Say Hello to Rainbow Parade!

Remember all that secret sewing I was doing a week or so ago?  It's time to unveil it.  And, boy-howdy! I'm excited about it. I had so much fun working on this quilt. It currently is hanging with pride in the entry way of our house. 

Isn't it gorgeous? (Ok I'm am totally biased but I love it.) The design is by Preeti Harris who blogs at Sew Preeti Quilts. She called me to see if I would test a pattern and share it with the world through my blog. Well why not. I've made several tops that she has designed so I knew it would be well written. (See Synergy I tested for her in April 2022 here.) 

When I first saw the pattern I realized it was a perfect pattern to use some fabric I had hand dyed years ago. It was, with one little issue... I didn't trust it not to bleed. And, I was right. So every fabric had a long, leisurely bath in my bathroom sink. Several times.  Eventually they all were dry and  ready to be ironed and find a place in the quilt. You might notice what Preeti designed was bigger and used more colors than mine. I worked with a very limited collection of fabrics and many were barely half yard pieces. So I improvised. And, this pattern definitely is easy to improvise.

I chose a light silver grey Kona solid. I wanted the colors to be the main focus. 

I had a hard time deciding which quilting pattern I would use on my Rainbow Parade.  Finally, it dawned on me that I didn't want the quilting to take precedence over the wonderful design and colors. I used a  stipple pattern that was included with my robotics.  It was perfect for letting the design and colors shine. 

A few more thoughts on this pattern -- it is easy to make. The blocks are 13" finished so you don't need lots to have a decent size quilt. Mine is about 44.5" x 57" and is set 3 x 4.  The pattern is set 4 x 5 and measures 57" x 70".  

Preeti did a great job with detailing what you need to make this rainbow quilt. She wrote it so each color is repeated in the next diagonal row. My lack of lots of fabric made it impossible for me to do it that way. But, it worked out just fine any way. Talk about versatile! 

I would like to make it again using a print fabric where the darker fabric is in my version. I make a lot of kid centric quilts and this pattern could highlight a cute novelty fabric really well. I could use one color for all of the light parts or use a rainbow of fabrics again. I could also see this as a patriotic fabric using the same concepts as for the novelty fabric. 

Have you started thinking about what fabric you want to use to make this pattern?  Rainbow Parade is in Preeti's Etsy shop now. And, even better, it will be 20% off until March 12. Check it out here: https://sewpreetiquilts.etsy.com/listing/1690533725/rainbow-parade-quilt-pattern-beginner

Would you like to win a digital copy of this pattern?  One lucky commenter will win. Make sure you add an email address if you don't have it attached to your name.  

More accurate colors 

 

Would you like some hand dyes to play with yourself?  I'm offering a give away of 4 fat quarters of fabric I hand dyed. I promise they will all have a spa day in my bathroom sink until the dye quits rinsing out. Limited to the US. One comment will get you a chance at both the hand dye and the Rainbow Parade pattern. Again, make sure your email is attached to your name.  

Here are the hand dyes I'll be sending out. Hum, it isn't smart to try to take pictures in the middle of the night and expect the colors to come out correctly.  The top one is a slightly blue green. The second one is actually what I'd call flamingo pink. The next one is a medium blue - not a grey blue. And the last is mauve.  (I might have purchased that piece as it isn't the same greige goods.)  Update -- the bigger picture is more accurate but I think the colors are a bit brighter. I left the night picture in just to show the contrast.   

The other thing that happened to my great surprise and happiness is I had a leftover backing that worked well with the rainbow concept. I actually had loaded this backing and was going to put another top on it when I realized it would work for Rainbow Parade. Kismet! 

Want to see more versions of Rainbow Parade? Preeti lined up an international group of quilters to help her out.  Check out these blogs to see more Rainbow Parade quilts. 

https://cathyscrazybydesign.blogspot.com/ 

https://quiltingpatch.blogspot.com/

https://dipteaquilts.wordpress.com/

https://sewpreetiquilts.blogspot.com/

I'll be linking with the following Linky parties (when they come on line.)  

Midweek Makers 

Wednesday Wait Loss 

Needle and Thread Thursday (Thursday)

Can I Get a Whoop! Whoop! (Friday) 

One last look at my Rainbow Parade. 

Hum...all through making this quilt I thought of the red/pink block as being the top.  And here I hung this one upside down! (Or not!) 

Happy Quilting All! Bonnie 

Synergy - My Way

"I did it my way." Is that old Frank Sinatra song playing in your head now?   I visited the lyrics on Google and realized the words aren't what I thought they'd be. That being said I think part of the second verse says it for me about Synergy. 

I did what I had to do
I saw it through without exemption
I planned each charted course
Each careful step along the byway
And more, much, much more
I did it, I did it my way ...

