I began with fabric that I purchased there, and the idea of making a Plus quilt, a design that I have seen and which required no pattern.
I spent a day cutting, arranging, re-cutting, and rearranging.
I took photos as I worked. I usually work this way so that I can compare my ideas and make adjustments to the design.
I could not get anything to look acceptable.
Everything looked so ugly that I couldn't even save the pictures on my phone.
You will have to take my word for it.
Ugly quilts do happen.
I put the entire mess in a drawer.
I devised a plan:
- Choose a new design. Go with Breaking Up from the book Irish Chain Quilts by Melissa Corry.
- Divide the fabrics. Keep the fabrics that read as solids; save the obvious prints for a future idea.
- Add some color. Red...maybe yellow.
- Put the entire design on a scrappy, low-volume background.
Additionally I decided that I liked extra navy in the sashing squares. Because I used scrappy, low-volume fabrics instead of a solid color for the background, I thought the navy helped ground the broken Irish Chain.
56" x 74'
379 pieces