Triangle Friends: Something to Squawk About!

Triangle Friends bird appliqué by Dione Gardner-Stephen of Clever Chameleon

Today marks a Huge milestone for me

I am very excited to announce my very first quilt published in an independent magazine! It is called Triangle Friends and is now available in Issue 26 of Make Modern. I’ve been sitting on this news for simply aaaaaaages, and it’s such a great feeling to finally be able to tell you all about it. 🙂

Triangle Friends is a fun little quilt. Very quick and easy to make, with very little piecing and only straight edged appliqué. The latter means you can prepare most of the appliqué pieces by rotary cutter. And with the exception of slowing down for the corners, you can also stitch them down at a good speed!

If you’ll humour me, I’ll tell you all about it. And then, to celebrate my first publication, I thought I should do a little giveaway contest…. for a postcard sized mini quilt and copy of the magazine issue with my pattern in.

Triangle Friends quilt by Dione Gardner-Stephen in Make Modern magazine Issue 26

Triangle Friends

Triangle Friends measures 38″ x 53″ – a nice size baby or toddler quilt. It features seven fun friends for your little one: a dog, a cat, a rabbit, a frog, a butterfly, a fish and a bird. Each animal is constructed of lots of triangles and a dash of silliness.

The idea for the Triangle Friends quilt developed one afternoon after I’d done some quilt-related internet surfing…. Quilts with triangles were a bit of an internet fad at the time and for no particular reason I started wondering about making an appliqué design puppy out of triangles.

Before I knew it, I’d opened up my drawing software. Drew some triangles…. and voila – a silly dog appeared. Then somehow I got caught up in the moment, and soon had schematics for a cat, a frog, and a rabbit. Realising then that I already had most of a quilt plan done, I quickly added a fish and a bird. And then after some more playing around, a butterfly. My daughter liked my rough plan, so before I could overthink it and chicken out, I sent it off to Make Modern submissions.

To cut a long story short – Triangle Friends was accepted by Make Modern with some sensible adjustments. Then Island Batik graciously gave me the fabrics to make it with. And a small group of very generous ladies offered to test my pattern for me. Thank you to all of my testers, I cannot say how much I appreciate your time and efforts. So today we have the Triangle Friends pattern, brought to you by the quilting equivalent of a village.

More details of Triangle Friends

Here are close ups of the rest of the friendly animal crew.

The puppy…..

Triangle Friends Dog appliqué by Dione Gardner-Stephen of Clever Chameleon

The fish….

Triangle Friends Fish appliqué by Dione Gardner-Stephen of Clever Chameleon

The rabbit…..

Triangle Friends Rabbit appliqué by Dione Gardner-Stephen of Clever Chameleon

The cat and butterfly……

Triangle Friends Cat and Butterfly appliqués by Dione Gardner-Stephen of Clever Chameleon

And the frog…..

Triangle Friends Frog appliqué by Dione Gardner-Stephen of Clever Chameleon

I had so much fun taking photos of this quilt!

The fabrics I used in this quilt are all from collections currently being featured by Island Batik Ambassadors in the Getaway blog hop. How is that for timing!?!

Brookview Blonde Ale Leaf Vine fabric from Island Batik

The background fabric is Blonde Ale Leaf Vine from the Brookview Collection. The Brookview fabrics will be featured in Week 3 of the Getaway blog hop.

I also used this fabric for the binding.

Feline Fine Magenta Whiskers fabric from Island Batik

The magenta fabric is Magenta Whiskers from the Feline Fine Collection featured by Bea Lee and Sharon Parcel yesterday in the Island Batik blog hop.

This fabric was used for the border and the animals’ bodies.

Feline Fine Lime Mice fabric from Island Batik

The green fabric is Lime Mice, also from the Feline Fine Collection. The Feline Fine Collection is a lot of fun!

Soul Song Lt Lagoon Speckle fabric from Island Batik

The blue-green fabric is Light Lagoon Speckle from the Soul Song collection. The Soul Song fabrics will be featured on January 17 – the day after I show you my Paisley Park quilt.

Boho Bubblegum MUM fabric from Island Batik

The pink fabric is Bubblegum MUM from the Boho Collection. The Boho fabrics will be featured in Week 3 of the Getaway blog hop.

Don’t they work well together, even though they are pulled from multiple collections?

Triangle Friends quilt by Dione Gardner-Stephen of Clever Chameleon

I’m in the mood to celebrate – Triangle Friends style

To celebrate the release of my very first magazine pattern, I have decided to have a small contest and giveaway.

