No Ugly Fabrics

Another quilt that started with a pile of “lesser loved” fabrics - a bag of fabrics gifted to me secondhand, headed for the local thrift. Except on a fateful day, I wanted to play. No expectations, no plan, but how not to “waste the good stuff”. There’s no risk if you were already planning on getting rid of it anyway, right?

Slashing ~2.5” strips from the red/pink fabrics and sewing improv 4-patch rectangles from the cool colored fabrics, this 16-patch wonky rectangular checker block emerged framed in red. I added pops of yellow and citron on the joined corners for interest once the 30 blocks were pieced. Though I had auditioned other designs to create another level of interest.

Piecing the blocks together was a challenge and I had areas on the edge with overhang or diagonals, but this was a part of the charachter - so I left those edges to be bound as they were. It took me months to hand-quilt small baptist fan shapes all over the throw-size top with thrifted polyester yarn-like thread.

Truly a lesson in learning to accept the things you may not like at first, attempting to find the story for them and understand them better. Allowing them to shine in their own way. Being curious about the things you shy away from instead of dismissing them. There are no ugly fabrics.