My completed Conversation Sampler Quilt by AnneMarie Chany has a homespun, scrappy, Valentine’s Day style created with variety pink-hued fabrics and a tied finish.

At long last, my Conversation Heart Quilt, as I call it, is done! I picked up AnneMarie Chany’s Conversation Sampler Quilt pattern in early 2019, purchased the fabric, sewed about two rows, and then life happened. About six years later, it’s completed and on a bed!

The pattern uses a row-by-row construction method. That means, every row is sewn individually and then the rows are sewn together. Each row in this pattern is a different quilt block pattern. One of the appeals of sewing this pattern was the chance to create 12 different quilt blocks. Each block is unique and required different skills.

The instructions are written to create a rainbow within the rows, as seen on the front of the pattern. My vision was to keep the white, but use pink—so it felt more like Valentine’s Day. I also wanted a scrappy, homespun style.

I purchased fat quarters of fabric in an array of pink hues and prints. Plus, I pulled a few pink fabrics from my stash. Overall, I used about 20 different pink fabrics for the contrast in the blocks. The binding is made with leftover pink fabric. The white and navy fabrics I purchased new. The backing is a new flat sheet. For the blanket stitch on the Orange Peel blocks, tying, and quilting, I used about 20 different hues of pink embroidery floss.

To finish the quilt, I put ties all throughout the blocks and did a single line of big-stitch quilting around the outer border. First, I have limitations for machine quilting, both with my own machine (it’s a basic model) and my budget to pay for longarm quilting by a professional. Second, tying is just a lovely way to create a homespun aesthetic. It’s just not as polished as machine quilting and really highlights the hand of the maker. Third, I wanted this quilt DONE, so I wasn’t going to hand quilt it. Especially with all those seams! (Seams create an obstacle to any kind of quilting.)

The resulting quilt achieves my vision and I’m pleased as punch with it! The colors exude a Valentine’s Day vibe (although this quilt is destined to be used year-round). The variety of pink fabrics used in both the blocks and binding create a scrappy style, as if the quilt was made with leftover material from different projects. The ties bring it all together with texture and a homespun feel.

Since I have completed this quilt, I have seen it on the bed and thought, “that is a really nice quilt!” And, you know what? Isn’t that the purpose of creating—to make something that delights ourselves?

The Details:

+ Pattern is “Conversation Sampler Quilt Pattern” by AnneMarie Chany

+ Measures 76” square

+ Approximately 20 different pink fabrics

+ Approximately 20 different shades of pink embroidery floss

+ Finished with ties and a single line of hand quilting along the border