Amy Butler's Gypsy Caravan was just being re-printed in 2012 when I started to quilt - how lucky am I. No matter what quilt block I have used - this eclectic collection never disappoints.
Here is how I made the blocks:
Starch and iron fabric - and cut with the Accuquilt 4.5" finished Half Square Triangle die. For each block you need: 12 HST in white and color - and 4 HST in all color.
Layout your block as shown above. It helps to have one handy on a wall for reference. To complete the quilt I just made more half square triangles to fill in the edges.
Aurifil 50wt. Muslin (#2311) on the front and variegated French Lilac (#3840) on the back were my secret weapons for quilting - along with lovely Kona white.
I have had quite the hoard of Gypsy Caravan over the years - and grabbed up enough Turkish Paisley in anticipation of having it for a quilt back one day.
Why it is easier to start a new project than finish old ones - this quilt top was made in 2014. For no real reason it just sat there while I sewed a ton of other quilts! I forgot how big I trimmed the squares, how many triangles to cut ... so many details.
I look forward to the day when my orphan projects are finished and white knuckle it to do only one at a time ... here's hoping anyway :)
Materials:
Gypsy Caravan by Amy Butler
White Kona
Warm & White batting
Aurifil 50wt. #2311 and 3840
Accuquilt 4.5" finished HST die
Size: 62.5" x 81"
February 2017
Rustic chic doesn't get any better than a snowball quilt made with Amy Butler's Gypsy Caravan and real linen.
Linen is so organic & soft after washing, and as always, Gypsy Caravan doesn't disappoint. Amy Butler's patterns & colors harmonize next to each other and the linen adds a natural element.
There are lots of tips for sewing garments with linen but not many on how to make a quilt with it. The biggest caution seems to be a concern with the linen edges unraveling when using a 1/4" seam. Internet advice suggests that sewing with a larger 1/2" seam is a safer option.
Good advice but this was not possible if I wanted my corners to fit into the 'snowball' and not make a distorted block.
A scant 1/4" was my only choice. I pressed my seams open and quilted on them in a grid pattern, as well as through the middle of the snowball using a medium broken zigzag stitch. That way, any stray or loose linen edges are sewn down on the inside - and the seam is really secure.
I did pre-wash in hot water & dry the linen on hot a few times to maximize shrinkage (which was a few inches). This really did tighten up the fabric weave (which was a good thing). Between starch and ironing, the linen did become 'shiny' - but in the end everything looked great after washing.
If you are nervous about how the linen will look in it's final stage - iron and starch a decent sized scrap piece. Throw it in with your hot washes a few times. Afterwards you will see that you really can't ruin this natural fiber and be able to sew with confidence.
The most time/labor portion of this quilt seemed to be in the ironing. Fabric for 528 corners and 132 snowballs needed to be starched/cut/sewn - and ironed again - but the Accuquilt die was fun and the cutting part went quickly.
The end goal was not to make this look like beautiful pressed linen bedding - but a textured quilt worthy of a 'very cool & fancy gypsy caravan."
Materials:
Amy Butler / Gypsy Caravan
Natural Linen IL090 from Fabric-Store.com
Warm & White twin sized batting
Aurifil 50wt. Light Sand 2000 for piecing & quilting
Accuquilt Snowball die
Faultless Starch (lots)
Size: 71"x 83"
February 2015
An urban chic quilt made with applique mustaches in Amy Butler (Gypsy Caravan Turkish Nectarine, Cypress Paisley in Mint) and Riley Blake (slate & granite blender) fabrics. Great applique tips & techniques from Julie at the The Crafty Quilter.
The perfect mustache template is from Leslie at The Seasoned Homemaker (which you can download). I appliqued using a small blanket stitch which wasn't perfect or very dense. Letting some stray threads come through the edge stitching was on purpose to prevent it looking like a patch and a little more rustic.
I enlarged the mustache template to be 6.5" wide (from the fold to tip) and printed it on card stock for easy tracing.
The paisleys are backed with Pellon 906F sheer weight interface, and since only one side is fusible - I used fabric spray to adhere the mustache to the grey fabric panels before stitching.
1 yard of background fabric yielded 6 panels, I needed 21. Each rectangle is cut 18" long by 11" wide before sewing.
The cotton border is Kona cotton in pansy - the binding is Cypress Paisley in Mint from Amy Butler's Love collection.
Appliqued with Gutermann Sew All thread, piecing with Aurifil 50wt. dove grey and quilted in Aurifil French Lilac, which turned out to be a very nice variegated option. The batting is flannel and the back minky dimple dot in lilac, all these from Fabric.com.
I followed the seams the width of the walking foot to start my straight line quilting - and did 2 rows on each side. The mustaches were left alone and this grid pattern worked out fine since minky doesn't need to be quilted as closely together as batting.
Size: 59" x 73"
August 2014
A beautiful chic quilt featuring Amy Butler's Gypsy Caravan, cut with the large Accuquilt tumbler die. 12 tumblers across by 12 rows down with a 3" border on the sides in matching periwinkle.
Binding in periwinkle and backed with vanilla dimple dot minky. The middle layer is JoAnn's bleached muslin, prewashed and all layers spray basted. I usually pin and spray baste - but had success with spray basting only and ironing the layers together, pressing on the cotton top portion and totally avoiding the minkey - it melts!
Quilting was a smaller broken zig zag going across the rows and following the tumbler shapes from top to bottom.
I used Aurifil beige 50 wt. for both the top and bottom with a No. 12 universal needle and it was smooth and consistent.
Size: 57 x 71"
April 2014
