Red Sky at Night Quilt: My First Almost Red and White Quilt
We all have bucket list quilts we’d love to make, right? I imagine a two color quilt, especially a red and white quilt, could be a common bucket list item on a quilter’s “to make” list. I’m no exception, but when it came time to actually make a red and white Red Sky at Night Quilt, I just couldn’t get into the "red" part of it. - by Lisa Sliva
And, not using red doesn’t make for a very good “red and white” quilt, then, does it? The trouble is, I only really like red around Christmas, but I wasn’t sure I wanted a “Christmas only” red and white quilt.
Pinterest for the Win!
So, I took to Pinterest, as one does, and realized that I was primarily drawn to the red and white quilts that had varying shades of red, pink, and coral. While I loved the scrappy nature of most of those quilts, I was in a season that didn’t have a lot of space for all that a scrappy quilt requires, so I knew I wanted to use yardage and a limited color palette.
All of this consideration gave me the idea that I could choose a not-quite-red paired with a coral in order to get the effect of a “red and white” quilt. After a lengthy deliberation over my Art Gallery Fabrics Pure Solids color card, I settled on a beautiful not-quite-red-and-not-quite-pink called “Dragonfruit.” It is the perfect almost-red-but-not-exactly-pink. It paired beautifully with one of my very favorite AGF Pure Solids, “Quartz Pink,” which I used as my "coral."
It All Came Together
I jumped online and ordered it as quickly as I could! Once it arrived, I happened to notice a delicious AGF print from Katarina Roccella’s “Wintertale” line in my stash that I had bought as a backing “just because” I loved it. It paired perfectly with both the Dragonfruit and Quartz Pink solids. But, it also gave me the idea to pull another print from my stash as the low volume background. I liked the idea of using a not-exactly-solid as the “white” because I just can’t get myself to make a quilt that is only made from true solids. I settled on a low volume print from Amy Sinibaldi’s “Sonata” line, also with AGF. It was perfect!
From there, I had a lovely little play with the EPP only coloring sheet from the Red Sky at Night e-book pattern, and settled on the colorway that would ultimately guide the color placement for the EPP blocks in the pattern and on the paper pieces labels!
The Perfect Quilt for the Season
It was just what I needed for that season. It was lovely to have all of the color choices made in advance, and then to settle into the rhythm of prepping, cutting, basting, and then finally, my favorite part, the stitching. I took those blocks along with me on a little sewing retreat, and loved that each block was different in both construction and degrees of complexity. I learned that I prefer a block of medium complexity that has pieces that are around 1 ½” to 2” in size. I held them most comfortably in my hands, and I was able to still feel like I was making progress.
Baton Rouge and Bridal Bouquet
The Castle Wall and Diamond Star
Goose Tracks and Hummingbird
Idle Moments and Michigan Beauty
Rolling Star and Star and Cross
Star of Bethlehem
Star in a Star and Victorian Maze
Finishing Touches
I love how the EPP version has the option to add large border triangles that set the layout on point and bring it up to a nice lap sized quilt.
Pro Tip:
I creased the large square used to cut the border triangles into quarters with my iron before cutting it. Then, I used the creases as a guide for sewing large basting stitches, also known as stay stitches, ⅛” on either side of the creases in both directions. After I finished sewing the basting stitches on either side of each crease, I cut the square into quarters along the creases. This technique allows you to handle those large squares without stretching the bias edges created from cutting the square diagonally.
As I was laying out the border triangles, I realized there was a noticeable directionality to the background print that didn’t matter so much in the smaller scale of the paper piece shapes. I positioned the border triangles in such a way that the stripes all flowed in the same direction. This worked out well during the quilting stage as I used the stripes as a guide for quilting those larger areas.
To guide the quilting within the blocks, I used the sashing and natural angles of the EPP blocks as guides, finishing with a medium density of quilting, which I tend to prefer.
For the backing, I was delighted to realize that I had plenty of fabric so that I could pattern match the highly directional/geometric print I used for the back. It’s not too shabby in my opinion! I used AGF Pure Solids in Quartz Pink, the same fabric as the accent color on the front of the quilt, as the binding. It’s the perfect soft finish for the front, and a lovely accent on the back.
Want to cross a red and white quilt off your bucket list?
This quilt was an absolute delight to imagine and, ultimately, to make. And, I’ve crossed a “red and white” quilt off my bucket list! I had a little chuckle to myself in the end since part of my original deliberation was to not make a “Christmas only” quilt, but the backing fabric with its choir of angels just speaks Christmas to me. Regardless, I’m so pleased with how it turned out, and I loved making the EPP only version of Red Sky at Night! And, I've started the combined version of the quilt using a blue floral paired with a slightly warmer coral fabric as the accent, and the blocks make me so happy! Have you made one yet? Grab everything you need to make yours below!
Red Sky is beautiful! The colors blend so well and the background fabric is perfect! I really like the EPP version you are making also. And, in my opinion, it’s okay to display Christmas quilts all year long, I’ve had one hanging on a door ever since last Christmas! Happy stitching!
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