This is the perfect scream-free family room sofa quilt! Scream free? Yes, as in you won't be screaming at the kids like you might (just maybe) do when you find your perfectly pieced and quilted masterpiece wadded on the floor with dirty shoes kicked off on top of it. You won't be screaming when you find the dog's sneaked onto the sofa during the night and made a nest on it. You won't even scream when you find the cat testing her skills on a loose thread. Nope, no screaming because you will happily toss it in the wash so it ... gets better. You'll even thank the cat for teasing out that new unraveled bit for you.
The construction couldn't be simpler: Join yardage to make a whole-cloth top and bottom the size you desire, then create a quilt sandwich with batting. Lay out the charm squares and run seams from side to side about 1/4 inch inside the edges of the squares. Wash and dry and the raw edges will start to unravel, which gives it a nice casual look. I really love the juxtaposition of the grid with the raw edges. My husband calls it the i-phone quilt. I would too, but I don't want emails from the legal team at apple.
I've created a separate page with more detailed instructions and tips for placing the squares evenly: Appliqued Charm Squares Quilt Tutorial
Since I know mine will be washed almost weekly, I'm letting time do the work, but if you're giving it as a gift you can tatter it up a bit yourself. Just pull loosened threads gently in the direction of the warp/weft so you don't break your quilting thread. Another run through the washer/dry will give it the perfect patina without throwing it to the mercy of your kids/dogs/cats.
If you want a more ruffled effect like a rag quilt, you could leave a 1/2 inch raw edge and then clip down every 1/2 to 1 inch along each edge to just shy of the quilting line.
I used two different Moda charm packs that I've had in stash for at least a year or two: Flutter-By uses the lighter, brighter tones and another one (the label band was long gone) with darker tones. The top is marbled cotton and the back is hounds-tooth flannel. I didn't have any yardage to match the charm packs, so the bias tape binding is Kaffe Fasset, which I think does a pretty good job since it pulled out all the colors except the red/pink/purple range. The movement created by the twisting, turning stripes keeps it fun.
The speed of binding with bias tape on a project like this really pleases me. The variegated thread is 100% cotton from Coats & Clark from JoAnns.
Sending out a big thank you to the very creative folks at Starry Night Hollow for this brilliant idea. Back before the holidays I saw their crib-sized shop samples using this technique with 2.5" squares. They had one with earth tones on dark fabric and another with 30's-style bright prints on a white background and both looked great. I made it sofa-sized with 5" charm squares, but the idea is the same. I figured it out by looking at it, but that can be harder to do by looking at photos on line, so I'm going to give a quick tutorial. I checked with the shop owner before writing this and she graciously agreed this is perfect for sharing. If you're in Southern California, be sure to stop by her truly charming shop, which is only a few blocks from the I-5 in Encinitas.
My helper:
What was so interesting? I swung around to catch this:
As I took the photo the cat appeared in my view finder. I started to call out a warning, but they were both faster than I could ever be.
Thankfully, the hummingbird proved fastest this time. No birds were harmed in the making of this blog entry.
Quick photographer reflexes! And a beautiful quilt, too!
Posted by: Abby | March 14, 2009 at 05:11 AM
I love this quilt! It looks like it would be perfect for a picnic / outdoor concert / fireworks-watching kind of thing.
Posted by: Lisa Clarke | March 14, 2009 at 07:26 AM
Fabulous quilt pattern! Thanks. Love the pictures, too. Wonderful.
Posted by: MichelleB | March 14, 2009 at 11:53 AM
You're right, that is the perfect quilt for everyday couch use! Oh...and to be outside in the sun this time of year with flowers and sunshine....I am jealous! Our Crocuses won't even make an appearance for a few more weeks.
