Today I'm here to shade the Mod Dreams cover quilt, along with more about the design process, and the quilt pattern!
Mod Dreams is the latest pattern to join the Cotton and Joy family and it is perfect for quilters trying curved piecing for the first time or curve enthusiasts!
Mod Dreams Quilt Pattern
I first designed this quilt pattern back in Fall 2023, but because of my full schedule, I wasn't able to release it until this summer. I love how this pattern uses two simply shapes - the orange peel and the quarter circle (or drunkard's path) - to create such a dynamic quilt pattern. It reminds me of stars and flowers all at once.
From the get-go, I knew I wanted this quilt pattern to work with my Modern Curves Templates, so it joins the Modern Curves family alongside Memi's Lemons, Copihue, Reverie, and Crescent II. This means there's now FIVE (!) patterns you can make with one set of acrylic rulers!
I also knew from the get-go that I wanted this to be a really versatile quilt pattern. Something you can reach for when you find a perfect Fat Quarter Bundle or fabric collection. This means all you need is some background fabric and then you can grab fabric in any of these options:
- Layer Cakes
- Fat Quarters
- 1/3 yard cuts
In addition to allowing quilters to use various fabric options, the pattern also includes multiple sizes:
- Table Runner size
- Baby Quilt
- Throw Quilt
- Bed/Queen Quilt
I love all these options because it means you can use up some left-over layer cake squares for one of the smaller sizes, or use up a full layer cake of your favorite fabric collection and showcase it in a throw size quilt!
Solid Fabric Quilt
After having four quilt patterns with cover samples using prints, it was time to go back to my quilting roots and have a cover sample using solids for the entire quilt. While I love pretty fabric, specially since I'm a fabric designer, there's something so refreshing about a good group of solid fabrics.
I worked on Illustrator a lot, using different combinations of colors and shades. Everything from slightly monochromatic (lots all pinks or all blues) to complementary combinations. However, I kept going back to one specific color – Citron. This is a new solid that Riley Blake Designs added to their line of solids and I've been wanting to try it since January. So I switched gears and went for a modified rainbow color palette. There's a little bit of everything from pinks, oranges, yellow, citron green, blues, and purples!
Straight Line Quilting
I wish I had more pictures of the sewing process, but truth be told, I was tight on time making this quilt! I kept thinking I had a lot of time before this pattern release and then realized I only had about two weeks to cut, sew, and quilt this before my printer deadline!
This meant that even though I REALLY wanted to send this off to a long-armer, I had to quilt it myself. After some quick deliberation, I went with my trusty 3/4" apart straight lines.
I quilted this on my Janome M7, using a walking foot and I didn't mark any lines. Instead, I relied on the seams throughout the quilt to keep my quilting straight and I used the seam guide that came with my walking foot to keep the distance between lines consistent.
Lemon Quilt Finishes
For the backing of the quilt, I had to use something that I already had one hand (see procrastination-imposed tight deadline above). I had really two options – use a solid to match the quilt top, or use one of the couple of prints I had enough of on hand. I went with the second option.
As part of the Riley Blake Design designer group, I designed a Lemon print for the Hush Hush 3 collaborative collection. The yellow of these lemons perfectly matches the solid yellow color I used on the quilt top so it was meant to be!
You'd think that then binding therefore was super easy to pick, but I was thinking about it too hard. It wasn't until my friend Sarah said I should try the yellow that I realized there was truly no other option, so I went with the solid yellow appropriately named Lemon Zest.
I couldn't be more thrilled with how this all solid quilt turned out! It was a blast experimenting with colors I don't usually work with in quilts and letting the fun shapes in the quilt design shine!
Quilt Information
Quilt Pattern: Mod Dreams by Cotton and Joy
Quilt Top Fabric: Confetti Cotton Solids in Violet, Princess, Frosting, Sugar Pink, Raspberry, Deep Water, Peacock, Marmalade, Pumpkin, Lemon Zest, Citron, and White. [Purchase the kit here!]
Backing: Lemons from Hush Hush 3
Binding: Confetti Cotton Solids in Lemon Zest
Pieced and Quilted on my Janome M7