Fancy Fox Quilt - Retro Style (#46)

I loved making Elizabeth Hartman's Fancy Fox Quilt with Riley Blake Shades (here) - but it was time for a whole different look and feel: beautiful coordinating  Retro 30's Child Smile from Lecien was perfect.

It took a while before I settled on these medium to small colorful prints from Lecien - I had my heart set on the 'Joie De Vivre in Beryl' by Frances Newcombe and Essex black yarn dyed linen. 

After making a few blocks, I felt the large floral design distracted from the simple beauty of the fox face. 

Fabrics like this lavender Dot to Dot Mixmaster (Robert Kaufman) look great however, as do cross hatch and burlap textured looking cottons from Carolyn Friedlander, Timeless Treasures & other manufacturers.  

1.5" sashing in Essex denim linen was sewn around every side of the fox block and trimmed to 8x10" unfinished, not much waste at all.

Lots of ironing & starching made the cotton & linen easy to handle - and using a scant 1/4" seam is a must with the different fabric weights. All seams are ironed open.

All piecing & quilting was done using Aurifil 50wt. Dove #2600.  A wavy serpentine stitch follows the larger seams, and the wavy stitch again into a 3" diagonal diamond pattern overall. I changed needles twice to keep everything sharp and the thread worked beautifully through the heavier Essex linen and the delicate backing. 

Not being a free motion quilter, following the seams and doing a grid pattern looks rather simple when compared to intricate FM designs that add lots of pizzazz.  But, every time that Aurifil looks so consistent as it sinks into any weight of fabric - I do a happy dance.

Lastly, a nice binding is this Hatch Basic in Graphite by Timeless Treasures - not heavy looking like a flat black but dark enough with a hint of texture.

There are 64 foxes so a 4" border all around allows them space to float and not run into the edges.  A beautiful rainbow of foxes made with a fun pattern that works every time.

Materials:

Retro 30's Child Smile Spring 2015/ 2.5" sushi roll / Lecien

Essex Yarn Dyed Linen in denim (Robert Kaufman)
Far Far Away 2 (Unicorns in Blue) / Heather Ross
Hatch Basic Graphite /Timeless Treasures (binding)
Fancy Fox Quilt Pattern by Elizabeth Hartman

Aurifil 50wt. Dove #2600 & Medium Grey #1158

Warm & White batting

Size: 65" x 81"

December 2015