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Location Whiplash {Aurifil 2018 August Designer of the Month}

quilt along· quilt pattern· Tutorial

15 Aug

Hello there! It is my pleasure to share with you my story and my block for the Aurifil 2018 Designer of the Month.

Pat (the incomparable Pat Sloan) chose “The Places we Go” as the theme for this year’s design theme and it sure is a fun one. Be sure to keep reading all the way to the end so you don’t miss my fun “Location Whiplash” story, where to find the free PDF of my “Rooftops of Amsterdam” block, and how to enter for a chance to win a Box of Aurifil thread.

Along with the theme, Pat asked that we designers create a 12” x 12” finished block using black and one color. You know I love black and white and I couldn’t escape my love of magenta-purple.

The Places We Go

My block is inspired by my family’s visits to Amsterdam over the course of the last year. We really loved visiting Amsterdam, which was a short drive or train ride away from our door in The Hague. Usually we’d go to the Museumplein where you can find many museums including the Rijks Museum and the Van Gogh museum.

Of course, once you’ve visited the museums you can wander around Amsterdam, get a bite to eat, and enjoy the amazing scenery. One of my favorite parts is all the different rooftops you see on the canal houses.

So I based my design, “Rooftops of Amsterdam”, on one of these canal house rooftop styles. I chose a stair step design to mimic the black rooftops I saw so often in the Netherlands. I’ve also included a window in the design, which is a great place to fussy cut a cute fabric. I really had fun fussy cutting those sweet unicorns. I didn’t add any designs on the white facade, but there’s plenty of room to add your own touch here.

Location Whiplash

Even though my location inspiration is Amsterdam, I just thought the timing of this interview and block was so funny given that we are in the midst of surprise moving back from the Netherlands to the USA.

(I love this picture, but my family doesn’t think it’s that great a picture, but I love it!)

If you’ve followed me since the start then you might know that my family and I left Houston a few years ago to live in St. Louis. About a year ago, we got the opportunity to live abroad in the Netherlands for what was supposed to be three years. But most recently (ahem MOST RECENTLY I DON’T MEAN TO SHOUT BUT LITERALLY LIKE 2 MONTHS AGO ahem) we got the news to move back to Houston. (We are still waiting for our furniture and stuff from Holland!)

So, yes, that’s location whiplash if I ever saw it! Ha!

You can read more about my adventures over on Aurifil’s blog.

Details

  • Over on Aurifil’s website you’ll find my interview with Pat and the free printable PDF of my “Rooftops of Amsterdam” block.
  • You’ll also be able to enter to win the Box of Aurifil Thread. You have until September 14th to enter to win.

Thank you

Thank you to Pat Sloan and Aurifil for having me on the 2018 Design Team. Also thank you for reading and putting up with my location whiplash. Ha!

Have a colorful day!

 

 

Previous Post: « Feathered Star Quilt Along {Weeks 7-8 Quilting and Link Up Party}
Next Post: Announcing Playful Color Month »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Danice says

    August 20, 2018 at 3:50 pm

    ‘Love the block Rebecca, and the story behind it. I have made one and linked-up on the Aurifil blog. ‘Was not aware that you all have moved recently. Happy settling down in Texas.

    • rebeccabryan says

      August 20, 2018 at 10:33 pm

      Thank you!

  2. Angie Terry says

    August 30, 2018 at 6:30 pm

    Great Block! So happy to hear you finally got all of your stuff from Holland. Happy unpacking. ?

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WOULD YOU RATHER... ⬇️ Bind a quilt or vacuum? 🧐 WOULD YOU RATHER... ⬇️

Bind a quilt or vacuum? 🧐

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Don’t get me wrong, I LOVE to sew. 

But sometimes, when you have that one thing to sew that isn’t a part of quilting that gets you super excited, you find everything else to do instead! 

And on this day, it was vacuuming all the rugs in my sewing room. 

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Here’s what I’ve learned after 15+ years of quilti Here’s what I’ve learned after 15+ years of quilting... 🫶

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Quilting doesn’t have to mean:

❌ Marathon sewing sessions
❌ Perfectly matching everything
❌ Fancy tools or silly rules
❌ Finishing an entire quilt before trying something new

It can mean:

✨ Small, doable steps
✨ Using what you already have
✨ Letting the design do the thinking
✨ Finding joy in the process (not just the finish)

If quilting has ever felt “too much,” I promise, there’s another way.

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