Hannah Eye Candy

 We recently received an email with the subject line: "A Little Hannah Eye Candy." It certainly was, and we wanted to share it with all of you! 

Jessica J.E. Smith of The Quilt and Needle Forum designed a Mystery quilt using the Hannah collection. One March weekend later, retreat attendees left with this beauty, titled Frolic:

We asked Jessica to give us some background on her design:

Q. What was the starting point for this design?

Jessica: I started with the woven design in the center of the quilt top. Because the center is fairly busy, I added simple frames and a fun border that keep the focus on that main design element.

Q. What do like about the Hannah fabrics? Why do they work well for this pattern?

Jessica: I named the pattern Frolic - I had dancing ribbons and delicate lace in mind when designing it. The Hannah fabrics’ vibrant flowers and lacy textures naturally add to the fun nature of the quilt. As a bonus, the two greens play well off of one another, adding additional depth and movement to the design.

Q. Why did you choose the black tonal as the background color?

Jessica: It works with both light and dark backgrounds. We actually offered kits (through Happily Ever After Quilts) with a dark or a light background, depending on the preference of the quilter.

Q. What is your favorite part about the quilt?

Jessica: How intricate it looks, considering how simple it is to piece!

Q. Can you talk about the pieced border?

Jessica: I am not a huge fan of plain straight borders on quilts, unless they serve a framing purpose for the design. This one just really finishes off the quilt with a bang.

Q. What else do you want people to know about this quilt? 

Jessica: It is a large quilt, but the piecing is straightforward and fun. My retreaters made this as a mystery, and they were guessing right up until the big reveal.

Q. What are you planning to use for a binding?

Jessica: A bright green binding.

Q. Where was this quilt pieced?

Jessica: A group of quilters from The Quilt and Needle Forum comes together every March for a Mystery Quilt Retreat. They travel here from all over the country, and one even comes from the UK. This pattern was this year's mystery design, and Sherry W. from Arkansas pieced this particular quilt.

It may not be a mystery anymore, but you can purchase the pattern in digital format here and in paper format here.

Find out more about The Quilt and Needle Forum and Jessica's Mystery Quilt Weekends here.

Find the entire Hannah collection here.