Nightingale Quilt Pattern - all the details!
Nightingale Quilt Pattern is now available!
This pattern holds a lot of meaning for me! As many of you know, back in September, I left my career as a Registered Nurse to pursue Lo & Behold full-time! This transition has definitely been bittersweet, as I do miss my co-workers and my tiny patients in the NICU. Nursing has been a huge part of my life....so to let that go, even if it's in pursuit of something that I love, is still tough. My heart especially goes out to everyone on the front lines of this pandemic. In a way, I feel like I'm letting them down by walking away from nursing. Overall though, I know this decision is what's best for me. It's given me a work-life balance that I simply didn't have before...which I'm very grateful for!
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Here's baby Brittany, about to graduate nursing school!
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July 2020
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I designed Nightingale around the same time that we were seriously thinking and considering this decision. I wanted to create a single block pattern that represented the last 7.5 years of my life as a NICU nurse, but also the wider healthcare profession as a whole. My mind immediately went to a "Red Cross" sort of design, and Nightingale was born!
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The coronavirus pandemic has truly been an unprecedented season, especially for healthcare workers. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine that I would see something like this in my nursing career, but here we are. The virus has especially taken a toll on healthcare worker's moral... and I felt every bit of that, especially in the beginning when so much about the virus was unknown. That being said, I think it's undeniable that the many doctors, nurses, respiratory therapists, phlebotomists, physical therapists, nurse techs and SO many other healthcare personnel and true heroes. This pattern is dedicated to them.
In light of releasing this pattern during such a heavy time, I wanted to find a way to give back to the healthcare community.
A portion of all pattern sales this weekend will be donated to First Responders First, an organization that takes a whole human approach to addressing the needs of our frontline workers in order to support their ability to serve. They provide essential supplies, equipment, accommodations, child care, food, and critical mental health support and resources to ensure that our frontline workforce is protected, well-supported and resilient. I'm so excited to support this amazing cause. Thank you for making this a reality!
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For my cover quilt, I used Art Gallery PURE Solids. They recently released several new colors to the solids line and this is what inspired my color palate. Here's what I used:
- Peach Sherbet 444
- Toasty Walnut 458
- Blossomed 488
- Apricot Crepe 426
- Dried Carrot 457
- Raw Gold 485
- Terracotta Tile 508
- Cinnamon 472
- Sugar Plum 506
- Mauvelous 425
- Potter's Clay 507
- Mink 445
- Macchiato 440
- Vanilla Custard 486
- Gentle Feather 479
- Sandstone 432
For the Background, I used Snow, for the Binding, I used Magnetism and for the Backing, I used Painted Prairie Cornucopia. We have quilt top kits, bindings and backings available in our shop!
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This was my first time using flying geese in my patterns! This is pattern number 19 for Lo & Behold, so the fact that I made it this long without them is pretty impressive! That being said, I was slightly nervous about using them. I've always heard horror stories that they can be tricky and what-not. With this in mind, I created the pattern so that you create a slightly oversized flying geese (goose?) and then trim it down to the correct size. It's so nice to have this wiggle room, and my pattern testers overwhelmingly agreed! I have a tutorial for how to trim your flying geese, so be sure to check that out!
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Once I started piecing these blocks together, I really loved the sort of "old and faded" vibe. Once person on Instagram commented that it reminded her mom's old nursing cap. For me, the soothing colors are exactly what I would want to see after a 12- 14 hour shift. The way that these tones fade in and out of each other is such a dream.
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The skill level for this pattern is "Advanced Beginner"....essentially, you'll want to have maybe one or two quilts under your belt before you tackle this one. That being said, if you're feeling confident and you want to tackle learning flying geese, half square triangles and a bit of strip piecing, you could also make this as your first quilt!
There are 5 sizes in this pattern: Baby (45" square), Small Throw (45" x 60"), Square Throw (60" square), Large Throw (60" x 75") and Queen (90" x 105"). Since this pattern is block based, it's super easy to customize any size that you'd like! You'll need one FQ or 1/4 yard cut for each block. So if you want to make a quilt that's 5 blocks by 5 blocks, that's 25 blocks, so you'll need 25 fat quarters. Here are some ideas for additional sizes:
- 2x3 blocks: 30" x 45"; 6 fat quarters
- 5x5 blocks: 75" square; 25 fat quarters
- 5x6 blocks: 75" x 90" (TWIN); 30 fat quarters or 15 half yards
- 7x7 blocks: 105" square (KING); 49 fat quarters or 25 half yards
The background fabric is super easy to calculate as well. Once you read through the pattern, you'll see what I mean. Here are the official fabric requirements:
Back to my cover quilt! I sent it off to Ashley, of Hen House Quilting so that she could work her long-arming magic on it! I requested "Mikes Swoosh", a pantograph that I've been eyeing for some time now! I really love how it turned out!
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I'd love to see what you all create with this pattern! Please tag me on social media @loandbeholdstitchery . And use the hashtags #nightingalequilt & #loandbeholdpatterns so we all can see! :)
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