A Month of Quilt Tops: DAYS 6,7,8 and 9: Aviary 2

I missed out on Joel Dewberry's original Aviary collection, so when Aviary 2 was released in the spring of 2011, I purchased a fat quarter set of the entire collection.  Since then, I've sold several Aviary quilts on Etsy in all three colorways, and purchased a lot more fabric!

I love setting off the Aviary prints with white or off-white background fabric.  I've used my Bricklayer pattern to make several quilts in each of the colorways, including the lilac colorway shown above.

Earlier this year, in an effort to make room for new stash, I used up the rest of my lilac Aviary fabrics to make a Hip to Be Square quilt:

I brought the rest of my Aviary scraps with me to California-- I had quite a lot left in the saffron and granite palettes. I was happy to find that I had just enough to make two more Bricklayer quilts:

 

 

I also had enough scraps to make two coin quilts!  To make the coin quilts, I cut my leftover scraps into five inch long pieces of various widths.  You can also cut all of your coins the same width, but I like the scrappy look of the mixed sizes, and this also helps me get more out of my fabric scraps.  I chain piece all five strips for the quilt, trying to keep a nice variety of color, print and size as I go along.  When all five strips are the length I want, I trim them to the exact same measurement, and add the sashing strips.

There is also a great tutorial on the Moda Bake Shop website for a Stacked Coins Baby Quilt using either charm squares or jelly roll scraps.  Coin quilts are a great way to use up those extra scrap pieces that you just can't throw away, and they are also a fairly easy pattern for beginners to tackle.

Of course, now that I've used up all of my Aviary fabric, it makes me want to buy more!  Does that happen to you?  I have certain fabric collections that I can't cut into unless I have some "in reserve"!  I just have to remember that clearing out my Aviary fabric makes room for the next fabulous collection!