Yep, that covers my interpretation of Synergy, a wonderful pattern recently released by Preeti of Sew Preeti Quilts. You can check out her post about it at Sew Preeti Quilts. Two weeks and a couple of days ago she asked me to participate in her Synergy release blog hop. I agreed to be part of Preeti's new pattern release.  I was a bit concerned about being able to make a quilt in 17 days but I really surprised myself and had a finished top in 12 days.  So then I asked myself and Preeti whether I should quilt it too.  I decided I certainly could quilt it so here is my version pieced, quilted, and bound.  (This may be the fastest I've ever finished a quilt!) Synergy is 56 x 70". 

I went right to work trying to figure out my colors to make Synergy my way.  I decided to use a color generator, Coolers, to see what I could find. Here's the screen shot from one of their palettes.  Ten colors -- just what was needed for Synergy. 

I did a little stash "shopping" and then a little fabric store shopping and came up with my fabrics. 

My rusts to lights were less rust and leaned more to the peach side. The Blues to turquoise seemed right on to me.  Of the group, 4 came from stash.  Add in my Kona Snow for the background and I was set to cut and sew. 

Here are a few hints I used to help me whiz through the cutting and sewing. 

I numbered my fabrics based on the numbers Preeti used in her very well written pattern.  In fact, I also wrote the number of strips I needed for each color on one set of tags I used. That made the cutting faster so I didn't have to go back to the pattern for each cut. 

Preeti recommended ironing the seams open during the sewing process.

So I did as recommended.

 

Seams ironed open.

And boy did that make a nice flat top.  I'm my own long armer and I admit I really liked it.  Quilting it was a piece of cake.

Now that I've got my preliminary info out, how about many pictures of Synergy-My Way out in the wild? (So to speak!) 

Most accurate coloring of all my pictures.

We went to Patriots Park in Spotsylvania county for the photo shoot.  It was a beautiful spring day with a slight breeze. 

The above picture and the below picture were taken at the amphitheater.  It was so I could make a blatant plug for the next Spotsylvanian's concert that will be held at this Amphitheater on Saturday, May 14th at 6 pm. There are 5 rows of benches and then a great grassy area you can bring yours chairs and blankets to relax and enjoy the music. (Yep, Pat and I both sing in this community chorus.) Tickets are $10 for adults and kids are free. You can purchase them online from the link on the Spotsy's web page above.

 

The picture below is one of my favorites.  There was a decorative rock near the parking lot with plants growing on the sides.  I spread out the quilt to take pictures and the wind picked it up just as I started taking pictures. Kismet.  You can see the whole quilt with a little help from the wind. 

Are you chomping at the bit to have your own copy of this fabulous pattern?  Head over to Preeti's Etsy shop to get it. But wait, there's more!  The pattern is 25% off until April 27, 2022. Well worth it, if you ask me. The pattern is 13 pages in color with step-by-step instructions, a coloring page, and great quality graphics. I personally love being able to download and save PDF Patterns.  I wrote notes on mine due to the difference in colors and when I want to make it again I can print a clean version to mark up again. 

Remember I mentioned I quilted and bound my quilt?  Here's Ruthie, the long arm, working away on Synergy - My Way.  Well, actually, that's her light shining on the left as she stitched. 

And, a final picture of the back showing off the quilting. I picked A Wave in the Sand by My Creative Stitches.  It actually stitched 12 rows at a time stitching both left to right and right to left.  That sure made it go fast.  I used a grey So Fine thread on the front and in the bobbin. 

Preeti has a drawing for a free copy of Synergy or any of her patterns at her Etsy shop.  Leave a comment answering this question by Wednesday:  How many sewing machines do you own?  I'll answer first so you know I am a total machine nut! 6. What? 6. Yes -- 3 working domestic machines, 2 probably not working domestic machines, and 1 wonderful long arm. Oops, and an old serger. Make that 7.   I have a Featherweight (working) and what I call a Heavy Weight Singer (nonworking) that was my mom's purchased used. I'm not sure what to do with it.  Doorstop comes to mind. 

Entries close on Tuesday at midnight EDT. Remember if you are a no comment account to leave your contact information in the post. (Sandi -- that would be you so far. Please let me know your contact info.)  I'll post the winner on my Friday blog post. (Yes, I have another finish to show you on Friday! Are you surprised? I am!) 

Do you want to see the other quilts made as part of this Blog Hop?

1. Mari of Academic Quilter - Thursday, April 21, 2022

2. Alycia of Alycia Quilts - Friday, April 22, 2022

3. Wendy of Pieceful Thoughts - Saturday, April 23, 2022

4. Bonnie of Institches with Bonnie - Sunday, April 24, 2022 You are here!

5. Roseanne of Home Sewn By Us - Monday, April 25, 2022 

I hope you take a look at all of these wonderful versions of Synergy.  This pattern is so adaptable to colors, prints, even changing the background to a print.  Let me know how you like Synergy.  

I'm linking with Oh Scrap!. Enjoy surfing a few blogs.  You never know when you'll see something you just love. 

Happy Quilting All! Bonnie