The Sew and Tell Project

Happy day, everyone! I am so excited for it to be my stop on The Tallinn Fabrics Blog Tour hosted by Art Gallery Fabrics designer Jessica Swift! I’ve been so lucky that I’ve had the privilege of working with some of the gorgeous Tallinn fabrics since Quilt Market prep last fall. If you check out some of my past posts on Instagram you can see a few of the four garments I made for Jessica’s debut booth.

When Jessica invited me to be a part of her blog tour, I knew I wanted to make a quilt for my big girls. We are preparing to move our older daughters into their own room downstairs this summer, and quilts are a beautiful way to infuse a bedroom with whimsical color. One of my daughters’ favorite activities to do after school is to curl up under a blanket and listen to audiobooks. I love watching them transported to faraway lands through literature and adventure.

For me, having the opportunity to work with the gorgeous prints of Tallinn reminded me of my own trip to Eastern Europe when I was a teenager. To be honest, I don’t remember a lot of the specifics of the trip (in fact I borrowed the above picture from my mom since I couldn’t find my own album)! I remember a whirlwind of color and new experiences. I remember the feeling of unusual adventure. The colors and motifs of Tallinn fabrics brought up many fond memories that I hope to pass down to my own children as they grow.

For the quilt pattern, I chose to use a pattern I found at my LQS: The Villa Rose Designs Movie Star Quilt. It featured enough prints that I was able to use all the prints in the Fairytale colorway. I also used some of the cool Pure Elements turquoise colors I picked up in a bundle at quilt market. I decided to be adventurous and use AGF Pure Elements Smooth Pebble for a rich background so the bold prints of Tallinn would shine. My quilt top finished at 53″ x 68″.

The entire pattern went together quickly and was made with HSTs. I spent probably as much time deciding on color and print placement as I did on piecing the quilt top. I wanted to balance the large scales, the lights and darks, and also play with the direction of two of my favorite prints: Tigris Lollipop and Baltic Swans Sand. I was assisted in making sure I cut my HSTs the correct way by rewatching the Art Gallery Fabric Quilt Block Collection Easter Lily Quilt Block video for tips on cutting my fabrics just right!

I used the large scale print Odessa Dream as my backing for the quilt and had it quilted by a local longarmer with bamboo batting. I love just how much drape the bamboo has for a nice snuggly quilt!

One of the initial reasons I was drawn to this particular quilt pattern was the piano key border. I loved having just one more opportunity to showcase each print. I then binded the quilt in another one of my favorite prints: Lore Cobblestone.

I hope you enjoyed stopping by my corner of the web today. Make sure you visit again soon as I share some more Tallinn projects with you.

Make sure you follow along and visit the other makers on the Tallinn Fabrics Blog Tour! 

Thursday April 19 – Mathew Boudreaux | Mister Domestic (Puffer Vest Outfit)
Friday April 20 – Katie Skoog | The Simple Life Company (Girl’s dress, Girl’s romper)
Monday April 23 – Sharon Holland (Kantha-style Duffel Bag)
Tuesday April 24 – Eleri | Sew and Tell Project
Wednesday April 25 – Paola Baker | Love of Fabrics
Thursday April 26 – Maureen Cracknell
Friday April 27 – Alexis Wright | My Sweet Sunshine Studio
Monday April 30 – Isabelle Selak | South Bay Bella Studio
Tuesday May 1 – Cassie Massolia | Lily Shine Creates
Wednesday May 2 – Becca Plymale | Sunflower Seams
Thursday May 3 – Alisa Kutsel | A Stitch In Between
Friday May 4 – Sharon McConnell | Color Girl Quilts
Monday May 7 – Karen O’Connor | Lady K Quilt Designs
Tuesday May 8 – Sarai Schuk | Sarai’s Hobbies
Wednesday May 9 – Elise Baek | Elise & Emelie
Thursday May 10 – Jessica Swift
Friday May 11 – Gwyn LaSpina
Monday May 14 – Loni Jakubowski | Havin Sew Much Fun

Explore the Tallinn Fabrics collection:The Collection | The Lookbook | On Instagram