Wednesday, July 24, 2013

WIP Wednesday - Scrappy Star Pillow Top


Awhile ago I was working at my local quilt shop when I broke down and bought a half yard of the Architextures gear fabric.  I had no real plans for the fabric but I have been in love with it since I first saw it and knew I wanted to use it with some bright colors.  Well, while I was working on quilting my sun quilt I suddenly had the urge to take a break from the quilting and use that fabric to make a throw pillow.

Hand drawn templates still on their fabrics with 1/4" seam allowances
The pillow was to have an 8-point star on it inspired by the sun on the quilt (which is also an 8-point star).  I started by drawing a 20" square on some paper and drawing the design the size I wanted.  From there the drawing was cut up and and used as a template for cutting out my pieces leaving an extra 1/4" all the way around for seam allowances. 


This pattern I created ended up being slightly more complicated to put together than my sun quilt because it had Y-seams (I think that is what they are called).  I have never actually done a Y-seam before but I had a general idea on how the process works and the sewing went quite smoothly all things considered.  

The top of this pillow was definitely a challenge for me but at the same time really fun to create (and a scrap buster)!  I plan on making more pillows and possibly, if I have enough positive feedback, writing a pattern for it (if anyone would interested in testing it let me know).  

Linking up with WIP Wednesday @ Freshly Pieced


WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced

Hope you are having a lovely week full of sewing!

Elise
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26 comments:

  1. noga quiltsJuly 24, 2013 at 5:22 AM

    Beautiful pillow top! the rainbow colors and the architecture fabric (love it! are a wonderful combination.

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  2. IzzyJuly 24, 2013 at 5:45 AM

    Gorgeous! I love the bright colours against that background. Perfection!

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  3. Kelly @ My Quilt InfatuationJuly 24, 2013 at 5:50 AM

    this is a really beautiful pillow top! I love the color, and that gear fabric is so cute with it!

    :) Kelly @ My Quilt Infatuation

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  4. Adventurous QuilterJuly 24, 2013 at 6:10 AM

    That is gorgeous! What beautiful fabric choices:)

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  5. Erin @ Once Upon a DonkeyJuly 24, 2013 at 6:11 AM

    Beautiful! You are right - the gears with the brights works so well. Love the 8 point star too.

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  6. JuliaJuly 24, 2013 at 6:22 AM

    I love your rainbow star and the gears are a fabulous backdrop.

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  7. AnonymousJuly 24, 2013 at 6:39 AM

    Beautiful! Love how the colors POP!

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  8. shilsenbeckJuly 24, 2013 at 6:50 AM

    This is lovely. String pieced points are beautiful and add a nice understated complexity. Looks like you got it assembled great. Getting all the points to match, and the entire top to lay flat is no mean feat.

    I gather you drew the design on freezer paper, cut apart, ironed onto back of target fabrics or string pieced chunks, cut with 1/4" seam allowances, and then sewed back together. Brilliant. If so, this a hugely versatile technique that you can use to make very complex designs. One trick I learned from Ruth McDowell (she has developed this method of piecing to a high art) is to add lots of registration tick marks across the seams with colored pencils, before you cut things apart. The ticks really help with getting things set back together.

    Thanks for sharing this beautiful piece.

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  9. sherryJuly 24, 2013 at 7:40 AM

    nice rainbow star

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  10. AnonymousJuly 24, 2013 at 11:31 AM

    Wow. Your work is so neat. The back of my blocks never ever look this good.

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  11. BethJuly 24, 2013 at 11:38 AM

    That pillow is gorgeous. love the background with those bright colors. I also checked out the sun quilt and that is beautiful!

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  12. KarenJuly 24, 2013 at 4:13 PM

    Great pillow! I love Architextures, must get my hands on some! Well done on the Y seams, it all looks very neat! :-)

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  13. ElizabethJuly 24, 2013 at 4:42 PM

    WOW! Beautiful work! I'd be interested in your tutorial if you do one. I dropped in through your link on the WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

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  14. Marjorie's Busy CornerJuly 24, 2013 at 4:52 PM

    Now that is an eye catching pillow!!

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  15. Terry Aske Art QuiltsJuly 24, 2013 at 4:56 PM

    Gorgeous! I'm not fond of Y-seams either. It looks like you did a great job on them!

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  16. Karen @ Pieces of ContentmentJuly 24, 2013 at 8:11 PM

    You have done a fantastic job of your design and fabric choices. It will certainly complement your star quilt well too.

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  17. CathyJuly 24, 2013 at 9:07 PM

    Beautiful!

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  18. Sarah @ mila+cuatroJuly 25, 2013 at 12:33 AM

    Looks great, I love the middle photo.

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  19. Shayla AlyseJuly 25, 2013 at 7:16 AM

    It turned out beautiful! I finally broke down and got some Architextures fabric not too long ago too! I love it with all the bright fabrics. Thanks for the beautiful inspiration.

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  20. Lorna McMahonJuly 25, 2013 at 10:33 PM

    WOW! You surprised me! That is one gorgeous pillow block. I was having that kind of day today too, but resisted the urge to quit quilting and create. I only let myself do the drawing part and got back to quilting. If you would like a pattern tester, I am game for it, Elise!

    Lorna:)
    http://sewfreshquilts.blogspot.com

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  21. Lorna McMahonJuly 25, 2013 at 10:46 PM

    Me again... Hope you don't mind, but I just had to share this to my facebook page with a link back, at http://facebook.com/sewfreshquilts

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  22. Quilting TangentJuly 26, 2013 at 5:59 AM

    Love the rainbow colors.

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  23. ChristaQuiltsJuly 26, 2013 at 10:22 AM

    Ooh - I love all that color!

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  24. Michelle@factotum-of-arts.comJuly 26, 2013 at 12:59 PM

    Gorgeous star. Love it.

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  25. Katie July 26, 2013 at 1:35 PM

    love all your color -- new follower

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  26. JulieJuly 26, 2013 at 2:40 PM

    Looks perfect!!

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