The Paintbox Quilt is now finished too!
This quilt is made with 64 - 6.5" blocks in 32 color combinations (8 by 8 blocks with 1.5" sashing). Each combination is a Kona cotton solid and a monochromatic quilting print. One of the blocks in each combination is made with a printed center and outer ring and the other is made with a solid center and outer ring.
I had a hard time deciding how to lay out the blocks for the quilt. In the end, I placed the two black and two chocolate brown squares (the darkest ones) at each of the corners. Then, I placed the other squares so they were, roughly, going from warm in the upper left corner to cool in the lower right.
I alternated the orientation of the squares so the "pulled" corners were going in opposite directions.
On the back, I made a pieced panel with a little rectangle of each of the Kona cottons. I put them in rainbow order and then arranged the pieces in a 4 x 8 formation, zig-zagging the color order back and forth through each row. I'm surprisingly happy with how that color arrangement worked out, actually.
The letters on the back are just simple Kona cotton appliques, made using this technique. I just printed out really big letters from Microsoft Word to make the patterns. (If you do this, I recommend formatting your text for outline, so you don't waste a lot of printer ink.)
The washed and quilted linen is so incredibly soft, which makes this a very comfy quilt too!
I originally had a black and white binding on this quilt, but it was a little "too much" so I ended up going with this gold and white stripe from Kaufman's Pimatex Basics, which I really like.
I've just written up a quick tutorial for the blocks, which is here. If you're interested in doing something like this, I recommend ordering your Kona cottons from either Fabric Depot or Fabric Shack. (Fabric Depot takes 30% off all online orders and Fabric Shack has Kona cotton at $4.00/yard to begin with.) Both carry all or most of the Kona cotton line.
I think this quilt pattern would be interesting in a more limited color palette. You can also see here where Jennifer is making a similar quilt with all patterned fabrics, which looks really cool.
I couldn't resist adding this last photo of Maeby helping me with the binding. You can see from the photos above that George-Michael helped me photograph, but Maeby was an integral part of the construction process.
oh fransson! What a busy lady you have been. And thankyou for the tutorial on how to make the blocks. Cherrie
Posted by: cherrie | October 12, 2008 at 04:15 PM
Oh I've been waiting to see this one all finished!! it's SO SO SO beautiful!! Really - I love it love it love it!
Posted by: Alissa | October 12, 2008 at 04:33 PM
This quilt is so beautiful and very creative. I love it.
Posted by: Shannon | October 12, 2008 at 05:05 PM
Holy cow, I love this quilt! I love the back. I love the whole idea. I just love it. (Did I say "love" enough?)
Posted by: Jessica | October 12, 2008 at 05:24 PM
this is the coolest quilt I have ever seen. especially the back.
Posted by: nettie | October 12, 2008 at 05:39 PM
This quilt is positively breathtaking!
Thanks for sharing : )
Posted by: Courtney | October 12, 2008 at 05:44 PM
Oh, my! It came out so good!
I am alwyas amazed at your eye for color and detail. Well done.
Posted by: Oh2122 | October 12, 2008 at 06:30 PM
I just came here from flickr- all I can say is "wow". This is a brilliant quilt and I love your use of linen (my favorite!). I'm not sure, but I might like the back best!
Posted by: Cicada Studio | October 12, 2008 at 06:30 PM
I love how it turned out! I like how modern yet comfortable it looks.
Posted by: Lindsay | October 12, 2008 at 06:41 PM
Wow! I love, love, love this quilt. Such a creative idea.
Posted by: shannon | October 12, 2008 at 06:47 PM
I LOVE this quilt! It is so neat and colorful and well done. LOVE IT! The backing is probably my favorite. :)
Posted by: Erin | October 12, 2008 at 06:55 PM
That is truly beautiful. I keep sitting here just looking at it and feeling happy. Amazing.
Posted by: Sarah Jackson | October 12, 2008 at 07:13 PM
wow---that is such a work of art!
Posted by: carrie | October 12, 2008 at 07:29 PM
This is just the perfect quilt! I love the colors, and the way you laid them out. And I love the white sashing in between the colors. Plus that pieced panel on the back looks fabulous. Great job finishing it with the quilting and binding.
Posted by: Terriaw | October 12, 2008 at 07:53 PM
I love this quilt, I wish it was mine. I will have to get to work on one for me. It really looks great!
Posted by: Marissa | October 12, 2008 at 08:31 PM
This quilt is amazing. I love it. Thanks for sharing.
Posted by: Beth | October 12, 2008 at 09:18 PM
It is beautiful! I love the back as much as the front! Just lovely colours.
Posted by: Helen | October 12, 2008 at 09:37 PM
I think this is my favorite quilt I've ever seen! Gorgeous!
Posted by: Adria | October 12, 2008 at 10:46 PM
I am not sure what words will really describe how intensely I love this. I think the back is just as fabulous as the front - the most exciting thing I have seen in blogland for ages.
It is just scrumptious!
Posted by: jodie | October 13, 2008 at 02:06 AM
Beautiful!
Posted by: lavon | October 13, 2008 at 03:51 AM
Absolutely stunning! A real treat for the eye! I also appreciate all of the planning, time and effort that had to have gone in to this gorgeous product. And thanks for the tutorial!!
Posted by: amy | October 13, 2008 at 03:52 AM
oh my word. This quilt turned out GORGEOUS!!!! I have been anxiously awaiting the final "reveal" ... and it definitely did not disappoint! Very inspiring.
Posted by: Sara | October 13, 2008 at 04:30 AM
Wow! I love the back! very impressive!
Posted by: V | October 13, 2008 at 05:12 AM
Gorgeous! I love the back too!!!! and great quilting!
Posted by: upstatelisa | October 13, 2008 at 05:42 AM
Amazing! I totally love it!
Posted by: Lisa Clarke | October 13, 2008 at 05:44 AM