The pipeline...

There's a bit of a pipeline here at Global Nomad Quilts - multiple projects in the works, ideas sketched on my laptop (I used to use Powerpoint to sketch, but I've upgraded to Adobe Illustrator and I love it!), quilts in the process of being made, and finished quilt patterns that need one final scrub of the instructions before they get published.

The next pattern that will actually go on sale is the one I sneak-peeked the other day with what is undoubtedly the world's worst picture. I've decided to call this one "Dancing Stars". I could wait to get it quilted - but I'm quite impatient, and I got a pretty nice picture of it yesterday - so I think I'll just use this picture as the cover image for the pattern. (It's a pretty easy quilt pattern - makes an 84"x 84" quilt top - the blocks are set on point, but they are big blocks, and this is quick to construct.)

In the meanwhile, my mother and my cousin are testing the pattern shown in the image below at the moment.

In addition, my aunt is impatiently awaiting a set of instructions to test a different pattern. Here, I'm the reason of the delay - I'm yet to write them. It takes a good amount of time - Moroccan Morning took 10 hours to write - I woke up one Saturday morning, and spent the entire day writing and drawing.

And now, back to work!

Another sneak peek!

Posted on WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced

I've been working on a simpler kolam pattern. This particular kolam is a bit of a starter kolam - it's the kind that little children learn to make, before working on more advanced designs. It's also the kind that you quickly draw on your doorstep, if you are in a hurry and have other chores to get on with.

My mother is actually working on testing out a different pattern of mine, and so I actually made these blocks myself - which is a bit of a variation for me. I'm pretty pleased with the way they turned out! Each block is 23 inches square, which means you can make a nice full-size quilt with 9 blocks, and a king-size quilt with only 16 blocks.

Sneak peek!

Here's a (very blurry) sneak peek of the next quilt pattern. 

The inspiration is Indian Rangoli. I'm trying to think of a good pattern name, any suggestions? 

Moroccan Morning - now available for sale!

I finished binding the quilt yesterday, and promptly took some photos in my backyard in fading daylight. But so pretty!

The pattern's available on my Craftsy store right now, and I'm putting up an Etsy listing as well today.

Moroccan Morning - the sample is done!

ETA: Linked to TGIFF at Celtic Thistle Stitches, and to Finish it Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts.

As background, my next quilt pattern  Moroccan Morning is inspired by Moroccan ceramic tile. I kid you not, every time I see tile, I either pull out my camera to take a photo (phone cameras - so useful!), or sketch it out (if I happen to have pen and paper with me.)

I've been on the phone with my mom daily, badgering her to complete this quilt quickly. I'm quite sure she's very tired of me by now, but she did send me this photo the other day.

I love the bright cheerful colors, and I also love how the yellow bits come together to form a star.

Anyway - this quilt top will be on its way to be quilted next week, and once it's back, I'll take photos and put up a pattern on Craftsy and Etsy. First week of February, if all goes well!

Moroccan Morning - pattern testers needed!

The plan for Global Nomad Quilts is a new pattern every month. However, I think at that rate, I'll face some serious rebellion from my mother and my aunt, who both tested out Infinite Pathways from me.

I therefore turn to you, dear readers, with a plea for help. Would you like to be a pattern tester for Global Nomad Quilts?

The next quilt pattern is called Moroccan Morning. The inspiration for this one is Moroccan tile-work. I love the colors and the patterns of this tile work, and every time I see a tile pattern, I itch to replicate it in quilt form.

Moroccan Morning comes in 5 sizes, Crib, Lap, Twin, Full, Queen and King. It will require 3 solid colors - in my inspiration image, the colors were a turquoise blue, a sunny yellow and white - but you could use any three colors that have some contrast to them. There are two types of pieced blocks, and the quilt pattern will be doable by an ambitious beginner with a few quilts under their belt.

What am I looking for in a pattern tester?

- You must be comfortable printing out the pattern at home - I'll be sending you a PDF pattern.
- Confident beginner and above level quilters are preferred.
- You must provide your own fabric and notions for sewing the test quilt.
- You must be willing to sew the test quilt promptly, within 4 weeks of receiving the pattern. The pattern is easy and very do-able in that time frame.
- You must provide feedback and images of the finished top, and be okay with me posting these pictures on this blog.
- Ideally, you must have a blog and write a blog post about the pattern. I'll be honest, this is a very new pattern company, and I'd love some publicity.

That seems like a lot, and I appreciate all the help in advance. As thanks, if you finish the quilt and send me usable images of the finished quilt/quilt top, I'll send you a code for a 50% discount on this and all future Global Nomad Quilt PDF patterns. (The fine print: Only one discount per pattern - so you can't buy 50 of the same pattern, and the discount is for your personal use.)

If you are interested, please leave me a comment on this post with your email address, and I'll contact you if I need your help.

Thanks!

Infinite Pathways!

Dear readers, I've been really busy the last couple of days, making the final adjustments to my first quilt pattern (woo hoo!), coming up with a company name, figuring out yardage requirements, and adding a second sizing option. Whoa! Lots of good stuff, I'm pretty stoked!

All of this means, I think I'm ready to publish it. For the moment, I'm thinking Craftsy and Etsy. There's a bit of logistics stuff to figure out - Paypal accounts, blah blah, but I'm hoping to put the pattern up in 2012. (Three days, Reethi - get to it!)


Enough talking Reethi - let's get to the picture, shall we? Here's the cover page of the pattern, featuring my mom's completed quilt top. (Well, she still needs to attach a border, but I got impatient.)

This is a relatively easy quilt to make. Though there are a lot of steps, the quilt is easy enough to sew - it's all squares and rectangles, no curves, no triangles.