Pandemic fatigue, dark winter days, political turmoil, and cool weather can negatively impact mental health. But you don’t have to give up. Life will always present challenges but also ways to overcome them.
One response to all the ills of late is the appearance of Christmas decorations earlier than usual as people reach for a little more joy and hope during a potentially dismal time. For quilters, bringing the Christmas quilts out of storage where they’ve been waiting since early January is part of decorating for the season.
If you’re looking for a seasonal project this December to help boost your mental health, we recommend these patterns to make the season bright and quilty:
‘Merry Gifts’ from the bookHoliday Wishes by Sheri Falls of This & That Pattern Companywww.thisandthatpatterns.com
--Photo credit for the modern version of the quilt = Nicole Daksiewicz
The original version of this quilt was made out of traditional fabrics. We absolutely love Nicole Daksiewicz’s modern version of the ‘Merry Gifts’ quilt pattern made out of bright, saturated, and solid fabrics. The quilt comes in a book with twelve different Christmas patterns, many of which could also be reinterpreted with modern fabrics.
‘Merry Vortexmas’and‘Arctic Vortex’ Tree Skirtby Bobbie Gentili of Geeky Bobbin
Bobbie Gentili brilliantly recolored her modern, reimagined log cabin quilt ‘Vortex,’ into a Christmas tree. Once you purchase the original ‘Vortex’ pattern, you can request a free PDF from her website for the ‘Vortexmas’ version.
‘Spruced Up’by Jenny Haynes of Papper, Sax, Sten
This Christmas tree definitely has a ‘Spruced Up’ mid-century vibe. For added ease while making this quilt block, we recommend using Haynes’ acrylic templates.
‘Christmas Tree’by Jitka Clement from Jitka Designs Inc
www.etsy.com/shop/JitkaDesignInc
‘Christmas Tree’ can be modified to make a smaller or bigger Christmas tree. Jitka’s ‘Christmas Tree Advent Calendar’ is an additional pattern that is sold separately and does not include the original Christmas tree paper pieced pattern.
‘Blossom Window’by Jitka Clement from Jitka Designs Inc
The ‘Blossom Window’ pattern didn’t initially start out as a Christmas pattern, but we love the holly leaf version that Jitka recently created.
‘Snowflake’by Nicole Daksiewicz from Modern Handcraft
We love that this quilt is not holiday specific and can be used throughout all winter months. Be sure and check out the Instagram hashtag #SnowflakeQuilt to see the many different color versions people have made of this quilt. The inspiration ideas are plentiful and just a scroll through all of them will bring you a bit of joy.
From your friends at Curated Quilts, we wish you a happy and healthy holiday season!
You can find our curated selection of Christmas/Winter patterns from last yearhere.
In the ‘Curated Studio’ section of each issue ofCurated Quilts, we give you a sampling of the latest in modern patterns and fabrics, book reviews, and quilting tools available on the market. To see more of our favorite modern pattern selections you can purchaseCurated Quilts today.