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Free quilt pattern: I-Sew-lation Polka Dot Party
When I first saw the title of the pattern that APQS Dealer Mavis Reynolds has shared, I missed the word “dot.” I immediately started humming the “Beer Barrel Polka” in my head! Then I opened up her pattern … even though she showcases polka dots in this cute wall hanging, you’re sure to have a barrel of fun making it!
Mavis loves polka dot EVERYTHING and designed this quilt after receiving a request from one of her local guilds to provide a mystery quilt for the members during their COVID-19 “I-Sew-lation.” What a great way to stay in touch with each other while separated. Polka Dot Party just rolled off her tongue, so it wasn’t derived from a polka dance after all.
Built from fabrics she had in her stash, the white polka dot fabric adds some depth to the background. If you don’t have polka dot fabric—you’re still golden. The quilt works just as well with all sorts of fabric combinations and is even “charm pack” friendly.
Vibrant, bright colors add zing to center medallion and the flying geese that encircle it. Making flying geese can sometimes be challenging—quite often the tops of the geese get cut off. To avoid that, Mavis included a foundation piecing template to eliminate the math and help keep those points intact.
She also added side strips to each foundation pieced flying geese unit that cleverly become borders without having to actually cut and sew on long strips.
Mavis used her APQS Millie and Quilt Path to stitch out the perfect complementary pattern called Swirls R Us. Its swirls and twirls create movement and plays up the polka dot theme. The linen colored Glide thread blends well, and the Pellon 80/20 batting adds just enough loft to show off the quilting design.
Mavis was hooked on quilting 27 years ago when a friend shared her newfound craft with the ladies in her neighborhood. After that first exposure, she started taking classes. Soon came retreats, then more classes, stash enhancement, quilting holiday destinations and road trips, and of course wonderful quilter friendships.
In 2017 she fell in love with an APQS Millie and Quilt Path after test driving several different brands and learning about the machine’s lifetime warranty. She intended to start a “side hustle” to prepare for retirement from her job as a paralegal/legal bookkeeper. Fate sped up her timetable when she had to take an early retirement for medical reasons. What started as a side hustle became a fulltime quilting business by July of 2018, and she hasn’t looked back.
She operates Dayspring Quilt Company from her home studio in Brentwood Bay, British Columbia. She enjoys a beautiful view of the Saanich Inlet and mountains from her studio window, which often serve as inspiration for the quilt patterns she sells on her company website. Mavis loves working on the beautiful customer quilts entrusted to her and thanks to her APQS Millie, her retirement is now filled with the joy of seeing her customers beam with excitement when they receive their completed quilts!
