Ducks in a Row with Wild and Free {Finish!}

Hi all!

I’m super thrilled to show off this most recent finish of mine. The pattern is Ducks in a Row from my book, Modern Rainbow.

As you can see, I put a different spin on this version. One, it’s not rainbow. Two, it’s not in any sort of order; it’s just random. I wanted to play with the fabrics without assigning them any particular order. When Maureen Cracknell sent me a fat quarter bundle of her Wild & Free fabric, I knew this pattern would be perfect for her fabric.

Maureen is such an inspiration to many of us (me included!). She’s an amazingly talented artist and quilter. Her Wild & Free fabrics are a beautiful extension of her work and artistry. The fabrics are imaginative but summer-earthy and feels silky soft because it’s Art Gallery. It nearly feels like voile!

Maureen takes the most stunning pictures of her quilts. I’d really like to challenge myself to be more deliberate in choosing the settings for my pictures. I love the new place I’m living (west of St. Louis) – the setting here is just gorgeous. There is a multitude of places to take great shots – I just need to “get out there”. 🙂 Right now,  all of a sudden the outdoors have exploded in green and I’m captivated with how lush and alive everything looks.

I’ve always thought that the “Ducks in a Row” pattern perfect for a little dude, my little guy to be more precise. My rainbow version didn’t quite suite his 4-year-old taste (he’s all trucks and baseball and mud) so I’ve been wanting to make a version just for him. He took one look at the print with the arrows and laid claim to the quilt. “Oh mom, that’s my new quilt! Yep. That’s my quilt”

I couldn’t resist adding the picture of him claiming it – with his dirty little boy feet. My heart!

To give you an idea of what I did for this version, I just used the “Tall” templates from the book. I started with generously sized fat quarters of each fabric from the Wild and Free fabric. From each fat quarter (there were 8) I was able to cut at least 3 of each template, even with the 2-directional prints.  So I had about 12 “Ducks” from each fabric. After I completed the quilt top, I even had a few “Ducks” leftover.

The quilt top goes together easily enough. It’s not too big a deal, but you have to be a little careful sewing because you’re sewing on the bias of the fabric, especially for pieces that are narrow. For the quilting, I wanted to keep it simple and functional. I started with plain ole’ straight line quilting. The loose straight lines felt right for this quilt. Once my little man laid claim to the quilt, I decided to add some hand quilting to make it more personal and special. The right gold and navy blue perle threads just happened to be available to me – thanks to one of those Aurifil promotional thread packages.

This version of “Ducks in a Row” finished at about 62” wide and is about 73” long.  It’s backed in that blue, plaid print. Perfect for my growing little boy – he’s almost grown too tall for his baby quilt.

Don’t you love it when a little person claims a quilt you’re working on? It warms this mama’s heart. 🙂

Big thanks to Maureen for the fabric!!