Diamond Ring Quilt for DUDQS3

Here is my finished quilt for The Down Under Doll Quilt Swap 3 which was made for Lorraine.  Lorraine was pretty easy going, she likes colour but her favourites are orange and green.  Initially I had a hard time coming up with a colour palette using both of those colours. The beauty of swaps are that they force you to use colours that you wouldn't normally use and sometimes the process has you feeling really uncomfortable but I was so relieved when I came up with a combo that would please my partner and that I was happy with too.

The design inspiration came from this quilt by Green Bee Designs that was photographed at Quilt Market earlier this year.  The design had stuck in my head and I wanted to challenge myself and work out the pattern.  The diamond wedges are paper pieced and then the wedges are put together as a drunkards path.  The inner circle was really hard to sew since it was so small and it didn't come out very well.  I ended up adding a circle applique over the top using this tutorial from Amy which finished it off really nicely.  Lorena kindly invited me over for coffee and a quick lesson in hand applique - knowing how to do it properly makes all the difference.

When it came to the quilting I always knew I was going to base it on this design by LR Stitched which has been a favourite ever since I saw it.  I have never quilted so densely before and it gives the design another dimension.

*******************

Quilt Stats:

Finished quilt measures: 19" x 19"

Special techniques used:  foundation paper piecing, hand applique, quilting concentric circles

Quilted by: Me