Mariner’s Jewel (Center star)
Mariner’s Jewel, 99 x 99
In designing and naming this stunning quilt, Kristi drew her inspiration from her own family history: "The thistles are partially pieced Mariner's Compass blocks and have significance because my great grandmother was from Scotland. Her husband, my great grandfather, was a sea captain. The jewel tone fabrics remind me of birth stone colors. My dad's birthstone was an opal, so I figured out a way to layer fabrics so that the background of the compass looks like the colors of an opal.” Kristi's husband helped draft and print out the paper-piecing patterns for the compass star, using a CAD program and plotter. The beautiful diamond borders echo the colors and shapes of the star. "The borders took me longer than the center and the applique combined!"
Mariner’s Jewel (border detail)
Many of Kristi's quilts include mariner’s compass stars. She says: “I took a class with Judi Mathieson a long time ago, and after that I was ‘hooked’ on compass quilts”. Kristi's Tropical Whimsy quilt pattern combines mariner’s compass stars with tropical leaves and geckos. Her other fresh, original designs include Flossie’s Four Patch, a colorful calico quilt surrounded by appliquéd flowers. For more information, visit her website at Chicken Soup Designs.
Note: We featured Tropical Whimsy in a blog on batik star pattern quilts, called Spiked!
Image credits: Images are courtesy of Kristi L. Parker.
