Kaleidoscope Quilt

 Hey there!  Today I want to share a really fun,

scrappy quilt I finished recently - my Kaleidoscope quilt!

I started with a bunch of random fat quarters from my stash...

And turned them into this finished quilt top!

The pattern I used is a free paper-piecing pattern called Kaleidoscope

by Sharon Holland.  Click HERE for the link.

I'm a HUGE fan of Sharon's work.  

She designs fabric for Art Gallery Fabrics and I swoon over

everything she creates!  Her Instagram feed is gorgeous and inspiring 

so be sure to check her out at @sharonhollanddesigns.

Sharon's Kaleidoscope pattern is for a mini quilt that finishes at 27-1/2" x 27-1/2"

(a 4 x 4 block layout).  The pattern has complete instructions and diagrams

 so it's a great project to practice the technique of paper-piecing.

The steps are repetitive and the project is small

so I highly recommend this for any paper-piecing newbie out there!

I LOVE paper piecing so I decided to make my Kaleidoscope quilt bigger 

with a 12 x 12 layout.  My quilt finishes at about 78" x 78". 

Because I multiplied the number of blocks to make by 9

I also multiplied the required background fabric by 9.

I had a LOT left over (I think I bought about 11 yards!) but unfortunately,

I don't remember how much was left over so I can't recommend 

how much to buy for this size quilt.  So sorry friends!

I started this project in February 2022 so I was thrilled

to get the quilt top finished just over a year later, in March of 2023.

A reminder that not every quilt comes together in just a few days

(like it sometimes seems on Instagram!)

I had the hardest time deciding on backing and binding fabrics

but I finally ended up with this rusty orange stripe for the binding.

It's called Morning Ray #187 by Edyta Sitar for Andover Fabrics.

The aqua floral backing (that you can see peeking out in the photo below)

is #9874 by Giucy Giuce for Andover Fabrics.

They don't really go together but the quilt is so scrappy that I don't mind.

Do you see the cute little heart that my quilter

Jen Ostler quilted into the design?  If you've been

around long enough, you know that she always quilts

an extra little shape into the quilt for the quilt recipient to find.  It's

a fun little game of hide and seek!

Jen used the Swivel Circles pantograph on my quilt and I love it!

A few friends joined me in this endeavor so I hope to get a 

picture of all of us with our Kaleidoscope quilts someday.

It was a fun project and I'm really happy

it's done so I can enjoy the finished quilt now!

Thanks for stopping by today!

I hope you feel inspired.

Let me know if you have any questions!