The Forget-me-not quilt is a celebration of the versatility of the humble nine-patch...and you know how much I love a nine-patch. Now, making it was not without its tribulations - I wrote all about that here - but the resulting quilt has a freshness that reminded me of it's namesake.
So, basically, it's the perfect project for spring and both PDF and Paper Forget-me-not Patterns are £5 throughout March. You can try out colour schemes with a free downloadable colouring sheet here and share your colour schemes - and fabric pulls - on Instagram using the hashtag #colouringquilts
1. As well as the Layer Cake option, the pattern can also be made as a two-coloured version which combines a linen background with a fresh blue and white motif for a classic, coastal feel...
The added depth and interest of linen fabric would add to that 'Cape Cod' feeling. But if, like me, you love the look of linen fabric but prefer the ease of sewing with cotton my two favourite linen-look printed fabrics are both called Linen Texture:
Moda designers French General always include a Linen Texture in their collections in their trademark gentle, faded colours (shown left);
For a more extensive range of colours, there are sixty shades of Makower's Linen Textures, although I find the natural colours to be missing the slightly cooler tone of real linen.
2. My second scheme is to combine that same linen background with your favourite Layer Cake, which emphasises the 'petals' of the block rather than the centre, giving it a softer look...
I made my original Forget-me-not quilt in an older Bonnie & Camille collection, for Moda, called Miss Kate.
B&C collections always include their trademark reds and aquas and often navy and a linen-coloured neutral.
Their new collection, Smitten (right), is in shops now and could be paired with a linen texture, a small-scale neutral print or a solid: the cool-toned Moda Bella Solid in Etchings Stone (178) is a good match for B&C collections.
But your favourite Layer Cake would be perfect too.
3. Finally, you could opt for something all together more delicate by pairing two shades of blue, giving the block the lovely, lacy effect of two motifs overlapping...
Liberty has a beautiful new collection of quilting cottons called Hesketh House which has some wonderful saturated blues.
The photo, left from Doughty's website, includes the Marigold print - middle of the right-hand stack - which inspired my scheme.
Liberty have recoloured some of their iconic prints as blenders. Wiltshire is one of my favourites - shown here in blue - and there's a creamy white colourway in last autumn's Orchard Garden collection.
Patterned blenders also make a lovely alternative to solid fabrics.
And as spring is just around the corner, let's have a moment to enjoy the flower itself...
That's better.
Nicola xx