Welcome to the Embassy.

You’ve been appointed the ambassador to Polychromia, a remote archipelago of five islands with a colorful history. Vacationers and anthropologists alike flock to Polychromia to enjoy its pristine beaches, diverse ecosystems, tropical climate and complex language. As ambassador your job will be to maintain positive relations between your country and Polychromia’s elders as well as to participate in various local events. There’s a tradition among ambassadors to Polychromia that each ambassador creates their own small embassy flag and ceremonial quilt to present to the elder council. Bill and Weeks are in charge of your transition and will ensure that everything goes smoothly.

The Ambassador quilt pattern creates a 49”x49” finished wall hanging or a 98”x98” queen-sized quilt.

All details for this quiltalong, including links to download the six individual installments and view their supporting videos, will be posted here at this secret location known as “The Embassy” according to the schedule below. This is a private page, please do not share links to this page, the pattern or videos.

SCHEDULE 

Videos and installments will be released at noon Central time on the following dates:

FABRIC SELECTION and REQUIREMENTS

The 49″x49″ Ambassador wall quilt requires one Ambassador kit or:

• 23 Fat Quarters in a range of hues and values
• 3/4 yard background fabric
• 1/2 yard binding fabric
• 3 yards backing fabric
• 53”x53” batting

The 98″x98″ Ambassador queen quilt requires four Ambassador kits or:

• 23—1-yard pieces of fabric in a range of hues and values (Yes, this is a lot! Each person will use different amounts of different fabrics, so we can’t predict which ones you’ll need a full yard of. The good news is you’re likely to have enough extra to make a great pieced backing for the quilt.)
• 2 1/2 yards background fabric
• 1 yard binding fabric
• 9 yards backing fabric
• 102”x102” batting

We offer two kit options, both using fabrics from Moda’s Grunge line. Grunge fabrics are known for their mottled, weathered appearance and vary slightly throughout the yardage. The first kit option has a Vanilla background, the second option features an Onyx background. Backing fabric can be purchased separately. We will be using the Vanilla kit during the Quiltalong.

The Ambassador kit (Vanilla or Onyx) is ideal but not required. If you’d like to assemble your own fabrics, select 23 fabrics in a range of hues and values such that any two of the fabrics have some contrast. Avoid extreme value differences (very light or very dark.) The background fabric should contrast with all 23 fabrics. We recommend using either small-scale prints or solids if you’re not using an Ambassador kit. Mixing solids and prints can be tricky especially in mystery quilts. This pattern doesn’t lend itself to large-scale or high-contrast prints.

There will be opportunities to make individual choices during the quiltalong, so no two quilts will be identical, even for those using either Ambassador kit. Watch the preview video, released on January 10th, for additional fabric selection advice before choosing your own fabrics.

Kits can be ordered now. Shipping will begin January 12 but it may take a bit of time to get them all made and shipped. Thanks for your patience!

We’ll be working with the Vanilla kit, shown below. Each square represents a 7″ swatch of one of the 23 Fat Quarters. The background fabric is Vanilla Grunge. The Tan Grunge at the bottom is the binding fabric. Backing fabric can be purchased separately. Due to fabric availability, we may need to make substitutions. In that case we will choose very similar colors of Grunge to maintain the overall spirit of the palette.

We’re also offering a second kit option consisting of the same 23 fat quarters, but using Onyx Grunge as the background and binding fabric. Backing fabric can be purchased separately. Due to fabric availability, we may need to make substitutions. In that case we will choose very similar colors of Grunge to maintain the overall spirit of the palette.

UPDATES

We aim to get everything right, but if we catch any errors, we’ll post corrections here.