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| September Sun Quilt |
The September Sun Quilt is a showstopper at the top of your "must-make" list, if you're seeking a project that effortlessly combines rich, warm colors, with a clean, geometric sense of symmetry.
This breathtaking quilt designed by the legendary Jinny Beyer with expert pattern instructions by Margrit Hall is like a warm hug as summer turns to fall. Let's take apart the design, special construction features, and some tips to help you get started with this pattern.
Quilt at a Glance: The Quick Specs
Finished Size: A generous 88" x 88" (Perfect for a queen size bed or dramatic statement wall hanging).
The Palette: Relying heavily on the lustrous jewel tones, reds and deep darks such as Midnight Marble, Turkey Red and Cherry Fern, this is the iconic Jinny Beyer Palette by RJR Fabrics.
Skill Level: Intermediate to Advanced (precision piecing, 45-degree diamond cutting and set-in seams).
The medallion-like arrangement of the various block styles in the September Sun quilt is what makes it so eye-catching.
1. Block 1: The Empire Star
There are eight of these stars in the pattern. They help to set a majestic, classic tone for the quilt, and serve as beautiful anchor points for the layout.
2. Block 2 & 2R: Dominion Steps (11” Finished)
This block is the basis of the construction of action. It employs some ingenious strip-piece work, with brilliant gradients such as Peony Feather, Garnet Rose, and so on, combined with contrast, such as Black Eyelash. The quilt is made from standard (Block 2) and reverse (Block 2R) mirror-image blocks, resulting in a spinning effect that looks like a kaleidoscope.
3. Block 4: Showstopper "September Sun" (22" Finished)
The "heart" of the quilt is the namesake block. This is a true masterpiece in precision work of a 22" finished block.
- Your Technique: You make sets of matching colors and then offset each strip by about 2½". Then you draw a 45-degree line on your ruler to cut your strips into exact 1¹³/₁₆" diamond pieces.
- The Seams: The seams intersect at the ¼". The instructions suggest not to stitch through the seam allowance at locations marked with dots on the pattern; don't forget to backstitch at the corners where indicated to ensure that the block will lie flat!
The 4-Layer Border System
This impressive quilt calls for a large frame. The building of the border is a beautiful multi-layered construction that gracefully expands the dimension of the quilt:
1st Border: Features unique corner pieces of squares of Nile Pansy and Copen Tapestry.
2nd Border (Fabric 10 - Ruby Feather): A thin, grounding 1⁷/₈" frame.
3rd Border (Fabric 6): A wider 5½" visual breathing space.
4th Border: The last 4¾" framing strip that goes directly into the binding.
Tip: If you have a kit from the Jinny Beyer Studio, the border fabrics are provided in yardage length. This means you don't need to piece strips of border fabric from Width of Fabric (WOF) cuts at all, and can cut them as long continuous strips!
The September Sun Quilt pattern is available for a free download from Jinny Beyer:
Final Quilter’s Thoughts:
Before using the sewing machine, read the Pattern Notes on the last page of the PDF. There is a small cutting correction for Block 1 - The Empire Star (the one whose name is on the upper left of the image) which states that there are 3 additional 3⅛" strips to cut into 32 3⅛" squares.