Make Modern Issue 26 cover

I will send one lucky person a gift copy of Issue 26 of Make Modern. Please note that this is a digital magazine and the prize will be delivered directly to you by email from Make Modern after my gift purchase. If you already subscribe to Make Modern and manage to win the prize, you may nominate a friend to receive the pdf prize.

Here’s what’s in Make Modern Issue 26:

But that’s not everything! The winner will also receive a mini quilt from the Chameleon and me. Made from the scraps of the Triangle Friends quilt, it is a more tangible connection to my exciting day, and a genuine one-off!

Show me the Fabric mini quilt by Dione Gardner-Stephen of Clever Chameleon

“Show me the Fabric!” is approximately 6.5″ by 5″ small.

Show me the Fabric mini quilt by Dione Gardner-Stephen of Clever Chameleon

This contest is open internationally and it is a game of skill. To enter, tell me in a comment below: What should the names of the seven Triangle Friends on my quilt be? Yup, all you have to do is name the seven main critters on the quilt for your entry to win – you may ignore the fly! The most creative entry, as judged independently by my daughter, will win a download of Make Modern Issue 26 and the mini quilt.

The terms and conditions are listed below. Good luck!

How to get a copy of Triangle Friends in Make Modern Issue 26

If you’d rather not wait to find out whether you have won the free copy of Make Modern, you can buy the brand new Make Modern Issue 26 for AU$8 (currently less than US$6 as of posting). Or a 12-month subscription to this digital magazine is just AU$40.

Please note: this article contains affiliate links to Make Modern. Buying a Make Modern product through these links will not cost you any extra, but I will receive a small commission in return for the referral. This in turn helps cover the costs of keeping the Clever Chameleon on the internet, thank you.

Terms and Conditions of Contest

This is a game of skill and the entry judged best will win both prizes. No purchase is required for entry. Instructions on how to enter form part of the Terms and Conditions. International entries welcome. Postage will be by untracked economy letter via Australia Post, and no responsibility or liability will be taken by Clever Chameleon for lost or delayed mail.

Over 18 year old entrants only, and only where your local law permits entry. Judges’ decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into. In the event that there are multiple identical entries, the earliest instance of the answer wins.

This competition runs from when this post goes live until 23:59 14th January 2019 Australian Central Time. Winners will be announced on the Clever Chameleon blog on the 15th January 2019 in Colour & Inspiration Tuesday and contacted for their postal address by email. Failure to provide a valid email address or answer your email within a week will render your entry invalid and a replacement winner will be chosen. 

Clever Chameleon values your privacy. Email addresses submitted in the course of this competition will not be used for any purpose beyond running this competition. Quiz answers that infringe upon a third party trademark or copyright will be ineligible.

The Chameleon turns rainbow with pleasure when he hears from you. I normally respond by email instead. However, I will not be replying to giveaway contest comments unless you have a specific comment/question  relating to the post content. Then, of course, I would love to chat!


Would you like to keep in touch with Clever Chameleon and the fun quilty ideas I design as well as find all over the internet? You can follow directly for email updates, or through Bloglovin’, Pinterest, IG or FB. All your follow options can be found here. Don’t forget to link up all your current quilting projects on Tuesdays at our Colour & Inspiration Linky parties!

29 Replies to “Triangle Friends: Something to Squawk About!”

  1. Just got my issue of Make Modern, but haven’t had time to really look through it. I’m excited to know you are in the issue! Congrats!

  2. Oh my goodness! How absolutely adorable!!! Can’t wait to get my hands on a copy. You will sell a lot of these cuties. Am so excited and happy for you. Sure would like to win a copy.
    Congratulations on your new venture.

  3. Congratulations! All looks great. Such an inviting and playful quilt. I’ve chosen some names for your friends: Dundee the dog, Felix the fish, Brisbee the bird, Carson the cat, Fletch the Frog, Bondi the bunny, and finally Brizzie the Butterfly!
    Maybe it is my lucky day! Happy New Year! 🥳
    Janice.snell@gmail.com

  4. Congratulations Dione, it’s lovely! And the colour combination is so wonderful – so bright and cheery, just the statement piece for a nursery. Who would have thought that those animal characteristics could be depicted so well in triangles? Well done.

