
Rainbow Derecho Quilt
I’m feeling a little maniacal laughter coming on – I have finished my Rainbow Derecho Quilt! I started it after the megastorm in July and thought it would be fitting to finish it during our October megastorm.
I also wanted to get it done in time for the Blogger’s Quilt Festival – wherein hundreds (400+ so far!) of quilters from across the globe submit pictures of quilts they’ve made – with a lot of lovely giveaways..
Here are the specifics on my quilt:
Rainbow Derecho Quilt
Measures: 82×86
Special Techniques used: Applique
Quilted by: me on a home machine
Best Categories: Bed Quilt, ROYGBIV, and Applique
I did the binding by machine – with invisible thread in the bobbin. I think this might be my new preferred way to machine-sew binding?
This quilt was actually originally inspired by a request for a custom rainbow quilt on Etsy. I ended up making something pretty different for the customer, but this idea caught my fancy. I did most of the cutting of piles of strips while our power was out after the Derecho, and laid it all out on our front porch on sunny July afternoons and evenings while wearing my giant straw hat.
I used a high thread count sheet for the white background which is heaavvyyy and the purple/blue cotton I used for the backing is also heavvvyyyy. I machine quilted it and did the applique in the same round of sewing in a half a dozen different sessions. I pin basted the rainbow swirls down, though I do wish I had used basting spray as I had a fair few wrinkles in the final version.
It is a queen sized quilt – we have so few that I’ve made that are big enough for our bed. I have several twin sized that I put on the bed pretending they fit and one of us always wakes up without any blankets…
It is raining for the next few days and I couldn’t wait to get a photo. It was quite difficult to get a full quilt shot inside the house – but I mostly managed.
Now that I have it finished, I really wish I had quilted it a little denser. I suppoooose I have the option to go back and add in more stitching.


44 Comments
Laura
What a fun quilt!
Laura
So nice! Great idea! As we sit here in the middle of the storm, it is a fitting time to end the quilt you started in the last “storm of the century.” Those are very nice swirls!!!
Belinda
That is truly amazing! I love your color choices and the quilting. Lovely quilt!
Nina-Marie
love the movement and the color choices!!
bruinbr
This is such a fun quilt! Awesome job!
Mina
love the energy
Sally
Very cool design.
Marla @ SewHungry
Wow this is fun. Very Seuss.
Beth
What a cool quilt!
CitricSugar
This is a swirling vortex of wonderful! Love it.
Hope you stay safe and dry!
Lily
I love the rainbow swirls, what a fun idea!
Michelle @ needle and nest
What a beautiful quilt! I love the sense of movement combined with the bright colors. Well done! 🙂
Eileen
What a fun fantastic quilt!! Just love it. Thanks for sharing your creative piece and have a great day
shannon c.
This is so awesome! I love the swirly rainbows!
Dianna
Your quilt is stunning, I love the colours and the curves! Completely the opposite to the image of the two megastorms it was created in:)
Fiber of All Sorts
Jaw dropping! This is fantastic! I’m in total awe of this and SO would love to have your creative ways in my back pocket!
Patti
Wow! This is a wonderful colourful quilt! Great entry into the festival!
Lorna
You must be so pleased with this quilt. What a lot of
positive energy this quilt holds. Well done!
Alison
How creative! Beautiful colors.
Pam
Love your use of color. Fantastic
Sam
Love it!
Katherine
abSOLUTELY LOVE THIS QUILT!
Lyanna L.
What a fun quilt – I like the movement it has. Excellent job.
margaret gunn
really cool quilt~!
Ellie Q
Absolutely gorgeous!
Marika
Quilting Very nice work 🙂
Rebecca
LOVE the design! Beautiful work!
janice
I LOVE all the rainbows and movement! It’s so unique!
cat stone
LOVE this quilt! So much energy and movement – well done!
Shari
Great design, colour and movement! You’ve done a really great job here – I totally love this.
Carolyn
Love those swirls! And the colors are great!
Lily
This is so dramatic and reminds me of some improv curves I did for a table mat I made last winter! Pretty!
Catherine @ Knotted Cotton
Wow! It looks amazing – I love how colourful it is, and how swirly:-)
Roxanne
LOVE, LOVE, Love this quilt!!
Malini
Great idea! Love the quilt!
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Em
Wonder if you’re somewhere near me in Virginia, with reference to those two storms! I love the quilt. Fantastic job!
Sewfrench
Very cool! I can’t imagine quilting it and appliquéing it all at the same time! You done good!
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Nicole
Absolutely beautiful! It’s so nice when you can make something that is beautiful and also practical!
jodi
Just have to tell you, you got my vote! What a gorgeous quilt!
Sonia
Amazing quilt and the quilting is perfect! It’s getting my vote! Good luck
Suzanne
Dana, your quilts just get more and more awesomer every time…
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