Rosewater + Gingham {a finished quilt top}

Introducing Rosewater, a collection by Verna Mosquera for Free Spirit Fabrics, released (I believe) in 2014.  I’ve had a jelly roll of this collection sitting for at least a year, and it was time to use it.

It’s been more than a month since I attended Kathy Doughty’s workshops here in Utah, but so many things that she said are still swirling around in my head!  She has motivated me to work more within my own stash to find fabric combinations that are a little less predictable, that make each other really shine, and use what I have.  I’d been poking around on Pinterest for jelly roll quilt ideas and came across this jelly roll quilt top which I used as inspiration for mine.  But I didn’t want to just pull out a solid.

Enter black and white gingham.

I got started.


The gingham was cut in 1.5″ strips and I just added alternating borders of prints and gingham.  I ended up cutting a few strips from my stash to add to the project because I wasn’t sure if the jelly roll I was using had enough strips in it to reach my goal of 60″ square.  In the end, it worked out and I had plenty, but it’s nice to have a few other prints mixed in.

Especially that gorgeous green floral by Jennifer Paganelli.  I wish I had a bolt of that fabric.


This turned out to be a really fun and simple project.  Somewhere in the middle I felt a little bored with doing the same thing around and around, but then all of a sudden I was nearly finished and it worked out perfectly.


I’m SO glad I used the gingham!  I feel like it adds depth and interest, and keeps the quilt top from being too “sweet.”  The Rosewater collection is so feminine and delicate; the gingham grounds it.  And makes me want to get a closer look.

This particular gingham is the Medium Cotton Gingham in black by Riley Blake Designs.  It’s a printed, and not a woven, gingham, and was therefore really easy to work with in this project.

I purchased mine here more than a year ago, and it looks like they still have some in stock.


This quilt top feels like a victory to me.  One less jelly roll sitting on my shelf with no specific plans, a quilt top completely from stash, something actually finished around here!  The backing is already pieced (another gingham, I’m so excited!), along with the binding, and I’m trying to decide if I want to quilt it really simply and let the fabrics speak for themselves, or do something else.


I love the sight of a quilt top hanging from my cherry tree, gently blowing in the soft breeze.  Summer!  My heart is happy.

Jennifer