shoot for the stars {radiant goals}

Note:  Edited to sprinkle some "stained glass"-esque shots throughout :)

I was really excited about the Pantone Quilt Challenge this year.  And not only because the talented twosome of Anne of Play Crafts and Adrianne of On The Windy Side were our new proud and fearless hosts.  But also because I've sort of been hoarding purple fabrics.  ...Since I started stashing.

So last month, I thought I was ahead of the game when I decided to sketch out a couple of concepts.  And then life happened, other projects took priority, and before I knew it, I had one week left and two stacks of uncut fabric pulls. (Ruh roh.)  And then, out of the blue, my friend Heather of Crimson Tate asked if I would be available to fill in for a guild speaker who had something come up at the last minute.  (Déjà vu?)  I happily obliged—even though it'd cost some pantone-purple sewing time—and quickly decided to demo my {free} paper-pieced arrow pattern for the (our) Indy Modern Quilt Guild.

Sidebar:  I extended the shaft section of the pattern to the height of the page (~11"), and added a few improv stripes and band.

When it came time to prep that weekend (there are things I plan for, folks!), I decided to cut into a few odd-shaped scraps from my liberty (and justice for all) DWR, some leftover oakshotts from this {sweet as honey} quilt, and of course—being a connoisseur of farm-to-stash feedsacks—, a cream-colored sack of Midwestern origin for the background.

As for the presentation itself, I was on cloud nine.  (I might be an attorney by trade, but I'm always up for some quality chats and collaboration with fellow creatives.  And I mean always.)  So much so, that when I got home and reality set in that radiant '(k)id and radiant {koi} couldn't possibly be completed (well) by the challenge deadline, I set my sights on something new.  And then noticed that my arrow-heart had the perfect touch of orchid-purple. 

Serendipity :)  So I just started piecing mini-stars from my liberty and oakshott scraps, drawing upon a few other feedsacks for the background (I've been hoarding a somewhat tattered collection for Tula's city sampler blocks, but thanks to addictive ebay habits there's still plenty where those came from).

So by Wednesday I found myself with a purply-blue arrow and twenty-some odd stars in various stages of completion.  Surprisingly, I knew early on (read: Tuesday) that I wanted—for perhaps the first time ever—to avoid a straightforward grid structure (gasp!).  So I scattered the stars across the floor, cut a host of 2" strips from the feedsacks to fill in the background (à la gypsy wife), and starting piecing them in the best way I thought possible:  at random.  The end result?  (As my IG peeps have already seen...)

"Shoot for the stars."  (It seemed to appropriately capture my sentiments about the events leading up to this design, what with the lofty daydreams of a wholeheartedly creative life and whatnot.)  It measures a somewhat obscure 40" x 61", but I suppose that's what happens when you (I) improvise.  ;o)

The only outstanding question?  How to quilt it.  (!)  My thoughts?
—Tight straight lines in Aurifil on a diagonal (like this other (pseudo) pantone shooting star design) or
—Chunky, organic hand quilting with perle 8 to complement the rustic background (like the other arrow quilt)

Feel free to share yours if you have ideas for me!  And go on and take a look at all the glorious quilts that are painting Play Crafts and On The Windy Side purple these days, or check out #pantonequilt over on IG.  Plenty of inspiration to go around!

xo