Garden Fence Quilt - Planning

For my mom’s 50th birthday, I decided a long time ago that I would make her a lap quilt.  I had made her a couple of table runners in the past but she’s wanted an actual blanket for a while now.

I didn’t want to tell my mom I was making her a quilt because she was kind of picky about the last table-runner and also just in case I didn’t get it done I could buy a birthday present and then finish the quilt as her Christmas present.  I can share all this with you because she doesn’t have internet access right now so I know she won’t read this before I give it to her (if she reads it at all, I’m never sure who in my family reads my blog).

Planning The Quilt
After lots of browsing Pinterest and internet images, I finally found a quilt pattern that I really liked.  This site originally started as a quilt-along but all I can find is the first post that talks about the cut sizes of the pieces.

I decided to follow their original block size and then scale my quilt just by deciding how many blocks to use.  I chose to do 30 blocks (5 columns x 6 rows) for a finished size of approximately 56” x  68” which should make a nice lap blanket.

Choosing Fabrics
There are an infinite number of color possibilities for this quilt.  You could do all the outside of the squares one color and the insides another, you could do each outer corner a different color, you could do all one main color, you could do a scrappy look, etc.  For my mom’s quilt, I decided I would use colors similar to the example I found: some blocks with a green outer ring and blue center, and the others with a blue outer ring and green center.  Since I will have 30 blocks, I chose to use 5 blue fabrics and 5 green fabrics.  This means each fabric will be used for 3 outer rings and 3 inner squares and then they can be mixed and matched however looks good.  I picked a mostly white fabric for the sashing between/around the squares and a green quilt backing fabric.

Below is a listing of the fabrics I selected in case you want to find the same fabrics.  I’ve also included how much to purchase to make the same size as the one I made.  If you use more or less blocks, see the cutting instructions to figure out how much fabric you will need. Starting at the bottom left and going clockwise:

1/2 Yard of Each of the Following
Blue #1: Florette Ocean - Honey Honey Collection - Kate Spain  (Moda)
Blue #2: Dark Blue Leaves Sprigs - Simply Color Collection - V & Co (Moda)
Blue #3: Dark Blue Metro Leafy Stripe - Simply Color Collection - V & Co (Moda)
Blue #4: Navy Blue Mod Blossoms - Simply Color Collection - V & Co (Moda)
Blue #5: Mum in Navy - Happy Go Lucky Collection - Bonnie & Camille (Moda)

Green #1: Floral Allover Green - Fresh Collection - Windham Fabrics
Green #2: Dots in Green/Blue - Fresh Collection - Windham Fabrics
Green #3: Bonjour Mon Ami Trellis Green - Amanda Murphy (Blend Fabrics)
Green #4: Lime Green Leaves Sprigs - Simply Color Collection - V & Co (Moda)
Green #5: Blossom Spartina - Honey Honey Collection - Kate Spain (Moda)

2.5 yds White Sashing: White Vines 108" wide quilt backing
2 yds Quilt Backing: Tonal/Floral Green 108" wide quilt backing


See all Garden Fence Quilt posts:

• Planning
  
• Cutting
  
• Initial Piecing
  
• Putting the Blocks together
  
• Assembling the top
  
• Quilting