Like I said in an earlier post, Cheri is making multiple tumbler block quilts for her grandsons. While all the grandsons chose the colors that were in their quilts, and one other had chosen patriotic colors, one in particular wanted not only patriotic colors but an American flag specifically. Who wouldn’t want a quilt of our Star Spangled Banner?

Piecing a Star Spangled Banner

Flag or not, Cheri still made a tumbler block for this quilt. Tumbler blocks fit together to form strips, so making the red and white stripes for this Star Spangled Banner was easier than you might have thought. Though you might not be able to tell with the white, she used different reds and whites to form the individual blocks that make up the stripes.

What really stands out to me though, is the blue field. She had a great print of dark blue with large white stars on it. Of course she didn’t make the blue field solid with that fabric. That would simply lose the tumbler block feel of the quilt. But she alternated that material in the center to really give you the star spangled feel in this banner. I love it.

Quilting a Star Spangled Banner

I quilted this for her with a pattern called Star Spangled Banner with the Intelliquilter. This pattern is a scattering of stars set on top of stripped waves. Simple, but very reminiscent of flying flags. It was a lovely choice for this quilt. The stars beautifully stand out, particularly on the solid fabric blocks in every color around the quilt. The border is just a solid gold making a lovely frame for this star spangled picture.

This is another quilt that will age well with her grandson. Sometimes when we make quilts for children or young adults, we’ll chose fabrics or a design that is young as well. As appropriate as they are at the time we gave it, the recipient will mature right out of the design and the quilt becomes dated. But quilts like this star spangled banner are timeless and will be cherished for years to come.