TULIPS FROM AMSTERDAM
BEHIND THE QUILT
CITY JEWELS
“I first visited Amsterdam as a young architectural student and was totally enchanted by its impossibly tall houses reflected in a maze of canals. I have revisited it endless times through the pages of favourite novels, stepping back in time to Amsterdam’s ‘Golden Age’ of the 17th century with Tracy Chevalier, Deborah Moggach and Jessie Burton. I returned last autumn and, knowing that I would be making this quilt, visited the delightful Den Haan & Wagenmakers fabric shop, a few blocks north of the Nieuwe Kerk. If you are visiting Amsterdam, I can highly recommend it, just to visit the beautiful premises… although I doubt you’ll leave empty-handed. I chose some fat quarters from Dutch Heritage ‘Surat’ to base my colour palette on. A shot cotton background fabric, by Oakshott, provides a suitably watery setting for my house boats, canal houses, neat rows of tulips and whirling windmill. And if you’ve ever visited Amsterdam, you’ll know that I really had to include a bicycle!” – Nicola Dodd
Cutting out
Before you start cutting the pieces for the house blocks, please note that you will mix the pieces for the lower floor of the houses between blocks.
1 Choose two (2) FQs for the plain gable canal house and cut each one as follows:
■ One (1) 6in square.
■ One (1) 3½in x 6½in.
■ Two (2) 2½in x 4½in.
■ Four (4) 1½in x 12½in.
■ Three (3) 1½in x 8in.
■ Two (2) 1½in x 10½in.
■ Two (2) 1½in x 5½in.
■ Two (2) 1½in x 4½in.
■ One (1) 1in x 9½in.
2 Choose one (1) FQ for the crow-stepped gable canal house and cut as follows:
■ One (1) 3½in x 6½in.
■ One (1) 2½in x 6½in.
■ Two (2) 2½in x 4½in.
■ One (1) 2½in square.
