' blocks.

These blocks were all sewn together at another Guild 'sew day' into this pretty scrappy quilt:

Comfort quilt sewn by our Quilt Guild

I had some pinwheel blocks left over and more of the fabric, so I decided to keep making pinwheel blocks and then organize them into a "little girl" quilt top for one of our little grandchildren.

Then I remembered a pattern that had struck my fancy in the fall/winter 2014 edition of "Fresh Quilts" magazine. The pattern on page 44 was called Kaleidoscope.

Creating the kaleidoscope pattern top

Because I already had most of the pinwheel blocks made it was a little tricky sewing the rows together because the pinwheels were staggered with solid white of half square triangle blocks filling in in between. I had to sew a few "Y" seams to make it work, but it turned out quite nicely.

I made a whole bunch of 1 1/2 inch half square triangle blocks for the border. At that time (it was April by now) it measured 32 1/2" by 35 1/2", about the size of a baby quilt.

I decided that it was too small! I really wanted it for one of our toddlers so it had to be bigger. I figured out how to take it apart without too much work so I could add another row of pinwheels.

Adding more squares

I took off the bottom row of the half square border and made a few more 4 1/2 inch blocks. Then I had to add a strip of fabric to the pink inner border and make a few extra triangle blocks for the second border. Now it measured 32 3/4 inches by 41 1/2 inches. Still not big enough. I needed more borders.

White 3rd border and pink outer border

I added a 3 inch white on white border and a pink 4 1/2 inch outer border. I still had a few half square triangles left so I decided to make the pink outer border more fancy with the triangle blocks at the corners.

Because each of those blocks was smaller than the pink border, I had to add some white fabric at the corners, too. After fixing a mistake (oops, sewed 3 of the triangle blocks on one corner facing the wrong direction!) I was pretty pleased with the results. The finished quilt top measures 47" by 56" a better size for a toddler.

Finished Kaleidoscope quilt top 47" X 56"

After that I washed the kitchen floor, taped a piece of pink mike fleece to the floor, Cut a piece of batting to smooth out on top, and next I placed the quilt top on top and smoothed out all the wrinkles.

After that I pinned the heck out of it starting at the centre and working my way outwards.

Here it is draped on the kitchen railing, waiting to be quilted.