Breanna, an exceptionally talented longarm quilter, tech editor and pattern tester, created this stunning Echo Lake Quilt featuring some gorgeous Ruby Star Society fabrics! Throughout the process, she documented her thoughts, and I'm thrilled to share both her experience and the gorgeous photos here!
If you want to check out the Crystal Creek Quilt she made… you can see it here!
Take it away, Breanna!
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Hi there, my name is Breanna Gaudaur and I am an avid quilter, pattern tester, tech editor and long arm quilter based in Ontario, Canada. I’ve been quilting since I was six years old, and it is still one of my favourite ways to spend time. When I’m not quilting you’ll find me busy at my day job or going on adventures to get photos of quilts in the wild.
The hardest part of creating my Echo Lake Quilt was selecting my fabrics. Not because I didn’t have the right fabric in my stash, but because I had too many good options and I had a really hard time narrowing it down.
I had decided to go with a nice warm palette using fabrics from some of my favourite Ruby Star Society collections, but I was going back and forth about which fabric to use where, and was struggling to visualize how it would all turn out.
I finally decided that I needed to commit to the main fabric I wanted for each of the six blocks and went ahead and cut those strips out. Once I’d done that it was simply a matter of playing around with the fabric I had left and figuring out which ones to use as the centre strips for each block.
I ended up having to do a bit of franken-piecing to create some of my strips as I only had bits and pieces left of a few of the fabrics I wanted to use. But once my strips were ready to go I had my blocks made and my quilt top assembled in no time. Hooray for strip-piecing!
When it came to quilting I wanted to choose a pantograph that would help soften up all the straight lines, while highlighting some of the floral motifs found in the fabric.
I had recently added Daisy Daze by Karlee Porter Design to my collection, and it was exactly what I was looking for. I tend to lean towards dense quilting when it comes to my own quilts, because I just love seeing how a tight, geometric design can create beautiful texture and bring a quilt top to life. Daisy Daze did not disappoint!
I had a few different binding options in mind, but when it came time to make the binding I wasn’t in love with any of them. I decided to get the next quilt loaded on my longarm while I considered my options, and quickly realized that the Ruby Star Society Koi Pond fabric I was about to use for a backing would also make the perfect binding fabric.
I hurried up and got that quilt finished so I could turn the leftover backing into binding for my Echo Lake. I had more than enough to make my binding, and it was exactly what this quilt needed.
After finishing up the hand binding I grabbed my tripod and headed out to one of my favourite winter quilt photo locations. This little barn is located on a public trail which runs right through the middle of an historic farm. It provides a consistent backdrop and a little bit of relief from the icy wind, and the smell of sheep is only unbearable if you get really close to the barn.
Quilt Details:
Pattern: Echo Lake Quilt
Fabric: Assorted prints from Ruby Star Society Golden Hour, Moon Glow, Heirloom, Add it Up and Koi Pond collections.
Backing: Ruby Star Society Add it Up in Warm Red
Pantograph: Daisy Daze by Karlee Porter Design
Pieced and Quilted by: Breanna Gaudaur of Rose Ivy Quilts
