Watercolor Heart Quilt

Squares of color spring to life on a quilt.

Simply Quilts : Episode QLT-628 -- More Projects »
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Dina Pappas
We're using fabric as our palette and thread as our brush for making this beautiful quilt.

Dina Pappas, author of Quick Watercolor Quilts: The Fuse, Fold & Stitch Method shares how-to for creating a heart watercolor quilt.

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Figure A
Fabric Selection
This watercolor wreath quilt (figure A) has only three fabrics in it. A background that reads solid, a heavily printed fabric that coordinates with the background and creates the design element, and a lightly printed "bridge" or transition fabric that gradually blends the design element fabric onto the background.
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Figure B
If you were making a holiday-themed wreath, this fabric group (figure B) would be nice. The background fabric is in the middle. Can you tell which of the two remaining fabrics will function as the bridge? It's the one in front with the birds.
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Figure C
The transition fabric in the previous sample featured a medium-density print, but yours doesn't have to. Here's a group (figure C) where the bridge fabric is actually the reverse of the background fabric.

Quilt
This watercolor heart quilt features a 3" square. It's a great weekend piecing project for seasoned quilters.

Materials:
1-5/8 yard transition fabric
3 yard background fabric
5/8 yard heavily printed fabric

Steps:
Center
1. Use a strip cutting method to cut up the yardage into 3" squares.

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Figure D
2. Pencil in the design shape you want to create on graph paper (figure D). For each unique square, sketch a key of it to the side of the graph.

3. Assign fabric squares to grid squares. Look for markings on fabric that mimic the shaded squares. For instance, if you have a square with diagonal shading, find fabric with a diagonal marking on it to assign to that square.

4. Place assigned fabric squares onto a background of lightweight, grid-lined fusible interfacing, mimicking the pattern drawn on graph paper.

5. Use a hot iron to fuse fabric to the interfacing. Move and adjust your ironing board so you can easily slide the quilt top from your work surface to the board, pressing a small section at a time until it is completely fused down.

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Figure E
6. Fold the fused quilt top at each vertical row of squares, seaming 1/4" at the folds (figure E).
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Figure F
7. Prepare to stitch the horizontal rows by snipping the fold, stopping just short of the seam (figure F). Don't worry if you clip through the seam slightly.

8. Fold the fused quilt top at each horizontal row and sew 1/4" seams at the folds (as you did with the vertical rows in step 6. As you're sewing, arrange seam allowances so they go in opposite directions to eliminate bulk.

Swag Borders
1. Make four borders segments on one sheet of interfacing, creating a swag pattern design. Each border should use printed fabric at the top for form the turn in the swag.

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Figure G
This will help save time when piecing and sewing. Work out a border that you like then mimic it three times (figure G).

2. Mark between each border. On each border strip, stitch as you did for the quilt center, folding and seaming in a 1/4" manner for each vertical row. Do not seam between borders (at the marks). Clip at the fold to the seam line then stitch the rows horizontally.

3. Cut the borders apart at the marks made in step 2.

4. Sew borders to the center quilt center. Add batting and backing then quilt as desired.

Simply Quilts FACTOID: The watercolor technique was pioneered by quilt artist Deidre Amsden to achieve her famous color wash design.

Resources
Quick Watercolor Quilts: The Fuse, Fold, and Stitch Method
by Dina Pappas (ISBN: 1564772705)
Click here to order this title.
Martingale & Co. / That Patchwork Place
Website: www.martingale-pub.com
Guests
Dina Pappas
Quilter and owner of Dina's Cozy Cabin Quilts
Website: www.dinascozycabin.com
Also in this Episode
Simply Quilts : Episode QLT-628
•Watercolor Heart Quilt