Posted by: Toby | March 14, 2009 at 05:13 PM
I love it, and it does remind me of an i phone. LOL. I'm actually tempted to do this. I'm always seeing charm packs I like but don't know what to do with. And I agree, what a great quilt for everyday use. Ruby our female bulldog loves the sofa, but I hate what she does to the pillows and blankets. :o)
Posted by: Julie | March 15, 2009 at 09:28 AM
I like your quilt! I am in the finishing stage of a knitted "quilt"; I am knitting 24 pieces together in the same way your quilt looks. It is a throw for my mothers birthday in the beginning of April. So I have to hurry! When I've finished this thing, 123.000 thousand stitches have been knitted! It's a good thing you don't know such numbers before starting a new project!
It's such a pleasure seeing pictures from your garden, because it looks like spring or even summer and as we did have the coldest winter in 12 years this year, we long for spring! The crocuses are finally above the ground and birds are singing again in the mornings; so hallelujah... spring is coming to Holland!
Posted by: anje | March 15, 2009 at 11:25 PM
Nice to have you back!! And what a great quilt. I think even I could cope with that, but I haven't found a walking foot yet so quilting is off limits. What a beautiful bird! So exotic! I was jumping over the moon yesterday because we had a Chaffinch and a Siskin. Both very common!!LOL Take care.
Posted by: alisonb2 | March 17, 2009 at 10:32 AM
!!! Awesome! I have a charm pack my MIL gave me and didn't know what to do with it. I think I may pick up another pack and give this a shot! Very cool!
Posted by: Moni | March 17, 2009 at 05:44 PM
it's beautiful! What a clever idea! I have a mora pack and a blank wall and I reckon my second ever quilt could be a funky wall hanging! Thanks for the inspiration!
Posted by: Nicola | March 18, 2009 at 03:27 PM
Genius! I think even I could manage one of those (and I think I even have some fabric that would work - if one I could remember when I put it) - love it (and the photos)!
Posted by: juliet | March 19, 2009 at 04:32 PM
This is brilliant! A quilt I might actually be able to accomplish! I love it - and I have charm packs around here gathering dust. I have to wonder if you guys get any winter at all? It's great to see you still at it (quilting, knitting, photographing, blogging). I am afraid I may be a casualty of the "too much social media" syndrome, hoping to get back to sharing all the crap I've been doing soon on the blog. Enjoy the spring and thanks for sharing such a wonderful quilt project!
Posted by: Julia | March 23, 2009 at 12:24 AM
That is a really cute quilt.. and you just had me surfing the net for charm packs :) Now that I have a nifty antique sewing machine, I might just sew more ;)
Posted by: Risa | March 23, 2009 at 12:18 PM
Love it! I'm trying to sew up some of my scraps into a quilt, if I can get my sewing machine to work, grrrrr....
Posted by: pam | March 23, 2009 at 12:39 PM
now that is one cute quilt! Great shots too! Thank you so much for the tutorial, I'm off to go read it now : )
Posted by: Amanda Cathleen | April 04, 2009 at 08:17 PM
you just solved my difficulty for a dorm quilt for a young man! this rocks! and is easy peasy! You are my hero for today!! Thank you! And it could be a light or dark or what ever and fast !!!
Hummm now where did i put those squares i got on sale! And i mean on sale!!
Thanks again!
Posted by: Mary in H. VA | May 17, 2009 at 06:50 AM
I like this quilt!
Hugs,
Kerry
Posted by: Kerry | May 19, 2009 at 08:03 PM
Nice and quick idea! I like your handmade. Hugs, Clara.
Posted by: Clara | February 08, 2010 at 01:44 AM
Hello, I am very curieus it is about a year ago that you posted a note.
I really like the patchwork you are doing. I always looked on this blog.
It would be a shame to stop.
Greetings,
A fan from Holland.
Anna
Posted by: anna | May 19, 2010 at 12:35 PM
That quilt is gorgeous. I'd love to have that laying over my couch. My kids would kill it in about two seconds.
Posted by: HVAC contractors | November 23, 2010 at 01:35 PM