Stephanie Soebbing - Simple Quilts for the Modern Home

Simple Quilts for the Modern Home
by Stephanie Soebbing

Landauer Publishing (www.landauerpub.com) is an imprint of Fox Chapel Publishing Company, Inc.

Copyright 2019 by Stephanie Soebbing and

Fox Chapel Publishing Company, Inc.

903 Square Street, Mount Joy, PA 17552.

Project Team:

Vice President-Content: Christopher Reggio

Editors: Laurel Albright/Sue Voegtlin

Copy Editor: Katie Ocasio

Designer: Laurel Albright

Photographer: Sue Voegtlin; Stephanie Soebbing

ISBN: 978-1-947163-03-4
eISBN: 9781607659457

For a printable PDF of the patterns used in this book, please contact Fox Chapel Publishing at , stating the ISBN and title of the book in the subject line.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Fox Chapel Publishing, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in an acknowledged review and the enlargement of the template patterns in this book for personal use only. The patterns themselves, however, are not to be duplicated for resale or distribution under any circumstances. Any such copying is a violation of copyright law.

The Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file with the Library of Congress.

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This book has been published with the intent to provide accurate and authoritative information in regard to the subject matter within. While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the author and publisher expressly disclaim any responsibility for any errors, omissions, or adverse effects arising from the use or application of the information contained herein.

My quilting journey started out of a need to set aside my hectic work schedule and focus on some creative time that I desperately needed. At first I struggled with quilting. Every stitch, seam, and set of instructions caused frustration and I needed help. Then I discovered my local quilting guild, Mississippi Valley Quilters Guild in the Quad Cities in Illinois and Iowa. It was a large guild with about 300 members that regularly brought in regional and national instructors. I finally found a resource to help me improve. I took at least one class every month on every technique I could find so I could learn as much as possible.

By 2011, I was the one teaching the classes. While the guild I loved had taught me so much, most of the quilts at Show and Tell were traditional. I appreciated the craftsmanship and had made more than a few quilts that fit in just fine. But I knew that traditional fabrics, colors, and patterns just didnt resonate with me.

When nearly 30 people signed up for a class to make a Lone Star quilt, nearly everyone showed up with fabrics youd expect to find in a classic quilt patternlight backgrounds, reproduction fabric, or repetitive small patterned fabric. I came with a black background and bright vibrant solids forming a rainbow in the center of the diamond. I chose fabrics that made me happy, not ones that matched my bedroom decor.

I started designing my own patterns, using the brightest colors I could find at my local quilt shops. Bright, fun, funky prints worked best with my tastes and looked appropriate in a modern, contemporary home.

Through my blog, QuiltAddictsAnonymous, I was invited to interview Kaffe Fassett in person at the opening of an exhibit of his quilts. The trip completely transformed my thoughts on quilt design. When I arrived and saw the bright colors, no-neutral quilts, and that 12-inch blocks are nice, but not necessary.

I read Kaffes autobiography to prep for the interview. I only had a few minutes with him, and as a former journalist I wanted to be prepared. I realized no matter what Kaffe createdpaintings, knitwear, fabric, quiltseverything he did was a reflection of his true self. He created what his soul needed and success followed.

The designs for this book started coming to me in the middle of the night on the way home from the exhibit. By the time we arrived home half of the designs were sketched out. Thats how the seeds for Simple Quilts for the Modern Home were planted.

Staying true to myself and my mission to make quilting easy and accessible to everyone, I have created 12 quilts that are simple to piece. Some look more complicated than others, but once you break them down, any of these quilts can be made by a confident beginner or an advanced quilter looking for a fast project.

Happy Quilting,
Stephanie Soebbing

I use all my pattern design go-tos to make the quilting process as simple and streamlined as possible strip piecing, making triangles from squares, and fusible appliqu so you can create these quilts and convince your friends you spent hours and hours piecing the perfect quilt top. Itll be our little secret... and everyone else who has bought the book will know, but theyll keep quiet too. Well also cover fabric selection and quilting decisions in each pattern, because those components can make or break a design. Lets get started!

There is no one way to define modern quilting. What is modern to one quilter leans toward traditional to another. Still, there are a few design elements that are consistent across manyxmodern quilt designs: alternative grid, expansive negative space, embracing minimalism, and modernizing traditional blocks.

Simply put, alternative grid means you break the traditional grid structure of a quilt design where you make a specific number of blocks and sew them together in rows with or without sashing and a border. It can be as simple as changing the focus from the center of the quilt to a corner or side of the quilt, like Houndstooth or Ripples. By shifting the focus from the traditional center, the quilt becomes more modern in design and appearance.

You also could do away with the block structure all together like in Bricks and Pavers. This quilt is still connected in rows but there is no block. The visual interest is created by fabric choice and placement rather than a complicated block design.