Island Batik November Challenge & Blog Hop

Welcome to Day One of the Island Batik's November 2021 Blog Hop - Storm at Sea.

The November Challenge for Island Batik required that we make a Storm at Sea quilt, lap size or larger, using the Summer 2021 Fabric bundle. I received the collection Bellingham Bay - designed by Deb Tucker’s Studio 180 Design.

Bellingham Bay

Those of you who know me know that these are not my favorite colors. I find them dark and depressing.  Guess this was an added dimension to the challenge.  

I turned to EQ8 to mock-up the color combinations to come up with a suitable design. After a few iterations, I chose this one and tried to replicate it. 

I used regular piecing to make the square in square blocks and used freezer paper piecing to make the diamonds.

Practice Blocks

Choosing Fabrics

Choosing Fabrics

Work in Progress

Coming together

Almost there

I received in my Island Batik Box a Cotton Wool blend batting measuring 60" square and it was the perfect size for this quilt.

Hobbs Batting - Cotton Wool Blend

A skinny grey border was added to protect the delicate points. A dark green binding completed the picture.

The quilt finished at 58" square and I took lots of pictures. Here are a few of them.

Finished!!!

Detail

Almost Perfect Points :-)

Challenge Met

Beautiful Day

Contrast Backdrop

Since it was a beautiful fall day, I tried to capture the bright foliage and the warmth of the autumn sun.

 

Bright Foliage Backdrop

Quilting Detail

I was surprised when Paul asked for the completed quilt.

Me: You like this?
Paul: Absolutely.
Me: Why?
Paul: It reminds me of one of my  games - The Invisible Sun.
Me: You just named the quilt.

Paul: So may I have it?

Me: Yes, you may.

I am so glad that Paul likes it.  To be honest (and humble), I like it too.  It is not my usual color palette (cheerful, playful, energizing, bright and happy) but it conveys peacefulness and an introspective vibe. 

The Invisible Sun

One thing is certain - If it wasn't for the Island Batik challenge I would not have worked with this palette and would not have discovered the potential of these colors to create an almost meditative quality.  What do you think?

I will be sharing with all my favorite linky parties. See full list on the sidebar.

Disclosure: The fabrics, thread, batting and needles were generously supplied by the following companies:

The full list of Ambassadors’ names, collections they will be using in their projects, and their post dates are as follows:

November 1:

Gail Sheppard, Quilting Gail 

Preeti Harris, Sew Preeti Quilts

November 2:

Pamela Boatright, Pamela Quilts

Jane Hauprich, Stitch by Stitch Custom Quilting

November 3:

Denise Looney, For the Love of Geese

Megan Best, Bestquilter

November 4:

Gail Renna, Quilt Haven Threads

Claudia Porter, Create with Claudia

November 5:

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 1 and Giveaway

November 8:

Mania Hatzioannidi, Mania for Quilts

Jennifer Fulton, Inquiring Quilter

November 9:

Joanne Hart, Unicorn Harts

Connie Kauffman, Kauffman Designs

Jennifer Eubank, Archipelago Quilting

November 10:

Jennifer Thomas, Curlicue Creations

Janet Yamamoto, Whispers of Yore

November 11:

Emily Leachman, The Darling Dogwood

Maryellen McAuliffe, Mary Mack Made Mine

November 12:

Blog Hop Round-Up Week 2 and Giveaway

November 15:

Elizabeth DeCroos, Epida Studio

Andi Stanfield, True Blue Quilts

November 16:

Brianna Roberts, Sew Cute and Quirky

Michelle Roberts, Creative Blonde

November 17:

Sally Manke, Sally Manke Fiber Artist

Leah Malasky, Quilted Delights

Suzy Webster, Websterquilt 

November 18:

End of Blog Hop and Total Round-Up

To celebrate the start of Storm at Sea Blog Hop, Island Batik is giving away a 2.5″ Strip Pack and a 10″ Stack of Bellingham Bay – a gorgeous premiere Original Island Batik collection, designed by Deb Tucker’s Studio 180 Design!