FREE Aria Quilt Pattern
Hey quilt peeps! I'm gonna make this post short and sweet cause it's Sunday and I gotta brunch (But first, a moment of honesty – even if I go with people who "brunch" I most definitely ate breakfast the second I woke up. Breakfast is the best and no group of trendy urbanites is going to convince me otherwise. Now where was I?).
That's right! I want you to have this Aria quilt pattern PDF for free. Yippee!
My Needle-Turn Appliqué Supplies
- 14" Wooden Hoop
- Thimble (if you have read any of my hand quilting posts, you know how much I loooove this leather thimble)
- Gold Eye Embroidery Needles
- Needle Threader
- Safety Pins (Because there are over 165 pieces of fabric to sew in place, I chose to baste very quickly and simply with a single safety pin through each piece.)
As you can see below, I used a 14" wooden hoop to stabilize the quilt top. I did not want the raw edges of the fabric to show, so I used a (time-intensive) technique called needle-turn appliqué to sew the fabric pieces.
If you would prefer to use raw edge appliqué, dimensions for those templates are also included in the PDF pattern - see link below.
I can't think about this right now because it is currently 7-degrees here in Chicago, but once upon a time it was summer...ahhhh....and summer is the perrrrfect time to start a needle-turn appliqué project.
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You might be thinking to yourself, "hmmm...appliqué...I only sew straight lines and this seems like something only advanced quilters do."
If you had that thought, smack yourself. (seriously. at least on the hand.)
I didn't try needle-turn appliqué until I made this quilt and if I can figure it out, (You know what I'm going to say...) so can you.
Let me backtrack –this past summer Kelly Ventura (an amazing watercolor artist that you should check out.) asked me to make a quilt using her new fabric line - Aria. I wasn't so sure about this Kelly girl, so I said, "no."
OMG are you serious? Did you believe that? I first read her email three times then jumped up and down then pointed at Scrappy and said, "Momma's one of the COOL KIDS NOW! Look at me sooooar!!!" and then I reservedly replied to her email, "I think I can squeeze you into my schedule."
Her main print is based on dabs of paint and she was hoping that I could mimic that somehow as a quilt. This quilt design popped into my head immediately followed by this thought, "Suz, you gotta do needle-turn appliqué. This design will go from 50% to a 100% if you can figure out how to pull that off."
And that's when YouTube came in. I'm a firm believer in not letting my skills or lack of skills limit my creativity. If I were to let that happen, I'd still be sewing 9-patch quilts all day. So when it comes to designing new quilts, I sketch and say YES to everything. Once I land on a design that I think is a winner, I dissect it and figure out the logistics of how it's going to get done.
In this case, I needed to learn needle-turn appliqué and then sew 165 "paint dabs" onto a quilt top. Easy peezy! I know that sounds like a joke, but this technique really isn't hard. It is, however, very time consuming. I spent a lot of time listening to audio books and watching low-qual shows on Netflix.
In the end, it was worth it. Kelly spent a LOT of time creating a beautiful collection of fabric – I wanted to be sure to do it justice.
Above is another classic – me, standing on top of my dining room table, photographing a quilt. You gotta do what you gotta do to get that perfect picture, AMIRIGHT?
And now for the entire reason you clicked on this blog post – Download the FREE Aria quilt pattern PDF here.
OK, time for brunch. Later gators! Leave a comment below if you have any needle-turn appliqué tips or projects you would like to share. Also, if you make this Aria quilt, please oh please let me know! I'd love to see your version.
Tootles! xo
Oh it’s divine! I’ve just learned needle-turn applique myself, and am addicted.
Hi Suzy,
I love the way you write, I always feel like I am sitting having a coffee and a chat with you. Thanks for the Aria pattern, the quilt looks beautiful. I have never tried needle turn appliqué, but am keen to try, am just discovering Foundation Paper Piecing at the moment and that is quite addictive too.
Compliments of the season to you
Happy Birthday(belated) Suzy! Your quilt is amazing. I have never heard of needle turn appliqué. What exactly is it?
Love the fabric too. Thanks for sharing. Merry Christmas.
