“Mini, mini, mini wheats” – I think I’ve started another blog post singing this jingle too – ha! I do love a good mini and, with the holidays arriving any day now, I figured it was high time I shared this holiday mini quilt featuring the Double Windmill quilt pattern!
Plus, as an Aurifil Artisan, the December challenge was to create a fun holiday-themed project – I figured a mini would be the perfect project to share during this busy time of year.
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It all started with the fabric
Several months back I was lucky enough to win a half-yard bundle of The Tattooed Quilter’s Blossom fabric collection for Riley Blakes Design. These prints have been bringing me so much joy every time I open my fabric cabinet!
They’ve been hanging out there, tempting me, just waiting for the right project to spark inspiration.
And it finally happened while I was working on my Dad’s blue Double Windmill quilt – inspiration struck, and I knew I just HAD to make a mini Double Windmill wall hanging.
Pattern versatility
Since I always want to show you the versatility of the patterns and give you additional ideas on how you can bring your own flare to the design, I thought it would be fun to show you a holiday version.
Since I wanted it to feel like the holidays, but I didn’t want it to be too themed with holiday prints, I thought the Blossom prints in Celery, Holly, Emerald City, Red, and Barn Red would give a perfect balance. The right colours without any Christmas-specific prints. I even added these fun low volumes in the coordinating red and green to complete the look.
It’s got a fun ombré effect to it as well, which I just adore, and keeps it nice and modern.
Improv quilt back
When it came time to piece the back, I decided to use up as much of the fabric remnants and settle in for a little improv quilting. You know how much I love sneaking in some improv sessions 😉
You’ll notice that I added some hanging tabs on the back. Here’s a tutorial on how I make mine.
Quilting
I went wayyyy outside my comfort zone when it came time to quilting her up!
Since she’s small, I decided to try a new to me technique from this new book I got. I’ve been itching to try something new at the machine and this was just the ticket. I was a little worried whether I’d be able to pull it off, but I DID! And I’m in LOVE with the way it looks. So much so, in fact, that I can’t wait to give this design another go.
I really wanted the emphasis to be on the quilt top and fabrics and just wanted the quilting to add that yummy quilty dimension we all love. So, I opted for my go-to white 50wt #2021 Aurifil Thread. This one just blends right in, while giving you that gorgeous texture.
Here’s what I ultimately love about this mini quilt – I love the bold design and the inherent movement. Especially when paired with the fun Blossom prints which give it this snow globe effect. Then add in the quilting which reminds me of snowflakes, and you’ve got one holiday centric mini quilted wall hanging without it being too Christmassy. Do you get that too?!
Materials Featured
Here’s a full roundup of the materials and notions I used to create this cute Holiday Blossom Double Windmill mini quilt:
- Double Windmill quilt pattern – mini size
- Blossom in Celery
- Blossom in Holly
- Blossom in Emerald City
- Blossom in Red
- Blossom in Barn Red
- Blossom on White Red
- Blossom on White Clover
- 100% cotton batting
- 50wt white thread – piecing, quilting and hand binding
- Rotary cutter
- Ruler – for cutting, trimming and plotting my markings
- Pen for marking my quilting guides
- This book for my quilting design technique
For more holiday quilting inspiration, check out:
The mini is just super cute. It’s the perfect wall hanging size. And, since it’s so tiny, you can totally whip this up in an afternoon! Just what you need this busy holiday season! Download your Double Windmill quilt pattern here.
Happy quilting!
xo
Shannon
PS I’m knocking this off my Q4 FAL list – wahoo!
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