  5. DIONE!! Yippy, you can share the secret. I am just going to go get a copy myself . . . I can’t take a chance!! Plus I’m not very clever with names – my stuffed teddy bear as a child was called Teddy. Wow, huh?! How did I come up with that name I wonder. I do have a name for the fish though – Glub. I thought the puppy would be my favorite until I saw the fishy and the air bubbles. I do want to make this, and I just might need to send it your way for an autograph, you published designer you. Happy Friday to you. ~smile~ Roseanne

  6. Congratulations! Now I need to get my test quilt quilted. I “LOVE” the label you did…and I completely agree with that statement!
    hahahahaha

  7. Congratulations! Now I need to get my test quilt quilted. I “LOVE” the label you did…and I completely agree with that statement!
    hahahahaha

  8. Congratulations Dione – what a fun quilt, I love it! And it looks great in those fabrics. Not so good with names myself; usually my girls name all the pets and so on around here, but I just wanted to say Awesome News and Well Done!!

  9. This is wonderful for you. So happy to see you published. I need to get a copy of this issue … Names of the animals … Hmmm Not usually good with this but have to try … Dilly Dog, Feisty Fish, Robby Rabbit, Christopher Cat, Frannie Frog, Bethy Butterfly, Bonny Bird. …. Congrats again on publishing!!

  10. You did a wonderfull job with this quilt. I have never heard of the magazine (I live in Europe), but I will see if I can find it.
    Good job!

  11. The quilt looked like so much fun bought the magazine so I can try it. Congrats on getting published it is really a big deal

  12. Dione, this is wonderful news!! Congratulations on your first publication!! I think I’m going to have to purchase a copy of this magazine! I’m so proud of you!! Here are my suggestions for naming these cuties! Piza or Pizazz the Puppy (his little face looks kind of like a slice of pizza!! LOL), Flutterby the Butterfly, Ferdinand the Frog, Thumper The (T for short!) Rabbit, KoKo the Kitty, Fillet the Fish, and Blossom the Bird!

    Your quilt is adorable!

  13. Congratulations! I just bought the magazine. I love your patterns and can’t wait to make this.

  14. That is one cute dog! The frog too. This can be such a whimsical quilt for a baby.
    On another note have you ever seen warli art? It is a old tribal. Art from Maharashtra, India. Everything featured there are triangles and some circles. I think that too is all over the internet in recent years.
    I am not too good with names so…..

  15. Congratulations your quilt is so sweet. I am not a naturally lucky person so I’m am going to go purchase a copy of Make Modern and use your pattern to make a quilt for my new first Great Grandchild.

  16. Congratulations on having your pattern published!! It is adorable!! Names…Dobie the Dog, FanDancy the Fish, Chauncy the Cat, Regina the Rabbit, Frank E the Frog, Charisma the Chicken. It is all about the alliteration, right??

  17. Hi Dionne. Congratulations on being published! Now we can say we knew you when…..
    I like be this bright cheery quilt. It’s perfect for wee ones and the Island Batik people were so sweet to donate you the fabrics which are so perfect.
    My name suggestions are; Bubbles the fish, Ribbit the frog, Peanut the puppy, Fluttery the butterfly, Bonnie the bunny and Constance the cat. Have a great week!
    Carol Andrews

  18. So stinking cute! Congratulations on your first magazine pattern. I hope it does really well for you – you are so talented.

  19. Congratulations!! This is a darling quilt. I named your critters after triangles:
    Dog – Obie (Obtruse triangle)
    Cat- Celese (Isoceles Triangle)
    Rabbit- Righty (Right Triangle)
    Frog- Thag (Pythagorean Theorem)
    Fish- Scales (Scalene Triangle)
    Bird- Cutie. (Acute Triangle)
    I fell in love with this the moment I saw it! You did a marvelous job.

  20. I do not know how you and your daughter kept such a wonder secret. Let’s see – since they are all made from triangles, I think they “T” names –
    Trent the Puppy
    Taliyah the Fish
    Taffeta the Rabbit
    Trevor the Cat and Tabitha the Butterfly
    Tyrell the Frog
    Tinley the Bird
    Thanks for a fun time and I love the quilt!!! Thanks for sharing it with all of us and the chance to win a fun pattern and magazine! I didn’t have “T” names in my family to use, most of them start with “J” and mine doesn’t. I didn’t want to play favorites to the grandchildren.

  21. Totally love it! Congrats! It is so refreshing to see a new take on things and the fabrics go so well with the fun of this quilt.

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