Needle turn has always been one of my favorites. I think I’ll give this a whirl, great job!!! 🙂
What a LOVELY quilt – I have been looking for a pattern to use up some scraps of fabric and this is it. Also is nice that its a project that I can do while cuddling my two pups at night. Thank you & happy holidays to you! Deb
Puppy cuddling is always a perk! Maybe I should even start a pattern sun-category titled “meant to be sewn while puppy cuddling.” hahaha 🙂
I love this! But I can’t find the solid colors in the Aria fabric line. Did they come from a different line? Thanks!
These coordinating solids actually just came from my scrap bin. lol! For the most part they are Kona solids
Thanks! I loved that plum color, in particular. I will look around. My mother-in-law just introduced me to Templar sheets- thin heatproof plastic. So I’ve cut out my three shapes and have practiced blind hem appliqué with them. They are awesome! I can’t wait to start this quilt. (Once I finish the raindrop one from Birch fabrics, of course!)
Wonderful! I can’t wait to see your version! 🙂
I WAS UNABLE TO DOWNLOAD THEW ARIA PDF IT SAYS THE LINK ISNT WORKING- THANKS
I just checked the link and it’s still up and running. Trying using a different web browser to see if that fixes the problem.
I’m ready to give this quilt a go and have a couple questions before I start. I know I SHOULD prewash… But prewashing the background and my pile of fat quarters is so daunting- esp the time it’ll take to iron them all afterwards. I don’t want to spend the time and deal with the loss in sizing, but am I being dumb and should just suck it up and prewash it all? (I do have color catchers for that infamous first wash lol)
Me & my giant hoop await your answer, thanks!
If you’re working with pre-cuts my rule of thumb is to skip the pre-wash. Like you said, those bits of fabric are small enough and you don’t want them shrinking and fraying. Use that color catcher and you should be fine. 🙂
I have admired this quilt for awhile now and finally printed the pdf, on the road now. Do you mean there are people that do NOT stand on the dining table or the ironing board to get a good shot of the quilt??? Huh!
Thanks bunches and I will send pics of mine, it’s in the queue.
Suzy, I’ve tried so many new quilty things because of your blog posts, and now I think I need to try appliqué! I’ve seen the few patterns you’ve posted, but I’m wondering if you know where to find more modern appliqué pattern options of a similar style? (e.g. not with cutouts of animals or something, that’s not my style!). Also, could the hidden garden quilt be made with needle turn appliqué, or do you not recommend that? I’d like to have a hand quilting project to work on whenever 🙂
Thanks!
In most cases when you see an applique pattern you can choose which technique to use – needle turn, raw edge by hand or raw edge by machine. Hidden Garden would be a beautiful quilt to needle-turn! The Bohemian Garden quilt is also a great option for that too. Just remember, that if you are going to needle-turn add 1/8″ or 1/4″ to your template so that you can turn in the edges. As for other applique patterns…hmmmm…let me think. Oh! Carolyn Friedlander will be your girl. She’s got a handful of patterns and they are all beautiful. Her applique patterns are intended for needle-turn.
This quilt is beautiful.
Thank you!
I love your creative mind, Suzy. You and your quilts always manage to put a smile on this 84 year old face. Smile wrinkles are good wrinkles. I am having trouble getting the Aria quilt link to work. Not sure why. I’m an old pro doing this stuff but not today. Suggestions? Thank you for sharing your absolutely unique and creative quilts. I love applique but would love to do needle turn more. It’s intimidating! Help with the download, please. LOL Thanks again.
You are so sweet, Rosemary! Here’s the direct link – https://windhamfabrics.com/images/project/Aria-Pattern.pdf Let me know if it still isn’t working and I can email you the PDF. Happy quilting!
Hi there! I was able to see this pattern online a week ago and bought all my fabrics, but now the link won’t download. Help!! 🙂 thank you, so excited to make this!
Hi Carlie! The link is working fine on our end, so if you continue having any issues downloading the pattern, send us an email at info@suzyquilts.com and I can email you a PDF of the pattern. Enjoy!
Hello
I am really looking forward to making this on my holiday (vacation) to USA in January. Thank you for making it available.
Think this will be lovely and relaxing after rushing to finish grandchildren’s Christmas quilts – pandas in sweaters and lemur quilts.
Merry Christmas to you
Hello
Do you think the patches need interlining/facing?
Thanks
With this technique they don’t.