Island Batik Modern Quilt Challenge

The May challenge for Island Batik Ambassadors was to make modern quilts with the new fabric collections.

This is my quilt, but be sure to check out the quilts by all the other Island Batik Ambassadors. Also check out the Island Batik blog for a chance to win fabric from the new collections.

The fabric collection I got to work with is called Poetic License. It is a nice range of colours, a bit more muted than a lot of the Island Batik collections. It is designed by Bella Nonna.

My style is usually more traditional, but I do like the look of modern quilts. I decided to make my quilt using my pattern “Memories of Korea“.

This quilt pattern was inspired by the designs in pojagi (traditional Korean patchwork). Often pojagi is pieced improvisationally, with pieces joined randomly as you go.

I enjoy the look of improv piecing, but I really struggle to do it. I find it very difficult to randomly sew pieces without overthinking, and I want it to look balanced in the end.

The Memories of Korea pattern is a perfect improv pattern for people like me. It is improv piecing, but it has some structure. I call it controlled improv piecing.

Each block is made individually, but with the same pieces. This will give the overall quilt balance because the same pieces are used throughout the quilt.

The pieces are sorted into groups and then the groups are pieced randomly. So rather than having 100 pieces to layout, you only have 5 pieces at a time to lay out. By eliminating a lot of the decisions, it removes some of the stress and makes it easier.

Each block is totally unique, but you can tell they belong together.

To finish the quilt, I used a decorative stitch in straight lines. The curves in the quilting contrast with all the straight lines in the piecing.

For the back, I used some of the leftover fabric from the top. If you don’t think the front qualifies as a “modern quilt”, the back definitely qualifies.

It was fun to piece the back and have a double sided quilt, but it took a long time for me to decide on a design. It was the same old problem of trying to overthink it rather than just going for it.

If you like the look of improv quilting, but are overwhelmed by looking at a pile of fabric and don’t know how to start, the Pojagi Inspiration quilt might be a good option for you.

Get the Memories of Korea pattern

Thanks to Island Batik for providing all the beautiful fabric used in this quilt, and the other industry sponsors for providing, batting, thread and needles.

See other variations of the Pojagi Inspiration quilt: