Jay McCarroll Habitat Challenge

At the beginning of this summer, The Modern Quilt Guild presented a challenge in conjunction with Freespirit Fabric using Jay McCarroll's newest collection, Habitat. The challenge is relatively open-ended, allowing each guild chapter to define its own goals, but keeping to a few set guidelines. Each member who wishes to participate is given 6 fat eighths (approximately 9" x 22") of different prints from the Habitat collection. The individual does not need to use ALL of the fabric, but if he/she wants to supplement, it must be using only solids or other prints from the same collection. The Portland Modern Quilt Guild asked its participating members to each sew one (or more, if they like) 12" finished block, any design. At our September meeting the blocks will be collected, and ultimately be pieced into donation quilts. While working on another project entirely, I came up with a kind of improv-flying geese idea, and sketched something out.

And since I had such a limited amount of fabrics with which to work, I decided to do a test block (or two, as it turned out) using some of my own fabrics, but trying to keep with a similar feel and amount of activity - so of course I look to the Westminster guys! And this was the first one I came up with...

Though I am not unhappy with this, I wasn't sure if it shows enough contrast, so I tried one more using the same designers' fabrics, but selecting a couple more solids and contrasts to see what would happen. I was pretty happy with the outcome.

(who knows, this might become a quilt all its own!) This gave me courage to dive in and start cutting the Jay McCarroll fabrics and just see what would happen...

I still have plenty more of the complimentary fabrics, I just don't know about time, but I definitely think I'd like to make a couple more of these, and if I really get my act together, I'll take more process photos and put a tutorial up. I had taken photos while making my first of these blocks, but in subsequent tries, found better and more uniform ways of doing it, so I think I need to fine tune a bit. But I have to say, I do like me a challenge!