Zigzag Baby Quilt


Here is my latest quilt and incidentally Bloggers Quilt Festival entry. This is a quilt I started making on a whim a couple weeks ago. When I was at the Paducah Quilt Show I stopped by the Moda Bake Shop booth and they gave out little packs of 2 1/2 inch squares---I'm not sure if there is a name for these--don't most of Moda's pre-cuts have dessert names? Mini layer cake? No...it should be a diet layer cake! ;) Anyway, they were 2 1/2 inch squares from the line California Girl by Fig Tree Quilts. My first thought was, "Yay! Free fabric...how cute!" and my second thought was, "What the heck am I going to do with just forty-two 2 1/2 inch squares?" Thinking I probably wouldn't really be able to use them, I let my girls play with them on the ride home...and they had a great time...scattering them all over the car. Once we got back to Minnesota there were several quilts I needed to start working on, but I kept looking at that little pile of squares...trying to figure out what I could possibly make with them...this is what I ended up with:


I had been wanting to make some type of zigzag quilt for a while but I just hadn't gotten around to it. So I decided to cut my squares in half and arrange them into a couple of zigzags on a (surprise!) white background. I knew piecing the zigzags was out...unless I wanted my finished quilt to be microscopic. So I opted to applique the triangles to the single piece of background fabric. I first drew some guide lines with a water-soluble pen and then laid out the triangles. For the applique, I wanted to try something new.


While at the show I bought some Bo-Nash bonding agent (it's fusible powder). I had heard great things about it for repairing holes in quilt tops, but after seeing the demo at the show I was excited to try it for applique...I hoped it would be a quick and easy way to stick the triangles down before sewing. Once I figured out how to shake it on without the powder going everywhere, it did work like a charm! To make applying the powder easier, I folded a piece of paper in half, dumped a little of the powder in the crease and then used that to shake it into the space where I wanted it...that made it easier to control how much was applied and where it went. After I ironed it all down I stitched around everything with a blanket stitch.


When the top was all done, I decided it needed a cute matching back since the front was so simple. So I ordered this pretty aqua print from the line for the backing, and one of the green prints for the binding. Good job, Moda...your marketing is obviously very effective--you got me to buy more fabric I was never planning on buying! ;) 


For the quilting on this one I planned on just doing this zigzag all over...I got a new right angle ruler at Paducah that I was dying to try out...and this was the perfect quilt for it. I drew some guidelines, but somehow it got a little crazy --some of the zigs and zags were different widths in a couple places. I'm still not sure exactly where I went wrong-- it isn't super obvious, but next time I will have to be a little more careful! The right angle ruler made it a snap though, it is my new favorite ruler!


Once this quilt was all finished, I congratulated myself on killing like 3 or 4 birds with one stone...I used the little squares, tried out the fusible powder, tested my new ruler, used a good excuse to buy more fabric...oh yeah and made a baby quilt that really needed to be done. That's like 5 birds with one stone! Yay! This quilt is going to be gifted to one of the six people I know who are pregnant with baby girls right now! Fun, fun! 

Now, as always, check out all the amazing quilts at the Blogger's Quilt Festival! 

Amy's Creative Side

44 comments

  1. "Unless I wanted my finished quilt to be microscopic" You kill me, Cynth! Why could I not get your funny genes? Way to kill lots of birds with one...um...quilt. :)

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  2. I absolutely love this! It is the perfect fabric for a baby quilt and the way that you have quilted it is ideal! Dare I say that I now need to add this to my list too? So nicely done.

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  3. I have a stack of Chocolat Moda mini squares that came with a pattern. Now I know what to do with them. Your great ideas never fail to impress me!

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  4. Wow, aren't you the smart girl! Wonderful quilt!
    glen

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  5. What a great idea. I love this quilt. Sound eazy enought to make and turns out great. Your quilting is great too.

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  6. Another wonderful quilt for an incredibly lucky baby! It looks fantastic and I love the idea of appliqueing the triangles instead of piecing! The zig-zag quilting makes the quilt look even better.

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  7. Your little zig zag quilt looks wonderful! I really like that fabric collection. FFun story how this little quilt came about too.

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  8. Cute! Great "learning new things" project. Thanks for the tips on appliqué.

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  9. I'm so in love with minimalist, modern quilts--and what a smart use of applique! Love it.

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  10. It's a beautiful quilt! I love how you followed the zig zag design with the quilting.

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  11. Really beautiful! Love your fabric choices!

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  12. I think I read that these moda 2 1/2" stacks are called candies! And I love what you did with them! Inspired!

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  13. Hi Cynthia, like your choice of colors...very beautiful!

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  14. your quilt is way cool!

    Check out my blog if you can...

    Margaret Gunn
    www.quiltsoflove.blogspot.com

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  15. I love all the wee stories behind this quilt. So clever to use those tiny pieces, I wouldn't have thought of appliquéd zigzags. And there's nothing wrong with white! Juliex

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  16. Love it! What a great use for those little packs. I've heard them called petit fours. That is such a beautiful baby quilt.

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  17. This is a lovely quilt and a great post telling about it. Lucky you to go to Paducah. And that bonding powder sounds intriguing. Thanks for sharing.

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  18. Love your use of white space on this pretty little quilt. I've never heard of bonding powder. Learn something new everyday. Nice blog and wonderful quilt designs.

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  19. This quilt is beautiful...very modern and classic at the same time. Love the California Girl fabric too!

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  20. I really need to get back up to speed on my quilting projects after seeing all the stuff you have accomplished lately!! This one is so simply cute;)
    Happy Quilting!!

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  21. Another home run Cynthia...Love it!

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  22. Wow, the simplicity is so perfect!

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  23. Letting the creative juices flow yet again Cynthia!Cute quilt. I am back from MQS-awesome time. And I am working on a modern table runner!

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  24. What a great idea! I love the bright crispness. Beautiful!

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  25. Love this quilt!!! Fairly new to your blog but will visit often! I would love to make this quilt only slightly bigger. Can you give me some basic instructions, or is there any kind of pattern?

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  26. One more thing..what is the name of the right angle ruler? Sounds like I need to get one!

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  27. The zig zag quilting looks so lovely with these pretty fabrics.

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  28. love the simplicity... sometimes we can over think things a bit! The quilting is nice too ;)

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  29. Beautiful! The quilting really makes the zigzag of fabrics stand out. That will be one lucky baby girl!

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  30. love this quilt. zigzags floating on the sea of white and your quilting is lovely, too. thanks for sharing and have a great day

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  31. Awesome! The zigzag design is simple but amazing, with such pretty fabric. I love the print you used on the back, too. Great story about how you put it all together!

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  32. Love your quilt, just voted for it....good luck. I also became your follower so I can see what else you share.

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  33. Too many great quilts to see them all!
    Now that it's been narrowed down, you got my vote!!
    I love that you solved the dilemma of what to do with the tiniest of pieces!!
    (And forget what those tiny 2 1/2" pieces are but they were just released, is what I understood. Lucky you!

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  34. The 2 1/2" pieces are usually called mini charms.

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  35. Cynthia! I guess I didn't get to see this one before you left. I love it so much! Great job.

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  36. I just found your blog, and I love your quilts! I'm curious on this one--did you trim off the pinked edges from the pre-cuts on this one before you appliqued/blanket stitched?

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  37. I stumbled upon this tutorial via pinterest and had to give it a shot instantly. :)
    Wonderful idea!

    http://greta-sushi.blogspot.se/2014/07/easy-peasy-zigzag.html

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  38. Great use of the mini charms. I hadn't thought of that. Thank you for the inspiration.

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