Pastels | Louise Naples Quiltmaker

Nested Hexes

1 06 2014

This quilt was born in a set of fantastic and dramatically contrasting fabrics in black, grey and cream. It took a while to decide what to do with them. Cutting strips in varying lengths, adding them to fussy-cut floral centers – log cabin style, created wonderful nested hexagons. Joined by triangles, and set in rows the pattern required me to cut off half of all the top and bottom hexes, which I didn’t like. So, instead, I made neutral half-hexes of various cream fabrics to close the gap. The border is made up of four parts, cream, black, cream, and a multi. Very dramatic!

These are my opening inspiration – seriously contrasting colors

Fabrics cut into strips and bits, and fussy-cut flowers

One hexagon

More hexes

Hexagons joined by triangles

Finished quilt with four borders

Detail of neutral half hex

And all the borders

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : AVAILABLE FOR SALE, Earth Tones, Geometrics, Pastels, QUILTING PROCESSES, Twin, Wall Hanging

Baby Braids Green

31 05 2014

I made this pale green version of a quilt I created for my grandniece. I used softer colors, using the same 1930’s reproduction prints. A light green inner border is framed with a darker green outer one.

“Soft as a whisper” child’s quilt

Detail of half-hexagons used to create braids

Pale sashing directs attention to focus fabrics

Folded in half, awaiting the quilting.

Comments : 1 Comment »

Categories : Crib, Geometrics, Pastels, Uncategorized

Gatsby – for Iris and Mawuena

14 06 2012

: 1 Double portrait of Gatsby

: 2 Portrait

: 3 Gatsby field photo

: 4 Block quilting

: 5 Corner detail

: 6 Backing

This quilt is my take on a design by Jean Nolte published in Fons & Porter 2008. A king sized quilt for a modern young couple to celebrate their wedding. It was easy to piece, with my own choice of muted colors. I added a multi-banded mitered border to give it a traditional touch. Quilting it on my home machine was a real challenge. I utilized the tips I learned from an on-line quilting course by Ann Petersen entitled “Quilting Big Projects on a Small Machine”. A life saver!

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : Basic Squares, King Size, Pastels, Rectangles

Stripes to Diamonds

13 06 2012

: Close-up

: Pretty piece on rocking chair

: Stripe to Diamonds

This small quilt was made from one yard of a stripped fabric, cut into strips on the bias, and pieced back together. Then it was quilted in the ditch along all the diamond shapes, giving the illusion of a pieced quilt.

Comments : 1 Comment »

Categories : Pastels, Strips, Table Topper, Wall Hanging

Courthouse Steps

17 11 2010

This is another double sided, “quilt-as-you-go” project. I found a lovely small-scale floral print to use for one side, and selected a variety of green and cream prints for my steps. The final result is a strong pattern on the front side, and a very soft, easy-on-the-eyes back side. The reversible binding technique I learned from Judy Doenias at City Quilter. It makes a neat knife edge finish.

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : AVAILABLE FOR SALE, Earth Tones, Geometrics, Lap Blanket, Pastels, Table Topper, Wall Hanging

Butter & Batik Squares

21 10 2010

The simplest shape there is to sew, The Square, lends itself to countless treatments. In this small piece, I used two-inch, and six-inch patches in a modern layout to stress the squares, and quilted them in like fashion, to emphasize the shape. The batik I chose blended very well with the soft buttery yellow.

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : AVAILABLE FOR SALE, Basic Squares, Pastels, Table Topper, Wall Hanging

Baby Braids

27 05 2010

This baby version of French Braid was made from a one and a half inch wide roll (called a honey bun) of coordinated strips. The colors offered a wide choice of creams and every color of apple in the orchard. It was fun to create a mini version, and this quilt was selected to be part of a quilt exhibition of quilts from The City Quilter at the Williams Club in NYC in the Fall of 2009.

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : AVAILABLE FOR SALE, Earth Tones, Pastels, Strips, Wall Hanging

Window Panes

25 05 2010

This quilt was a study in setting in corners. The soft blue and yellow of this quilt makes it ideal for a baby boy’s room, or stroller. The pastel blue and white print, with touches of red are the basic squares. They are set off with blue and yellow marbled fabric for the sashing. I used yoyos tied on with small leaf shaped buttons as a finishing detail.

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : AVAILABLE FOR SALE, Basic Squares, Crib, Pastels, Wall Hanging

Triple Irish Chain

25 05 2010

This quilt was made at the “Quilting University” of The City Quilter in NYC, in a series called Squares, taught by Judy Doenias. The idea was inspired by a quilt I saw in a magazine several years ago. The trick with this one was to keep all the squares organized, so the the blocks would be assembled easily, and the colors line up correctly. Labeling helps!

Comments : Leave a Comment »

Categories : AVAILABLE FOR SALE, Basic Squares, Pastels, Twin

Ice Blue Star

25 05 2010

This small piece was made from strips of varied colors of glinty blues cut into various widths. It is a “sew and flip” method of making a quilt out of left over strips, though this one was cut from a set of blue fat quarters. The strips are sewn onto a foundation of muslin, then the blocks are joined into whatever pattern is suitable.