I have recently been working on a douple pinwheel quilt for a customer who wanted it done in pastel stripes and polka dots. Using Eleanor Burns’ Quilt in a day pattern, Double Pinwheel (you can also see instructions for the block here), I have just finished assembling the quilt top today. Tonight I hope that my kids will allow me the chance to quilt it up and (maybe) get started on the binding. With the way they have been acting lately, that might be too much to ask!
This first shot is my initial attempt at laying out the blocks. You get two different “spins” to the pinwheels – the dark centered blocks spin opposite to the light centered blocks. So you want to try and keep the like types together. This first attempt was really pretty on the inside, but left the outer border too “wimpy”. It really needed a stronger color scheme to make the quilt feel more balanced – too much of the focus to the quilt was on the center and not the overall design.
Here is a shot of the finished top. I switched the wheels to the dark centered blocks on the inside and the light centered blocks on the border. Originally, I was going to use a solid large dot fabric in place of a pinwheel in each of the four corners, but it felt wrong. It didn’t fit with the rest of the quilt. So this morning, I made 4 extra blocks for the corners – much better. With the sashings, the quilt’s overall size is now 40″x50″. This is my favorite quilt size to make – just right for floor play, snuggling, and fits a crib beautifully.
