After investigating the possibilities for making patchwork with non-quilting cottons, I decided to go for it and make myself a small picnic blanket. I want something light and compact to take along when hiking or going for a walk along the sea. It should be just big enough for two to sit for a spell.

With that in mind, I curated this mix of rayon and voile scraps in blue and berry tones. I confess that it feels quite daring to make a picnic blanket with these fine fabrics, but as it’s not intended to be a family picnic blanket for hordes of children to jump on, I will excuse my indulgence. Also, these are scraps people. With scraps you can do anything you want, right? Right.

So, I cut 5” x 7” rectangles for simple patchwork. Oh, and before cutting I starched all the rayon pieces to help them behave nicely.

Before long my little patchwork piece was complete and a backing was created, using yardage and scraps by my favorite designer - Anna Maria Horner.

Then I quilted the patchwork to the backing without batting. I was soooo tempted to use batting, but I do want it to be quite compact and skipping batting is key. This X quilting looks fantastic on the simple patchwork, don’t you think?

Now she’s bound with a bright red that feels quite picnic-y if I do say so myself. The weather is fine, so Evening Berries blanket may see some use this very week. Enjoy those sunny moments, friends!

p.s. I’ll try to remember to tell you how she holds up over time.