Here it is…A full look at Susan’s Lapis Luster quilt. It’s a stunner!! Susan designed this pattern and plans to enter it into a quilt show. I’m excited to hear how she does.

Quilts like this can be intimidating for me to quilt, because of all the negative space. Susan left the quilting design up to me. I love that because it allows me to be completely creative. So lets start with the very center, which was the hardest thing for me to figure out. I thought and thought and thought about it. I actually have a couch across from the longarm, and so I turned my timer off and just sat and stared at this center section trying to figure out what to do. I had already quilted designs in each of the other borders. Everything I was thinking was going to clash with the solid white border next to it. So I started with the simple elongated x’s that connect the square pinwheel blocks. Which then created a 4 pointed star around the squares. I love a 4 pointed star, but that wasn’t really what I was going for. By connecting all of those star points together, I created a octagon shape which actually reminded me of some kaleidoscope quilts that I’ve quilted in the past.

For all of the lines in this quilt, I used Linda from The Quilted Pineapple’s Edge ruler.

I started with the outside border on this quilt, like I do with nearly every quilt and worked my way to the center. However, this time I’m going to start sharing from the center of the quilt and work my way to the outside. If I were to start quilting the center of this quilt first, it would be a mess. There are two layers of batting and they definitely wouldn’t have laid flat. Always start at the top and work your way down, it’s so much easier to handle the battings with the quilt top.

Then I reached for my 5” Circle2 ruler and quilted these lovely petals, which filled up the negative space perfectly, and it drew your eye away from the 4 pointed star. The petals also mimic some of the other petals throughout the quilt, which creates an overall cohesive design. Plus, it makes the center stand out. Which was what I needed to accomplish with the quilting in all of the negative space. I also used my 2” Circle2 ruler to quilt simple petals in the blue squares.

These are my 5”/11” (above) and 2”/8” (below) Circle2 rulers. For years I couldn’t find a good set of circle rulers, so I created these ones. The 3/4th of a circle design allows us to comfortably move the ruler around while quilting. They are made in America with high quality 1/4” acrylic. Do you have a set yet? No…Head over to my shop and get yourself one.

Just look at all the possibilities rulers provide when custom quilting.

I don’t share progress pictures very often when the quilts I quilt are on the longarm, this time I have a few. And, lucky you…I have some videos to share, too.

If you’re interested in learning how to quilt the line design in the triangle blocks, watch the video above. It’s a good one. This design is great in a variety of different shapes, my favorite the flying geese triangles. It can also frame the other designs or blocks around it very nicely.

With a solid white border, I had lots of room to play. Watch the video below to see how I quilted this beautiful floral motif. You could totally quilt this, too! It’s fun to see what I can do with a little bit…or a ton of…thread. I used my 5” Circle2 to quilt the floral motifs.

Now, look at all of those designs together…That quilty texture makes me heart so happy!!

Next up, another progress shot. Lets look at the next border together.

I have another video for you…this one is a two-for-one. Lucky you! I share how I quilt a background and a motif in a block all without stopping and cutting the thread. I do this as much as I can when I quilt. Saves so much time.

This is my 3”/9” Circle2 ruler that I used for the petals in the circles. I also mention in the video my Quilting It Freemotion course. This design is my Overlapping Circles design. Check it out if you love to quilt freemotion or are just trying to get started.

This border turned out beautiful, especially next to the 1” lines in the next border. I love mixing up textures with the lines and curves.

A look at the center and two borders, do you love it too…Hope so!

Now, lets head to the outer border. My freehand Swirly Feather design was the first design I quilted on this quilt, in fact when I first saw the quilt that is what immediately came to mind. I works so beautifully with the fabrics that Susan used, and easily dresses up the solid fabric. This design is great on an entire quilt. I have quilted it many many many times all over. It’s great in a border, background, inside applique, and just about anywhere on a quilt. I highly recommend learning this one. Bonus, it’s a very forgiving design. Definitely one that I make up as I go. It’s also part of my Quilting It Freemotion course.

After starting with the Swirly Feathers, I quilted these orange peel petals using Linda’s -8- curve ruler as a guide. It wasn’t a perfect fit, but it helped me accomplish the design that you can see. After quilting a couple of lines on each side of the petal, I quilted freehand Pebbles to fill up the space. I quilting something else in the middle of the petals and didn’t like it, so I unpicked…yes, I do unpick sometimes. Then I decided on the Loops. I love the overall look, and wait until you see each of these rather simple designs all together on the quilt back. IT LOOKS AMAZING!

Pebbles and Loops are also taught in my Quilting It Freemotion course. Each design I teach is fundamental, which would then help you apply those designs to freemotion quilting like I’ve done on this quilt. Please join me if you are ready to start freemotion quilting or would like to learn more.

A look at all of the borders with the center of the quilt. I love it all! After spending nearly 13 hours on this quilt, I was so fun to see it all come together.

I used a ton of Natural White Omni thread, which you know if my favorite color…haha! I get it from Superior Threads. I also used two battings. When I do a double batting I start with a thinner batting on bottom, like the 8020 comfort blend from Winline Textiles on the bottom, and then put a layer of Hobbs wool on top. I have done this combination several times, even on a few of my own quilts and as you can see the quilty texture pops soooo good.

Awe…I just love it and so does Susan!! Can’t wait for her to see it in person.

Check out the backing…this is what I was talking about. Don’t forget to look at the loops in the orange peel centers.

Check out this video of the entire back of the quilt, because sometimes videos are better. I shared it on instagram last week.

I also shared a video on instagram when I was quilting this quilt. Go check it out by clicking on the link or scanning this QR code. Did you know that instagram creates a sharable QR code for each post, so we can share it? I didn’t, and so I thought it would be fun to share here.

That’s all. Thanks for stopping by and checking out this amazing quilt. I’m so blessed to have clients who let me quilt their beautiful quilts. I love my job!

If you would like to have me quilt for you, check out my schedule and sign up for a spot. Thank you~! Happy quilting, leisha.