Laura's Math Quilt

Ack! I can't stand how much I love how this quilt turned out! This is the first time I've ever gotten the chance to do an edge-to-edge "orange peel" pattern. I use this motif a lot, in 9-patch blocks or various places in custom quilting projects. But never have I gotten to work on a quilt that lent itself so well to using orange peel (aka "continuous curve") as an all-over design.

This quilt pattern is called "Strip Plus", and it was created by GE Designs. It came to me from my client, Lisa, who brought me her "Owls Quilt" a few weeks ago. When she picked up that finished quilt, she brought her teenage daughter, Laura, with her, and they dropped off another quilt. This time, it was LAURA's quilt. She picked all the fabrics herself (a smart-cookie math enthusiast, she is!) and chose the placement of every one of the plus signs. As Lisa said, "Thank goodness for design walls!"

Of course, each plus sign in the quilt is just a simple 9-patch block. That means it's already perfect for putting an orange peel in. I typically do continuous curves free-hand. No stencils, no rulers, and no marking, if I can help it. In this piece, there were a few blocks in the each row that were just a large empty square, so I did have to add just a few registration marks throughout the quilt top. But for the most part, I was able to curve my way through, going from one corner to the next, connecting them with gentle curves.

This quilt was like meditation, I think. It was so methodical and calm and orderly and free-from-thought. I unplugged by brain and let it just flow out of me. And I think it turned out great! I love the play between the curves and the points. The roundedness of the curves - they almost look like interlocking circles - has a great juxtaposition against the straight lines of the squares throughout the piece.

Thanks for letting me work on your beloved quilt, Laura. It was a joy!

My quilting is all free-motion, hand-guided on an APQS longarm quilting machine.