Perpetua

Written By Annette

A Quilt pattern from Modern HeirlooM Quilting by Amber Elliot

 

I am so thrilled to get to be a part of the release of this new quilt book written by Amber from Alderwood Studios: Modern Heirloom Quilting. Whether this is your first quilt or your 50th, this book is full of beautiful, modern quilt patterns sure to entice any quilter. Additionally, for those who are new to the craft, she’s included all the information you need to get started!

When Amber approached me to make a quilt from her first book, I jumped at the chance. I’ve always admired Amber’s quilt patterns. Her designs are modern and bold, yet have an incredibly timeless quality that feels so comfortable being well used and loved in the home. Every time I see a new pattern of hers pop up, I’m always in awe - if only there was enough time to make them all! So, from all of the beautiful quilts in Modern Heirloom Quilting, I chose the Perpetua Quilt.

I’ve been looking for the right quilt to live in our master bedroom, which we’ve been slowly making our own since buying our first house in early 2020. The Perpetua Quilt fit our space perfectly. It’s bold with strong angles, great symmetry, and a slightly Scandinavian feel that coordinated well with our rug and with the Shelter Quilt wall hanging displayed above our bed.

When choosing colors, I grabbed my swatch cards, starting with a couple colors from the Shelter quilt, and paired those with coordinating colors, using the rug as my main source of colorway inspiration. I ended up with an earthy, neutral palette using Kona Cotton Solids in Putty, Stone, Cinnamon, and Pepper. For the backing, I chose a shot cotton from the Peppered Cotton collection by Studio E Fabrics called “Pepper,” which is a warm brown-gray. I love the shot cottons because they give a beautifully textured look to a solid and I’ve been solid-backing-obsessed these days!

Once my fabric arrived, I quickly got to work cutting and piecing. This quilt was not only a cinch to piece, but was also such a fun process! I haven’t made many medallion-type quilts to date, but I love these large scale blocks that make it feel like you’re never stuck repeating the same chain piecing over and over again. Don’t get me wrong, I love chain-pieced quilts too, but this was a nice change of pace and felt like a good break from the norm (especially because the making of this quilt came right in between samples of my upcoming Adjourn Quilt, a beautiful, if somewhat tedious block-based pattern)! The variety of quilting techniques within this pattern also kept things interesting from beginning to end.

Once pieced, assembled, and basted, this quilt was ready for quilting! I knew from the start I wanted to hand quilt Perpetua, but, as with many projects, I tend to be a figure-things-out-as-I-go kind of quilter. So, after finishing several lines of stitching, I decided to add a mix of machine quilting in for added dimension. I loved that the central diamond gave a large negative space to fill with a quilting design that would take it from a block of solid color to something more personal and interesting. I also decided to use two thread colors to highlight different areas of the design and create more interest on both the front and back of the quilt. The black thread blended and created texture on the quilt top, but popped from the Ecru, creating a distinct coordinating design on the back.

And finally, the binding. The design of Perpetua inspired me to do something a little more interesting with my binding. I created blocks of color along the top and sides, separated by a band of black that continued the horizontal lines along the top and bottom of the quilt. It was so pleasing to see those varied colors create even more interest on the quilt back. This is one of the things I love about using solids as backings: you get to use thread and binding to create a unique and interesting design that results in a modern and stylish look that a print can’t always achieve.

I can’t recommend this pattern and book highly enough. This was such an exciting make and I’m already looking forward to choosing my next project from within these pages! Go check out Modern Heirloom Quilting from Alderwood Studio and get your copy, I can’t wait to see what you make!

Annette
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