I finished a quilt! This ‘Z’ quilt was designed by me for my niece, Zoya. I used all her favourite colours and I love how it turned out! I’ve been doing a lot of quilting lately and have really fallen in love with the process. From design to finished quilt, I can see why people love this as a hobby! It is so satisfying and meditative. Don’t worry, I still love garment sewing too, but quilting has really opened the door to a whole new world and I’m having so much fun exploring.
Below is a mockup of the design for the Z quilt (side note – I pronounce it ‘zee’ even though I am in Canada). I love that this design uses many colours and you can have fun playing with the colour combinations for each ‘Z’.
The Z’s are constructed using half square triangles and rectangles. This is a simple design that is quick to sew. The only part that was hard to wrap my head around was how many pieces I needed in order to have a variety of colours represented. I’m not even going to attempt to explain how I worked this out, it hurt my brain too much.
I used grunge quilting cotton from Moda. I like that this fabric gives the quilt some dimension and visual interest. For the back I used a tie-dye cotton print that I had in my stash. So cute! I decided to go with a scrappy binding since I have leftover fabric to use up anyways. I think it really works well with the design. For the quilting, I went for super simple straight lines, ¼” away from each Z horizontally.
I was so excited to give this quilt to my niece but I had prepared myself for the possibility of her being underwhelmed by it. I mean, do 7-year-olds care about quilts? Well, turns out they do! She loved it! She was so thrilled by it and brought it everywhere with us during her visit. She even asked me for another quilt, this time with cats on it. I better get started!
Do you like to quilt? Or do you want to give it a try? Let me know in the comments!
Helen
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19 Comments on “Z Quilt for Zoya”
I love to quilt. I am making my son a temperature quilt which I am loving so far!!
I really like the “Z”, it reminds me of that it is used as a symbol for sleeping. You could also turn the blocks for an “N”. I love quilts, I just don’t love running a big quilt through the sewing machine, it gets so heavy. I have been thinking about trying the quilt as you go method and this block looks like it might work.
So true! My other niece’s name is Nora, so that is perfect! I do think you could do the quilt-as-you-go method with this one.
Hi Helen—lovely! Wondering what program you used to design the quilt.
Hi Lisa! I used Adobe Illustrator to design this one. If you are interested in learning quilt design and do not know how to use illustrator, I recommend checking out https://prequilt.com/! It’s a great tool for playing with design. There is also an amazing e-course from Alderwood Studio all about quilt design. https://www.alderwood-studio.com/patternwritingacademy
Your quilt is truly awesome! I love to quilt and just finished my ‘Covid’ quilt (sewn during that lockdown) as a memento. Looks like Zoya has great design abilities like her aunt.
LOVE LOVE! I have a grandson named ZEV. I’m gettin right on a Z quilt for him:) thanks for the idea!!
Dear Helen, Congratulations on this lovely quilt! I know from my own kids how much they love it when I made them clothing, so yes, kids do appreciate that you were so thoughtful! I love listening to yours and Caroline’s podcast, and have been meaning to write to you both for some time now. I stumbled upon the podcast when I wanted to listen to the interview with Meg from Sew Liberated. I have to say that at first I thought I’d called up the wrong podcast because of the little intro song! I have to also let you know that that little ditty sticks in my mind for days on end, and I’ve grown to really love it! But, I just wanted to let you know that I’ve been sewing since my mom showed me how to thread a sewing machine (a very old black metal Royal made by Singer which I still have) when I was 7 years old. I am now 66 and still sewing, but I must say that I never learned how to adjust a pattern to fit me and have given away many garments that were too big or too small in places. I have learned so much from you and Caroline, and am extremely grateful to you both. Thank you for showing this old dog some new tricks. Keep up the great work!
Warm regards,
Rita
Hi Rita! Thank you so much for your kind words! I really appreciate it. I will pass this message on to Caroline and Lisa as well.
Happy sewing!
What a bold, beautiful, and clever quilt! I love how the simple block construction leads to such a cool”Z” design. And how fun to make this for your niece! It’s so fun to see your enthusiasm for quilting + quilt design grow. I can’t wait to see it continue!
I love quilting and I have 2 grandchildren whose names begin with Z. (Zinnia and Zachary) I would like this pattern.
Could you tell us more about your quilting method once the piecing was done?
Sure! I just did straight-line quilting and sewed 1/4″ on either side of the Z’s in horizontal rows. I wanted it to be very soft so it would get used more often.
A wonderful design and colors! I’m glad she liked it, – and I like her design in her note! so interesting how the colors look different next to various colors.
Your quilt is amazing Helen what a wonderful gift ❤️
Bucket list!
Nice design and work! I have made a few quilts..very simple in design…and I do love playing with the fabrics. I do not wear quilting cottons but love the pretty designs. Sometimes, if I am not in the mood for garment sewing, I get my sewing jollies piecing quilts. And, yes, I have managed to acquire a small stash of quilt fabrics..can’t resist. Happy sewing!
Would LOVE to know the measurements of the pieces! I have a goddaughter named Zoeya and she would LOVE this quilt 🙂 It’s so gorgeous; well done!
Thank you!! The HSTs are 2.5″ once sewn in, and the rectangles on either side to make the ‘Z’ shape are 2.5″ x 5″ once sewn in.