Introducing Sunfire: The Newest Modern Quilt Pattern in the 2026 Collection
I am so excited to show you the newest pattern in the 2026 collection — it's called Sunfire, and I cannot wait to walk you through it! I was having such a great time playing around with half-square triangles (such a great little building block) and mixing them into regular patchwork when this fun floral design came together, with alternating colors wrapping around a center bloom. Sunfire is one of my favorite additions to my library of quilt patterns so far this year, and I think you're going to love it too.
The best part about this pattern? Because the cuts are so small, it's a fabulous scrap-buster of a project — hello, scrappy quilt pattern lovers! You absolutely can make it in a curated yardage style if you prefer a cleaner, more cohesive look, but if you've got a growing scrap bin calling your name, Sunfire is happy to help you use it up.
Like the rest of the quilt patterns in this collection, Sunfire comes in five sizes, ranging from crib all the way up to a large bed quilt, so no matter who you're making this for, there's a size that fits. Read on to learn more about Sunfire, the fabric and quilting choices I made, and what's coming next!
The Fabric Story Behind Sunfire
All of the fabric in this quilt comes from Paintbrush Studio Fabrics' Painter's Palette line, which has honestly been such a joy to work with. The hand and weight of this fabric is wonderful — it presses beautifully and holds its shape through all that small-scale piecing.
For colors, I landed on Lemon Ice, Artisan, and Carrot, with black as the background. I also used black for the binding, which you'll see featured throughout the quilt. Black binding is a bit of a signature move for me across this collection — I love how it pulls all the colors together into one cohesive look. On this particular quilt, the black binding blends right into the black background, which gives the whole piece the illusion that it simply fades out at the edges rather than coming to a hard stop. No punctuation, no big final statement — it just gently trails off, and I love that quiet effect.
Why I Love Working With Small-Scale, Scrappy Fabric Pulls
If you've followed along with my modern quilt patterns before, you know I have a soft spot for designs that let scraps shine. Sunfire's small piece sizing and high quantity count per block means you can either buy focused yardage for a clean, intentional palette, or you can dig into your stash and let a scrappy quilt pattern approach take over. Either way works beautifully, and that flexibility is part of why I designed it this way.
Choosing the Quilting Design: Rolling Hills
For the quilting on this piece, I chose a pantograph called Rolling Hills, which is a modern take on a clamshell design with an echoed clamshell nested inside each fan. The design comes from Julie Hirt, whose selection of fresh, cool pantographs you honestly can't find anywhere else — her style is so unique, and I keep coming back to her patterns for pieces like this one.
This particular pantograph is wonderfully beginner-friendly for anyone getting started with longarm quilting, because there's no need to match up any points within the design. There's about a half-inch of space between each row, which makes it super simple to stitch out, even if you're brand new to longarm quilting.
A Great Pantograph for New Longarm Quilters
I get a lot of questions from newer longarm quilters about which pantographs are approachable, and Rolling Hills is one I'd recommend without hesitation. If you're building up your quilting skills or just want a forgiving, low-stress design for a special quilt top, this is a great one to have in your back pocket.
Picking the Perfect Backing Fabric
For the backing, I went with a black-and-white pickle dish wide back, which I also keep stocked in my shop. I thought this structured, geometric quilting-cotton design was the right call for this particular top — the piecing in Sunfire is already so structured and graphic that I felt like something softer, like one of the brushstroke-style backings I've used on a few other quilts, would clash with the overall geometric feel. The black-and-white pickle dish print really complements the top, and when you see the front and back together, it all just makes sense.
A Time-Intensive (But Worth It) Quilt to Piece
I'll be honest with you — this is a bit of a time-intensive quilt to piece, simply because of all the small piecing involved in assembling both the full blocks and the half blocks. But that time investment comes with a fun payoff: the center bloom of each Sunfire block is a perfect spot to fussy cut, which means every single block can have its own unique personality if you're pulling from scraps.
One quick note if you were hoping to use a charm pack for this one — sadly, these aren't 5-inch center squares, so charm packs won't work directly with this pattern. But scraps, fat quarters, and curated yardage all play beautifully with this design.
Even with the extra piecing time, I think you'll find the process satisfying rather than tedious — there's something really rewarding about watching each small unit come together into a full bloom, and then watching all those blooms line up across the finished top. It's the kind of quilt pattern that rewards patience with a genuinely striking result.
Tips for Piecing Sunfire
- Take your time with the small units — accuracy here pays off in how crisp the finished blooms look
- Fussy cutting the centers is a great way to feature a favorite print from your stash
- Chain piecing the smaller components can help speed up assembly without sacrificing precision
- Press seams intentionally so you'll have nesting throughout the entire quilt top
Why Sunfire Fits This Year's Collection
Every quilt pattern I release in a collection year is designed to work together — not just visually, but in terms of skill level, fabric requirements, and finishing options. Sunfire slots in as one of the more piecing-intensive modern quilt patterns of the bunch, but it's balanced out by a genuinely beginner-friendly quilting design, so even if the piecing pushes your skills a little, the finishing doesn't have to. That balance is something I think about with every pattern I design: I want quilters at every stage to be able to pick up one of my patterns and feel confident working through it from start to finish.
If you've made one of my other modern quilt patterns before, you'll notice some familiar choices here — the five-size range, the black binding, the emphasis on making each pattern scrap-friendly wherever possible. I like building a cohesive collection that quilters can mix and match from, whether you're piecing your first quilt or your fiftieth.
What's Coming Next
I can't wait to show you the second version of this quilt I'm working on right now — it's going to be a totally different style and vibe than this one. Think a little more fun, a little more playful, and definitely more springy. Stay tuned on Instagram and follow along on my blog here to see what comes of the next sample!
Need Help Finishing Your Own Quilt Top?
If seeing this Sunfire quilt come together has you feeling inspired but a little intimidated by the quilting or finishing process, that's exactly what I'm here for. I offer longarm quilting services and binding services for quilters just like you, whether you're local here in Minnesota or sending your top to me from somewhere else entirely. As a longarm quilting and binding service for hire, I work with quilters who want a pantograph like Rolling Hills stitched out with care or simply a clean, professional finish they can trust. I also offer mail-in longarm quilting services, so if you don't have a longarm quilter near you, you can ship your top to me and I'll take care of the quilting and binding from start to finish — no matter where in the country you're piecing from. Whether it's a scrappy quilt pattern like Sunfire or a heirloom you've been working on for years, I'd love to help you get it across the finish line.
Learn More About My Longarm Quilting Services
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