Quilting the Quilt: Quilting design ideas (Part II)

In the previous issue of Love of Quilting, I showed you how to use motifs from fabrics to create quilting designs. Now I’ll show you how to use those designs you’ve found hidden in your fabric.

Have you ever thought about using the motifs in fabrics to create your own quilting designs? In my previous article, I showed you how to use floral, novelty, and baby print fabrics to trace designs. (See Quilt Yourself a Garden in the May/June 2014 issue of Love of Quilting). In this article, I’ll show you how to use those designs on your quilts.

If you’re a longarm quilter, you can choose to draw design elements on long paper rolls to create your own unique pantographs. I’ve traced a few butterflies onto paper to show you how, turning the butterflies in different directions to make them more random. Of course, once you trace your first butterfly you can enlarge it using a copy machine if the original fabric design is too small. Then use the newly-sized drawing to trace additional shapes onto your paper. Add the single individual elements first so that you can place them where you want them. Then connect the designs using your favorite method such as loops, swirls, or other meandering methods.

Read the rest of the Quilting the Quilt article.