These Appliqué Quilts are Positively Blooming!

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Each year it seems like summer flies by faster and faster! I can’t quite believe Labor Day weekend has already come and gone.

In an attempt to extend this season of sun, swimming, and barbeques, I’ve decided to make a quilt to remind me of those long summer days I adore so much. After considering quilts featuring everything from sea dwellers to sunny landscapes, I finally narrowed my project plan down to a floral appliqué quilt.

Since I’ve not appliquéd in quite a while, I’m a little apprehensive about committing to using this technique to make a large quilt so I’m opting for a wall quilt. Now I just have to choose one that embodies the spirit of the season so I can be reminded of the bright summer sun all year long. Here are the three I’m looking choosing from:

First Bloom Quilt

This darling quilt designed by Dana Michelle is the smallest of the wall quilts that have made it to my final three measuring 29” x 23”. The design reminds me of late May when the lilacs are just beginning to bloom in Colorado. The way the purple of the flower is picked up in the background and then makes subtle appearances in the blue batik border makes me think of the sweet smell of the flowers wafting through the summer air. This, like the other two quilts, is created using a fusible appliqué technique. The simpler motif and size of this quilt should make it faster to complete, estimated by our friends at Keepsake Quilting to take just two weekends.

Iris Quilt

Next in size and design detail is the Iris Quilt designed by Melinda Bula measuring 27” x 33”. Talk about a stunning quilt! This quilt also uses a selection of batiks to create the flower that pops right off of the black background of the quilt. Although this quilt would take longer to make, the quilt design is spectacular and the kit comes with laser precut fusible appliqué pieces. That sounds like something I may not be able to live without if I want to finish this appliqué quilt before next summer.

Zinnia Bouquet Quilt

Last, but certainly not least, is the Zinnia Bouquet Quilt also designed by Melinda Bula. This is the largest and most intricate of my top three, but gosh isn’t it gorgeous? This floral wall quilt finishes at 41” x 43” and the kit also includes the convenient laser cute appliqué pieces. Those precuts make it easy for the zinnias each have such dimension in their petals and centers and they are perfectly set off by the foliage and dark background.

I realize decisiveness is not my strong suit. All three are gorgeous quilts that will look great in my living room, but I’m just not sure which I should get. Which is your favorite? Leave a comment to let me know.

Happy quilting,