Friday, January 13, 2017

Friday Finish: Supernova Starburst

Last weekend I took two quilts to the beach (see Beach Diaries) and asked our son, Aaron, to take some photos.
my favorite picture of the whole photo shoot :)
First of all, you should know that I started this quilt back in 2011. I found a blog post dated 7/5/11 that showed the finished top.

It has spent the last five-plus years folded up on a shelf.  The original pattern is by Lee Heinrichs of Freshly Pieced. She did a quilt-along called Supernova, back in 2011. I loved the pattern. At that time, batiks were not embraced by the modern quilt movement, so my goal was to use batiks, set against a grey background, which was considered modern, and try to disprove that theory that batiks could not be "modern." I believe I succeeded.
According to that blog post, I looked up the definition of supernova. I liked this definition: "the explosion of a star in which the star may reach a maximum intrinsic luminosity one billion times that of the sun."  I liked the explosion of colors, the hot saturation in each block, and the subtle luminosity. I named the quilt Supernova Starburst.


A few months ago, I took it to my machine quilter extraordinaire, Darby, and she worked magic on it.


Even a photobomb by the other quilt we photographed (I'll share that one next week--it's a beauty!)

It took awhile, but I'm so happy to finally show this quilt. I love everything about it.

Linking up to Crazy Mom Quilts, TGIFF, Fort Worth Quilt Studio and Confessions of a Fabric Addict. Have a colorful weekend.

28 comments:

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Staci said... #

What a beautiful finish! I did have a laugh when I saw your quilt though, I've got 4 Supernova blocks in a box in the closet myself.

Alison V. said... #

This is beautiful! I love the quilting on it and I think it is perfectly modern. :)

Georgi said... #

It took me a long time to warm up to batiks, but now I love them ~ even in modern quilts. Your quilt is GORGEOUS!

Jayne said... #

It turned out beautiful! Batiks get a bad wrap sometimes. Your quilt shows the beauty of them and that they can be considered modern. The quilting is beautiful as always!

Robby said... #

The beach is a perfect place to photo a SuperNova quilt. This is such a beauty, batiks and all. I am such a huge fan of lots of color and all the nuances it can have (pretty much the definition of 'batik') that I couldn't imagine what the Modern Quilt Movement was thinking in shunning them. But tastes vary. I think this is a fabulous example of a fresh take on using batiks.

Debbie said... #

I have always loved the Supernova pattern by Lee, and mine is still one of my favorite quilts - ALSO in batik btw! ;-) I'm so glad you got this done. It's stunning. And beautiful photos!

LIttle Penguin Quilts said... #

That is just a gorgeous quilt! I love the bright batiks against the gray background. I've never sewn much with batiks, but your quilt definitely inspires me!

Needled Mom said... #

That is a beautiful quilt. The colors are fantastic as is the quilting. Of course, the photoshoot backdrop is incredible for it too.

CapitolaQuilter said... #

I loved that QAL. Mine mixed modern, batiks even civil war, whatever scraps I wanted. Yours is certainly glowing and finally ready to enjoy. Gorgeous photo shoot. Oh how Time flies.

ChristaQuilts said... #

This is so gorgeous!

Unknown said... #

I love it! I really dislike the stereotyping of batiks. They are beautiful fabrics! Wonderful job, you made it very modern!

Anonymous said... #

Gorgeous! I also love challenging the notion of what is modern--or whatever other label--and consider myself an equal opportunity quilter when it comes to fabric. Also, who cares!? ;) It's a truly beautiful finish.

Julie said... #

Wow - that is one beautiful quilt. Reminds me of a spectacular sunset. There are some beautiful batiks out there, and it is an under used fabric quilting.

Janice Holton said... #

Oo! Double whammy a finish and taking a UFO out of existence! I love these bright colors and think it's beautiful whether it fits a certain "criteria" or not.

Rochelle aka Bella Quilts said... #

Absolutely gorgeous. Lovely photography, lovely setting. The quilting is exquisite. SO glad you finished and posted.

Kristin said... #

I love this quilt, the fabric, the photos, everything! Beautiful!

Susan said... #

Beautiful quilt Cindy! I love the texture the quilting has given it! Well worth finishing...

Leanne Parsons said... #

You certainly proved batiks can be modern! I've never really understood their exclusion anyway as they are really beautiful fabrics and colours. How wonderful to finally have it finished, and your photo shoot at the beach looks glorious. Thanks for linking to TGIFF :)

Afton Warrick said... #

The gray makes a really nice contrast with the brights. What a beautiful photo shoot. I confess, I have fabric cut for this quilt. I should probably get to it sometime. Oooops!

Kathy @ Kwilty Pleasures said... #

I think the quilt is lovely. I went thru the batik craze many years ago and always thought they were yummy. Interesting to see them now reemerging as acceptable "modern" fabrics. "Labels" belong only on the back of quilts. ☺️

Connie Kresin Campbell said... #

Beautiful quilt and congrats on your finish! I have loved batiks forever and love working with them.

Micki @ 2 Dogs Studio said... #

Fabulous quilt and fabulous photos. Great job. Is the grey background fabric also a batik? micki@2dogsstudio.us

dutchcomfort said... #

Your Supernova is beautiful, modern and sparkling! I also used batiks to make this quilt, but on a light turqoise blue batik background with sprinkled golden dots. I loved making it!

Unknown said... #
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BizarreQuilter said... #

Oh! I love this! Gorgeous fabrics, and the quilting. wow.

Rene' said... #

Congrats on such a beautiful finish!!! Love the quilt photography!

Archie The Wonder Dog said... #

It's stunning!

Anne / Springleaf Studios said... #

I just love the color scheme of this quilt! Gorgeous quilt and great photographs. The beach was the perfect setting for it. The batiks worked nicely too.