Honestly, I used to dread the quilting phase. I definitely worried that I would make my quilt less beautiful by quilting it. And sometimes, I think I did! Have you been there?

I am sooooo grateful that I can now so easily finish my quilts with my Gammill longarm. Using a longarm makes this stage of the quilt-making process feel like another area to explore and design, rather than like an intimidating chore. I wish that all quilters could have the same privilege. But, of course, I wouldn’t have a longarm either if I wasn’t offering quilting services. This machine has to pay for itself, haha! And it was darn expensive.

Well, here is my latest finish, all quilted and washed. If you compare these first two images, you can see how the washed quilting is more crinkly and puffy than it looks fresh off the machine. I don’t prewash my fabrics or my batting, but in my experience this kind of crinkle develops even if you do prewash. Most people find it cozy.

Voila, Tangential Stars quilt! This project is the intersection between two cravings: to sew with Anna Maria Horner’s Brave collection and to explore making a whole quilt of the Tangential Star block from my Angled class. I think they intersected quite splendidly!

My favorite feature is the octagon/squares layout with the Pruned print as squares. But a close second would be the surprising pleasure of using the Labyrinth print in berry hues as the outer border. It’s these types of discoveries, which I don’t anticipate in advance, that most delight me in quilt-making. I relish those little surprises.

How’s this backing for a surprise? I mean - wow!

That widleback fabric is another Anna Maria Horner design, called Optimistic. I have been itching to sew with it for ages. This hit the spot.

For quilting I opted for the Trumpeting Vine design. Its floral fanciness is fittingly decadent for this quilt. To wrap things up, she’s bound in Love Always Cathedral in Ocean, which is a very nice scale for binding.

Well, I love this one! It turned out dramatically beautiful, and I very much enjoyed entwining those cravings. The finished throw quilt is 63” square. It is listed today in my Handmades shop, and hopefully will soon be sent off to beautiful someone’s home.

p.s. Want to make something similar? You can find Brave fabrics at The Confident Stitch and Fat Quarter Shop. Sign up for Angled Class to get the Tangential Star block pattern, and lots more!