Introducing the Bloomfield Quilt: A Garden of Quilty Possibilities

There's something magical about watching a quilt come together, especially when it's filled with fabric treasures you've been collecting over the years. My latest pattern, Bloomfield, has been growing like a beautiful garden in my studio, and I'm excited to share this journey with you.

A scrappy love letter to some favorite designers

If you're anything like me, you've collected some real treasures over the years in your fabric stash. The most fun part of creating my scrappy Bloomfield has been scanning over it and seeing some of my all-time favorites all in one place. In particular concentration, this quilt features fabrics by these incredible designers:

  • Lizzy House
  • Libs Elliott
  • Emily Taylor
  • The whole Ruby Star Society crew
  • Carolyn Friedlander
  • Leah Duncan
  • Heather Ross

And honestly? I'm keeping this one forever! It's become little time capsule of the designers whose work has inspired me most over the years.

Practical lessons learned along the way

So this was a labour of love, and I have tips! I got pretty thrifty and made a real effort to use what I had on hand for this one, and that went for everything from the batting to the backing to the thread.

Batting from Scraps

Of all the quilting techniques I've ever been intimidated by, piecing batting scraps together has turned out to be the easiest! For my 60" x 60" throw, I decided it was finally time to dig into my batting scraps rather than buy more. I'm so glad I just went for it and tried – the pieces came together like butter using just a zigzag stitch, running them through side by side with no overlap.

Thread Selection Strategy

When it came time to choose thread for my scrappy Bloomfield, I was about to head out to buy new thread when I remembered a beautiful set from Connecting Threads that included pink, yellow, white, and blue options. In the end, the golden yellow met my criteria perfectly: not too much contrast, but still with a nice bit of pop against all those scrappy fabrics.

Backing Choices

Are you team pieced backing or wideback? While I've really loved taking advantage of wideback fabrics for larger quilts in recent years, it was pretty satisfying to use up a good assortment of scraps and different yardage amounts for this throw. For the binding, I went with Cherries in Altitude blue from Sugar Cone by Kimberly Kight and Ruby Star Society – the perfect finishing touch.

Getting started

So that's a little BTS on how I tackled my Bloomfield ... but what do you need to get started? Suggestion one: first have some fun, and spend some time playing with the digital templates.

Mockups in PreQuilt

It wouldn't be a pattern launch without some digital templates to help you dream up fun color schemes! I'm completely addicted to PreQuilt's randomizer button, and this time was no exception. I created tons of variations using preloaded solids collections from Kona and Riley Blake, just going wild with possibilities. The digital color pages are perfect whether you want to experiment with the randomizer or play around with a specific palette you have in mind for your quilt.

Scrappy vs a restrained palette

While I've been sharing my scrappy version everywhere, Bloomfield is actually fantastic for yardage too! The pattern includes instructions for:

  • A four-color version (available in all three sizes)
  • The scrappy edition you've been seeing
  • An alternate version where each block features a different fabric

This flexibility means you can adapt Bloomfield to work with whatever's calling to you from your stash – whether that's a carefully edited color palette or a wild mix of beloved prints.

Custom Templates for Precision

I'm thrilled to be partnering with Cut Once Quilts on custom acrylic templates designed especially for Bloomfield. I chose a rose pink frosted acrylic – the matte finish gives them anti-slip properties that came in incredibly handy when making my scrappy version. These beauties are made and shipped from Austin, Texas!

A video tutorial for the blocks

Are you someone who likes to have pictures to go along with the words? There are lots of diagrams in the pattern, but I also made a little video to show you step by step how to pin, sew, and trim the sub-units that comprise each block. 

Your Quilting Story

So tell me – what treasures do you have in your stash? Who would feature most frequently in a scrappy all-stars quilt if you made one? I'd love to see how you interpret Bloomfield and which fabric designers end up starring in your version.

My Bloomfield quilt garden is growing, and I can't wait to see yours bloom too!

Ready to start your own Bloomfield? Find the pattern in the shop.

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