New Quilt Finish; The Bluegrass Crossing Quilt
I’m so happy to finally share the finished Bluegrass Crossing quilt with you! This design has been nearly a decade in the making, and bringing it to life has been such an enjoyable process. Today, I’m going to walk you through the design process behind the quilt, share a bit about the inspiration that shaped it, and give you a peek into how this long-time work-in-progress became the finished pattern you see today.
I’m happy to share my newest quilt finish: the Bluegrass Crossing quilt. This project has been in the works for almost ten years, and I can’t even tell you how excited I am to finally call it done. It feels extra special to wrap up something that has been on my “to-do” list for so long!
Today, I thought it would be fun to pull back the curtain a bit and share the story behind the quilt and pattern, from the early spark of inspiration to the final stitches.
The Bluegrass Crossing quilt was inspired by a vintage quilt in my collection, made from Goose Tracks blocks. It was actually the inspiration for our guest room redecorating project years ago!
Quilt Details
- Pattern: Bluegrass Crossing (shop PDF, shop Printed Pattern, shop Etsy – if outside US)
- Pattern is Fat Quarter Friendly
- Size: 54″ x 69″
- Fabric: Bluegrass Charm Collection by Riley Blake (backing fabric is also from the line)
- Background Fabric: Cloud solid Confetti Cotton by Riley Blake Designs
- Pantograph: Easy Orange Peel by Patricia Ritter
Project Inspiration
If you’ve been a long-time reader, you may remember that I started making a quilt inspired by that vintage quilt way back in 2014! I made a few sample blocks (pictured below) but never finished the quilt.
As I was drafting and sewing the block patterns, I realized the construction process wasn’t “quite right,” so I set the blocks aside, but I always had the project in the back of my mind.
I still love that pink-and-yellow color palette. I may still need to finish that quilt!
I picked the design idea back up later when I designed the Picnic Crossing quilt. This quilt pattern features an oversized block, allowing you to make either a baby or lap-sized quilt. It would also make a wonderful throw pillow!
As happy as I was with the larger blocks in the Picnic Crossing quilt, I still felt like I wanted a more traditional quilt.
Finally, a couple of years ago, I sat down and figured out all the “quilt math” and created the Bluegrass Crossing quilt!
If you have a “keen” eye, you may notice that the blocks in my first stab at the pattern are set “on point”, which means they are set so the corners of the block are at the top and bottom instead of the sides of the block (the design looks like a diamond, not a square). I realized that by swapping the quilt block so it’s not set on point, I could simplify the construction process.
The pattern was a part of my Bluegrass Charm collection release. I stitched up the quilt sample while writing the pattern, but then the quilt top sat unquilted in “the pile” (what I call my stack of unfinished quilt tops!).
Recently, I finished the longarm quilting, bound it, and photographed it!
I feel like I say this quite a bit, but I do think this may be one of my favorite quilts. I love the mix of the traditional quilt block with the brighter fabrics and the gentle curves and texture that the orange peel machine quilting design adds. It will be in regular rotation in our living room all Spring and Summer!
