Letting the Fabrics Do All the Talking

We all have them: bundles of fat quarters that we don't know what to do with. They are exciting fabrics but we begin to think that having only a piece 18" x 22" is going to restrict us in what we make. Well, I had this fun FQ bundle of Rumble by Windham Fabrics since 2015!

FQ bundle of Rumble fabrics by Windham

Those lions and tigers and elephants and birds were screeching so loudly last week that I had to pull them off the shelf and start cutting! They told me that they waited enough and it was TIME to Rumble! I was able to make not one, not two, BUT THREE little kids' quilts from the four animal prints, the blenders and some random fabric in my stash.

First, I made a 4 block quilt using an old pattern I made for Quilt Magazine 17 years ago. I altered the center squares so I could get more cuts from the leftovers. The striped border is not from the collection. I quickly realized I didn't like sewing with so many triangles, but I had already cut things out and there was no turning back!

4 Block Rumble quilt: 37" x 37". 13" blocks

Here is a photo of the quilt pattern I copied (my own design, btw).

Parrots in Paradise: 40" x 40"

Next, I was aiming for simple squares to let the fabrics do all the talking. I figured I could get the most use out of the fabrics by cutting 5-1/2" squares. Here's my second quilt:

Four 15" blocks with sashing: 36" x 36"

And the 3rd quilt showed me that my calculations were WRONG! I didn't have any more of the novelty prints to make a 4th block, so I improvised. Three 15" 9-Patch blocks and then strips on the sides of the top block using the last inches of the novelty prints. Added that orange print in the center. The animals do all the talking here and they've stopped roaring at me!

Improvisational Rumble Quilt: 44" x 44"

So, I used all the animal prints, most of the blenders, and some random pieces from my stash. These will be quilted by my local quilting friend and donated to our charity endeavors.

Yes, I sewed these on the weekend. Easy quilts make for a fun time. Now, I'm heading for another set of fat quarters . . .