New pattern: Lakeside Star, a fat quarter quilt

Last fall I wrote about how my new surroundings were inspiring my quilting decisions. We moved to a new home on an intimate lake encircled by peeling birch trees and majestic oaks, with native reeds along the shoreline, a lawn dotted with tiny acorns, and birds of every kind and color . . . it was both simple and wonderful. 

The indigo water and the reflection of the butterscotch-colored oak leaves on the lake’s surface really spoke to me. I wanted to create a quilt that reflected the beauty of those colors and also honored the simple but beautiful views. From that, my new pattern, Lakeside Star, was born.

Lakeside Star is a fat quarter friendly quilt that finishes at 74” square. The simplicity of the layout mixed with just the right color choices is what creates a bold statement. 

The idea is to gather fat quarters from four (or five) colors, with one of them being dominant. My quilt combines navy, splash (light blue), taupe and vanilla (ivory) prints from the new “Sweet Tea” collection by Sweetwater for Moda. My dominant color is a soft orange. The orange fat quarters came from my stash.

The construction of this quilt is straight forward and perfect for a beginning quilter! My pattern includes pressing and layout tips as well. While I’m partial to the colorway I’ve selected for this quilt, I can see this working with many different color ranges. 

By now you surely have noticed the fabulous machine quilting by Jennifer of Farm Fresh Stitches. We chose a pattern called “Sweet Orange Peel.” Isn’t it the perfect complement to this quilt? I love how the design is contemporary but also a bit feminine. So pretty!

I’ve been a huge fan of Jennifer’s since I started following her work on Instagram (@farmfreshstitches) a while back. I hope you’ll visit her website, because my words won’t do justice to how creative this lady is! Not only is she a fabulous longarm quilter, she also offers other services, including t-shirt/memory quilts and custom name pillows.  Her work is absolutely darling and inspiring! Here are a few photos of Jennifer's creations, courtesy of her website:

Finally, I have to share a photo of how my quilt was shipped to me after Jennifer worked her magic. Lakeside Star arrived beautifully folded and wrapped with a lovely set of ribbons, just like a precious gift. Jennifer also tucked in some sweet little gifts and a personal note. I get the feeling that Jennifer’s business is so much more than doing good work, it’s also a mission to brings joy to others! Mission accomplished!

I hope you’ll consider giving Lakeside Star a try. I am already scheming up another version of this quilt using some Christmas prints. The pattern is available as a digital PDF on my Etsy Shop.

If you'd like to make a Lakeside Star similar to mine, I'm pleased to announce that LouLou's Fabric Shop is offering a fabric kit! You'll need to purchase the pattern on my Etsy Shop, but then you can just zip over to LouLou's for the fabric you need. Shop owner Jamie has selected fat quarters, borders and binding fabric predominantly from the Sweet Tea collection by Sweetwater, the collection I used in my quilt.  For the oranges, Jamie has created a custom pull from her store. She has a great eye, and I know you'll be in good hands ordering your fabric kit from LouLou's!

Thanks so much for stopping by the blog today and hearing about this new pattern. I never want to wish away my days and weeks, but I have to say that I am anxious to photograph Lakeside Star outside next fall, in the natural world that inspired her! 

~Taunja