American Patchwork & Quilting April 2016

The April 2016 issue of American Patchwork & Quilting is on sale from February 2--April 4.

Missed it? Order a digital issue here.

In a studio near Times Square, Victoria Findlay Wolfe creates quilts that give tradition a contemporary kick.

For more about Victoria's quilts and fabrics, visit vfwquilts.com.

Get the digital issue here.

Designers: Barbara Groves and Mary Jacobson of Me and My Sister Designs

Fabrics: Dot Dot Dash collection by Me and My Sister Designs for Moda Fabrics

Whether you see chandeliers or birthday cakes, this quilt offers stacks of joy!

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Elegant Chandeliers

The unexpected pairing of batiks and metallic prints results in a sophisticated wall hanging.

Get the free quilt pattern here.

Designer: Sarah Maxwell of Designs by Sarah J

Quiltmaker: Jacque Wright

Fabrics: Cozies collection by Designs by Sarah J for Marcus Fabrics

A flannel Rail Fence bed quilt provides a neutral foundation for an appliquéd flannel topper. Use the topper in one of three ways.

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Quilt tester: Laura Boehnke

Fabrics: Color Union collection by Studio RK for Robert Kaufman Fabrics

Quilt tester Laura Boehnke went bright and bold with her versions of the On the Rails quilt. She chose fabrics that read as solids from afar but actually are geometric tone-on-tones that offer the viewer a visual treat when examined up close.

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Colorful Steps

Go bright and bold with geometric tone-on-tones and a solid white. These prints create visual movement in the Rail Fence quilt.

Get the free quilt pattern here.

Designer: Pat Bravo of Art Gallery Fabrics

Fabrics: Artisan collection by Pat Bravo, the Pure Elements collection, and the Prisma Elements collection, all for Art Gallery Fabrics

Use a slash-and-sew technique to carve up squares and add center strips or crosses. Join the pieced squares with unpieced squares to create one mega plus sign.

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Easy Math Throw

Use bright prints and simple squares to create a plus sign design with kid appeal. Pieced plus signs within the blocks and a multicolor border add interest.

Get the free quilt pattern here.

Designer: Susan Ache

Combine a Red Cross block with a Postage Stamp design of 1-inch squares for a positively striking quilt.

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Checkerboard Addition

Checkerboard block backgrounds step forward to garner attention over the plus signs in this wall hanging.

Get the free quilt pattern here.

Designer: Ann Lauer of Grizzly Gulch Gallery

Fabrics: Butterfly Forest collection by Ann Lauer for Benartex

Quilt as you go to make a bargello backdrop for fussy-cut butterfly appliqués.

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Quilt tester: Laura Boehnke

Fabrics: Celestial Collection by Jason Yenter for In The Beginning

Quilt tester Laura Boehnke was literally seeing stars (and planets!) when making her version of All Aflutter. In place of the three solid white rows in the original quilt, Laura used a black outer space print. In this area, she fused on and stitched around planets, a sun, a moon, and a comet, all fussy-cut from two multicolor prints.

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Designer: Sue Spargo

Appliqué, embellish, and construct a handy needle keeper. It's the perfect place to stash specialty sewing needles used for creative hand embroidery.

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Designer: Corey Yoder of Coriander Quilts

Fabrics: Prairie collection by Corey Yoder for Moda Fabrics

A designer uses two variations of an Arrowheads block to create the look of cross-stitches and stars. Natalia Bonner machine-quilted this quilt using the Marmalade pantograph design by Patricia E. Ritter & Leisha Farnsworth of Urban Elementz.

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Stunning Star-Crossed Quilt

Use rich reds, browns, and creams in a cozy throw. Make your stars shine by using a different print for each one.

Get the free quilt pattern here.

Designer: Pat Sloan

Fabrics: Hometown Girl Batiks collection by Pat Sloan for Moda Fabrics

In each 2016 issue you'll get instructions for one row. At the end of the year you can put the rows together to make a throw. Join us on Instagram and Facebook to see what others are sewing with hashtag #APQrowquilt.

Get more info about the Row Quilt here.

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Designer: Tammy Vonderschmitt

If you received a windfall of triangle-squares in a swap, look no further: This scrappy design incorporates nearly 1,000 half-square triangles, all grounded by navy and pink.

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Quilt tester: Laura Boehnke

Fabrics: For Love of Country collection by Dan Morris for Quilting Treasures

Using subtly patriotic prints, quilt tester Laura Boehnke made a narrow wall hanging that would look at home year-round. Laura wanted all of her pinwheels to "spin" in the same direction, so she paid close attention when piecing the pinwheel units.

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Designer: Larene Smith of The Quilted Button

Fabrics: Garden Gate collection by P&B Textiles

Fashion a pristine path of muted and bright colors in a flirty floral table runner.

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Quilt tester: Laura Boehnke

Fabrics: Chambray Rose collection by Nancy Gere for Windham Fabrics

To visually bring out the blocks' star points, quilt tester Laura Boehnke used a different arrangement of lights and darks in her corner units, contrasting the star points instead of matching them to the outer ring in her Square-in-a-Square units.

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Designer: Victoria Findlay Wolfe of VFW Quilts

Fabrics: Mostly Manor collection by Victoria Findlay Wolfe for Marcus Fabrics

Follow our simple instructions to make a quilt with large, gentle angles. The tumblers and "stretched" hexagons provide a good introduction to set-in seams.

Get the digital issue here.