We sell all kinds of patterns here at QuiltPatternMart.com, but I think that all of us who make quilts regularly from patterns know that some patterns you just make more times. Usually you make them more times because they are fun to make but ALSO because you can keep making them. You can keep making them because they don't get old. They look great scrappy from your stash, they look great with that bundle you have been hoarding on the shelf. They look good in pastels and neutrals and brights and batiks and let you use the itty bitty prints and the big bold splashy ones!
Sarah Ruiz joins us this month to talk about her quilt pattern that she just keeps making: "Triangles At Play."
Triangles at Play is one of my earlier patterns, and will always hold a special place in my quilting journey because it’s the quilt that really got me started on the pattern writing path. On top of that, it’s just a really fun design!
First: the backstory! I began quilting in 2011, and by 2015 I had become very interested in the idea of writing my own patterns. I’m nothing if not motivated by a project, so in the middle of that year, I gave myself an assignment to design one quilt pattern each month for 6 months. (Did I mention I was very pregnant and had a baby in the second month of this project? I am a little crazy sometimes.)
Triangles at Play was the 6th and final design in that series. Writing that set of patterns was truly a design exercise for myself – I didn’t test all of them, and I didn’t have them edited. But I still wanted to do SOMETHING with them. At the time, Craftsy hosted a marketplace where independent designers could sell patterns, so I decided to list each pattern in my shop on their site as a free download.
Triangles at Play was first published in January 2016. I spent the next several months living the hectic life of a quilter with a day job, a toddler, and a baby, and hadn’t thought much more about writing patterns – until September, when I got an email from someone at Craftsy! They had noticed my design in their marketplace, and wanted to pair it with their fabric for a kit. I agreed, and my pattern design career was officially underway.
Triangles at Play is a perfect fit for fat quarter bundle, and ultimately we worked together to pair the pattern with several more fabric lines. When Craftsy changed their business model in 2020, I finally took the opportunity to revamp the pattern to match my current style, include two additional sizes to give quilters plenty of options, and add it to the Quilt Pattern Mart repertoire.
Over the years, I’ve made this quilt more than any other thanks to the versatility of the half-square triangles and the overall motif they create. I’ve made it from cute fabric as a gift for a friend’s new baby, and from used clothing as a pair of matching memory quilts. And one of my guilds, the Gulf Coast Modern Quilt Guild, is currently working on a “color shift” version for this year’s QuiltCon Community Outreach Challenge that I think is going to come together beautifully. I’m confident this pattern can look great in whatever fabrics you choose.
I hope you love this pattern as much as I do, and have the opportunity to make your own!
-Sarah Ruiz, designer, Triangles At Play
I (Heather, your trusty founder) have not yet made a quilt from this pattern because I try to make from lots of different makers on the site and I have already professed my deep affection for the "Pathfinder" pattern by Sarah, so I know her patterns are written and edited and brought to life with lots of care and attention which would definitely make this pattern a power player in your sewing room.