A quilt border should support and frame the design in the body of the quilt. Occasionally new elements are introduced in the border to add interest, but more often the border unifies the composition by repeating color, line, and/or shape.
Designing the borders for my quilt about time was just as challenging as every other part of the quilt. With so much going on in the center medallion and the corners, what kind of frame would be suitable?
A plain fabric border? No, I feared that would look heavy and clunky.
A pieced border? No, there’s not a straight line anywhere in this quilt!
An appliquéd border? It had to be, and one that repeated many of the same shapes and colors. And one that had the same scale and level of detail as the elements in the center. It looked like I would be in for another long haul – good thing I enjoy the ride, huh? And that is how I ended up with a border design of 45 patches that repeat 16 times – a mere 720 pieces!
To create unity, the border corners echo the shapes found in the center medallion…
… and the royal blue fabric continues to play a dominant, anchoring role. In fact, it forms the only straight line – an outer edge softened by appliqué that appears to twist over and under like the vines prevalent in the rest of the quilt.
The border is 20% complete at this stage, with 9 of the 45 patches appliquéd. The patches vary in size and complexity, but repeat 16 times, so there’s no telling how long the remaining 80% will take. Watch my Facebook Page for up-to-the-minute border reports or stay tuned for future posts!
Leave a Reply