#72 Falling for Alex

I finished my December One Monthly Goal!

A few weeks ago, I finished up my scrappy Minion quilt for the son of a high school friend. They lost their home to fire on election night. Just before I was going to ship it to her, I learned that she had a daughter, too! I didn't want to send only one quilt, so I looked for a pattern that a 13-year-old would like, and that I could put together quickly so that the kids could receive their quilts before Christmas. 

I landed on this pattern, called Scattered, by Allison of Cluck Cluck Sew.  It's featured in the book, Modern Quilts from the Blogging Universe. I saw the version Trish of Notes of Sincerity made on Pinterest and I was sold. (As a side note, Jenny Doan of Missouri Star Quilt Company has a similar pattern called Falling Triangles. I took my name for this quilt from hers).

Source

I wanted this to be a colorful, happy quilt. Being a teen is hard. Being a teen dealing with a home fire is harder. She needs some happy.

I found the pretty backing fabric first, then pulled the white, orange, teal, lime green, and hot pink prints from my stash. 

I only needed seven or eight of each print, so I made all eight at a time. I put the extra in my "oops quilt" bin. That is going to be one crazy quilt...once I start it! As always, I am grateful for my rotating cutting mat when I trim triangles. 

Ready for white strips.

I love that this quilt went together quickly, but still ended up being one of my favorites. I will be making another version for my quilting guild for sure. 

Time to play with my stack of blocks.

I wasn't exactly sure how I wanted to lay out my blocks until I was able to play with layouts with the finished blocks. I considered arranging the colors diagonally and alternating two colors per row. I liked the look of the latter better, but my prints of each color repeated on the even numbered rows. By adding another column and row, I was able to get arrangement I wanted.

The piecing went together quickly and it was time to make  sandwich. It was the first chance to see the top with the backing (Paradise All Over Flower) and I just love how it looks together.

I used simple straight line quilting. I intended to do vertical lines in a nod to the name of the quilt, but alas, I was halfway done when I realized I was quilting horizontally.

As it turned out, I liked the look of the lines this way, too.

At some point, I will get comfortable with free motion, but I have to say, I love the clean, modern look of straight line quilting.

For the binding, I used the same colorful print as the backing.

I completed the quilt with a clean label showing a block from the quilt. 

The  best part of making a quilt--other than being able to deliver it in person--is watching my son product test each one and fill it with his love before we pray over it.

I love seeing my boys snuggled under a quilt I made. D got a new Bible and devotional for his birthday. I look forward to seeing his faith deepen as he continues to study God's word.

I'm so happy I was able to finish both quilts and get them on their way so Colton and Alex will have them for Christmas. It has taken my dad and stepmom such a long time to get back on their feet after their house fire. I hope these quilts bring a little joy to Colton and Alex at the end of a hard year.

If you are looking for a way to spread a little holiday cheer, please consider making a small donation to the Dillon family's Go Fund Me page.

To see more pictures of this quilt in progress, look for  #FallingForAlex  on Instagram. If you'd like to see what I'm currently working on, follow me at de Jong Dream House.

Linked to:

OMG Finish Link Up @ Elm Street Quilts
Craftastic Monday @ Sew Can Do

Tweety Loves Quilting

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