When choosing fabrics for the cover version of the Pine Trip quilt, I wanted to capture the essence of traditional Norwegian cabin and house interiors. The color palette needed to reflect the muted yet rich tones often found in historic Scandinavian decor – most often deep teal blues, golden yellows, rustic reds, and earthy greens.
Classic color scheme: Muted yellow and teal blue. And pine, of course! Interior from Snøheim, a tourist cabin in Dovrefjell – a great starting point if you're in for a muskox safari or climbing the Snøhetta mountain!
This time, I decided to leave out the green and instead focused on a selection of Ruby Star Society fabrics in rusty red, teal blue, deep orange/saddle, and mustard.
The prints in the rust and saddle-colored fabrics, in particular, feel quintessentially Scandinavian to me. They remind me of the warm, inviting interiors of old cabins, where painted wooden walls, embroidered textiles, and well-worn furniture create a timeless, cozy atmosphere. They're both Ruby Star Society fabrics: The rusty red is from the Sugar Maple collection and the Brown/saddle tone with stars is from the Heirloom collection, both sadly discontinued.
The mustard print is not Ruby star - it's an older collection by Gingiber for Moda and the collection is called Nocturnal.
For the background, I chose the Violet print in Natural from the Ruby star Bird is the word collection. It felt like an obvious choice, as viola tricolor – called "Natt og dag" (Night and Day) in Norwegian—is a wildflower commonly found throughout Norway. It adds a subtle connection to nature, reinforcing the nostalgic inspiration behind the design.
Once the quilt top was finished, it was sent to Sissel of Sy-snacks in Trondheim for longarm quilting. The swirling pantograph design she used adds a beautiful organic movement, balancing the geometric nature of the quilt pattern with a soft, flowing texture.
I couldn’t be happier with how the quilt turned out, and I hope you love it too!
The Pine Trip pattern is available here – happy quilting!