March 17, 2014

radiant orchid inspired pillow

When Pantone declared Radiant Orchid the color of 2014, I didn't think much about it. I'm not a huge purple fan so it didn't really blow my skirt up.

https://www.pantone.com/pages/index.aspx?pg=21131

But then I started seeing the way people were using it in crafty projects on Instagram and I really loved it! I decided to challenge myself to making some projects with this pretty shade of purple and I'm so glad I did.

I started small- with an 23" x 23" (finished size)  pillow for the living room. I dug through my most precious scraps and pulled all the pretty purples and some grey, mustard yellow and low volume prints that I thought would go nicely together.
 

My wife is making a quilt with batiks and while I'm not usually a huge fan, she had some great purples in her stash! I added some of those in too. Gosh, I love making projects with scraps! It's almost like my own personal I Spy project, remembering all of the other goodies these fabrics have gone into. :)

After I picked out the fabrics, I cut out 156 2.5" squares and got to work laying them out!


Once I came up with a design I liked, I sewed them together using a 1/4" seam allowance.


Don't you love the way unlined/unfinished projects look with light streaming through them? It's like stained glass, I tell you!

To finish this pillow, I used straight line quilting on the front and then a simple envelope closure on the back. I used my go-to bag and pillow fabric- a fake linen curtain from IKEA. They're great!

Here is my finished pillow!


I love the way this pillow turned out! I'm so glad I decided to go outside of my comfort zone and embrace Radiant Orchid! I like the way this turned out so much that I even made a quilt using this purple as the inspiration... but that'll be shared another time as the day job is calling. :)

Have you been inspired by Radiant Orchid this spring? I'd love to see what you've made! Have a great day, friends! :)
xo, Kara
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7 comments:

  1. Your pillow came out really nice! I love the Etiquette book on the shelf. My sister gave the same one to my daughter when she graduated from high school.

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  2. It's gorgeous! And way to go on having the patience to sew together all of those tiny squares!! xox

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  3. This is so fun! I love the random layout and the fun BW prints you used as contrast - just wonderful!

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  4. This is gorgeous - and yes, I do love the way quilt tops look with light streaming through them. I'd really like to try and capture that in a finished quilt one day. Your pillow is really lovely and I like the way you used radiant orchid as a pop of colour. Thanks for playing along with the Challenge!

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  5. I love the way the little animal blocks peak out of the quilt! Just look at that bear nose!

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  6. This is so beautiful! Those mustards and low volumes make it perfect for spring (it's spring now, right??) and I love all those fun prints you used!

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  7. Postage stamp projects are so awesome, I love yours!! The scrappiness is just smile inducing :) Great job!!

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