Dave’s Skateboard Quilt

Do you feel that making a quilt for a young man, or man in your life to be an exasperating undertaking?  Well, that’s how I felt about making a quilt for my husband Dave, I’ve been considering making him one for months!  Yet, I wanted the fabric selection, and colors to match his personality,  I wanted him to really love and use this quilt.  However, finding the right pattern, color combination, and fabric all felt a little daunting.  We put our heart and soul into the quilts we make, and of course we want our quilts to reflect our loved ones’ interests and personality.

Dave has been skate boarding most of his life, and rode professionally for Alva and Dogtown in his late teen years and early twenties.  As luck would have it I happened upon a skateboard quilt by Missouri Star Quilt Co., their online tutorial was perfect, and I didn’t even have to buy a pattern.   Jenny and her side kick Rob, (man sewing) give detailed instruction on how to make their skateboard quilt, you’ll love their fun bantering, they make the perfect pair!   Although if a pattern is something you just can’t live without, pop onto Missouri Star’s website their skate board quilt pattern is quite inexpensive at only $4.95 for a paper pattern.

 

Cotton and Steel’s Snap to Grid + Robert Kaufman’s Nappy Neon

Fabric selection is always important, however,  for this project it had to be perfect!  I wanted Dave’s quilt to have a sense of what skate boarding is, and what it’s meant to Dave over the years.  Cotton and Steel’s Snap to Grid line was something I have been eye balling for quite some time, I love this line!   Snap to Grid reminded me of my days growing up in the 80’s and early nineties when Madonna, Michael Jackson, neon, and big hair with lots of aqua net were all the rage!  It was during this time in the late eighties and early nineties that Dave was riding for Alva and Dogtown.  Snap to Grid was the perfect line of fabric for Dave’s skate board quilt with those bright colors, squiggly lines, black and white prints that all lend themselves to a late eighties mood.

Each skateboard was made up from the Snap to Grid prints, while the wheels of the skateboard are made of a plain black fabric.  For the solid portion of the quilt I decided on Robert Kaufman’s Nappy Neon, if you look closely you can see tiny spots of neon poking through a grey backdrop, which matches perfectly with the pop of neon that is scattered about this quilt.

Two skateboard blocks completed.

 

Dave was sweet enough to let me capture a few images of him with his skateboard quilt at the Park City Skate Park.  A great excuse to get out of the summer heat in Salt Lake City and enjoy an evening of skateboarding, and ice cream at Java Cow a must see in Park City.

A photo session proved to be too much for this little guy!   

 

Finding the right backing for Dave’s quilt was just an important as the prints featured on the front of the quilt.  I decided on another Cotton and Steel print Kicks and this particular print is called Little Kicks.  Little kicks against a dark blue backdrop was exactly what I was looking for.

Dave has really enjoyed sharing his love of skateboarding with both Elle and William.  Showing the kids how it’s done! 

Dave rippin’ it during his avid skateboarding years.

In the end this was a really fun project and the best part is this pattern makes two quilts. I’ll be making a second quilt for Elle with some of the more feminine pieces from the Snap to Grid line more on that to come.

 

Cheers!

Heather