Illusion Quilt - Bella and Starry Version "Cover Quilt"

Hi friends, 

Today I am SO excited to share my newest quilt pattern - Illusion!

Illusion is an advanced beginner pattern that plays off of a checkerboard pattern...with a twist! A slight size change in the blocks lets the movement of color and pattern trick your eyes. 

There are no templates for this pattern and it is all straight line stitching. There is accurate strip piecing and nesting seams - so an advanced beginner rating for this one seemed right. The cutting instructions are directional fabric friendly and have three different layouts to choose from: 2 color, 8 color and 14 color. 

There are multiple sizes to choose from as well:

• Baby 44.5" x 45"
• Throw 61.5" x 75"
• Bed Size 81" x 90"
• King 101" x 105"

I love the simplicity of the pattern and also how complex it can be depending on your fabric placement. Choose a gradual color change on your fabrics and you will have a nice even flow to the movement of the design. Choose high contrast colors and patterns and create a striped pattern. The two color layout, although very simple, has an amazing effect with the movement of the block changes. 

Since the pattern nests together, you can even sew most of the sections together without the use of straight pins if you are careful! It is not recommended to press seams open - only because the time to press seams open and then pin all of your rows would increase the amount of time it takes to make this pattern.

I created a new feature for my patterns called "Guides", you can find the first one here and also in my main menu. Often tips and tricks are saved for social media posts or included in various blog posts or even in a sew along. Now you can find all of the tips I recommend for the quilt construction and even quilting in one permanent location on my website. I will eventually add guides for the rest of my quilts, but that is for another day. 

Fabric Information:

This particular quilt is an 8 color version - choose one background fabric and 7 of your favorite colors or prints for the checkerboard look. I chose a fun selection of Bella Solids and a black and white Starry print for my background. 

Fabrics:

Background + Binding: Starry Black Unbleached - Ruby Star Society

Moda Bella Solids:

• Color 1: Carmel 406
• Color 2: Saffron 232
• Color 3: Peach Blossom 297
• Color 4: Peony 91
• Color 5: Geranium 258
• Color 6: Boysenberry 217
• Color 7: Washed Black 118

Backing: Bella cream 

The pattern is actually a pretty fast one to cut out - and once you are all set up, you can lay your pieces out and chain piece quite a bit. 

Quilting Details:

For this quilt I knew I wanted a nice straight line stitch, but decided to play off of the different size squares and rectangles a bit. 

For the first pass through the quilt I used my walking foot, a stitch length of 3, and a guide bar to help me get the middle of the rows perfectly. I quilted through the middle of each row going horizontally first. 

For the second pass through I went from top to bottom, this time I had to change up my guide bar a bit to measure the middle of the changing sizes of the blocks. I quilting through the middle creating a plus shape with my stitches. 

I kept it cohesive and used the black starry print for my binding and did hand stitching to bind the finished quilt. 

Finished Cover Quilt Images:

You can find the ready to download PDF here and the printed pattern should be arriving the first week of April. 

I will be sharing the 9 other quilts - yes I started a 10th quilt yesterday while making the guide - over the next couple of weeks! I am really quite excited how some of them turned out. Also keep a lookout for the newsletter that includes some amazing kits!

Thanks for stopping by - happy sewing!

Nicole