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carolyn friedlander

carolyn friedlander

fabric and pattern designer

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Aerial Update And A New Version In My CF Grid Group Fabrics

April 30, 2021 by carolyn friedlander 6 Comments

I’ve been wanting to make a new Aerial quilt for quite some time. It was one of my early patterns, and one I’ve been eager to get back to. Here is my Aerial update.

aerial quilt . carolyn friedlander
photo by Alexis Wharem

The Design

The design is inspired by an imaginary view from above. It’s a fairly simple idea with loads of horizontal sections divided by diagonal slices and blocks of differing sizes.

aerial quilt . carolyn friedlander

Technique and Fabric

The project is made using foundation paper piecing, which makes everything super easy and clean. You can work from 2 1/2″ strips. Bring on the scraps, yardage or whatever you have! I worked from the roll up of my newest CF Grid Group and a special Kona Cotton roll up that I put together to coordinate with it. To me this is a great example of how grayscale doesn’t necessarily mean lacking in color. Don’t you think?

CF Grid Group and Kona cotton fabrics for Aerial Update quilt . carolyn friedlander

Working With Other Substrates

Aerial works really well with solids and textural prints. It’s also great for working in other substrates, which was a big focus for me in my first version. Sewing onto the paper foundation stabilizes a variety of fabrics, making it easy by limiting stretch, drape or any other imbalance between the fabrics you are using. If you are new to foundation paper piecing and/or working with a variety of substrates, this is a great way to go.

Tip: Pre-wash and dry all fabrics when doing this to equalize any differences that might occur when laundering in the future.

The Aerial Update

I’ve updated the pattern to include the new sample. I made some tweaks to the blocks, and I changed out some of the project sizes so that the pattern includes four different size options; Throw, Runner, Wall and Baby. The pattern has six different blocks and coloring pages to map out your own version.

aerial quilt pattern . carolyn friedlander

Planning

In planning this project, I don’t tend to make an overall plan, instead I start with the fabrics and then I think about groupings of three fabrics for each block. I find that this helps break down many choices into something more manageable. Plus, it gives cohesion to each block and the quilt as a whole, while also making the sewing experience entertaining as I tried coming up with new three-fabric combinations for each block.

aerial quilt . carolyn friedlander

There’s an optional “Block Yardage” listing in the fabric requirements that you can use to add cohesion or to provide extra wiggle room if you are new to paper piecing.

Project Details

Pattern: Aerial Quilt Pattern

Fabric(s): CF Grid Group and Kona Coordinates

Bonus: Aerial was also a design I used in my couch! Here’s part 1 and part 2.

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. rebeca says

    April 30, 2021 at 11:24 pm

    Parts of the quilt looks like geese flying across the sky. Thanks. lots of work…inspirational.

    Reply
    • carolyn friedlander says

      May 5, 2021 at 10:40 am

      I can see that, Rebeca! Always fun to see what others see. 🙂

      Reply
  2. Melanie says

    May 7, 2021 at 4:16 pm

    Such a beautiful quilt, a great way to showcase such a wonderful fabric collection. This is a terrific pattern. You are so talented!

    Reply
  3. Birgitte Jespersen says

    November 16, 2021 at 3:45 am

    Hi love your work – I never saw the blog about covering your couch before – so so helpful!
    I am covering 6 pillows for an old wooden Scandinavian bench (slagbænk) – I was doing the “front” panels in your Everglades patterns each different – colours complementary – but I was seeing each as a single picture! Like you I am quilting front and back panels – to give structure – thank u for your reassurance that it works –

    Now I am inspired to finish my “back” panels – which might well become the front as they will be cut out of one piece as you did!

    Since I only started quilting this year – I am taking on cushions etc getting used to quilting, textures etc! Your blog has been so helpful with sewing and layout tips – even your comments about wadding have been so useful

    Thank you again – and ofcourse beauty inspires

    Reply
    • carolyn friedlander says

      December 16, 2021 at 10:28 am

      Yeah, this will be great! It’s always fun to try out on idea on something you can actually use. Best of luck with your project!

      Reply

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