Fresh Picked: A Fresh Name for My Very First Quilt Pattern
Megan Fowler
Fresh Picked may have a new name, but this quilt has been part of my story from nearly the beginning.
Back in 2022, when Quiltbound was still Modern Moon Quilt Studio, I sat down and wrote my very first quilt pattern. I called it Palisade, after the little Colorado town responsible for one of my greatest late-summer weaknesses: Palisade peaches.
Now that first pattern is getting a new moment in the sun as Fresh Picked.
Inspired by Colorado peach season
Palisade is a small farming town on Colorado’s Western Slope, near Grand Junction. Fruit trees have been growing there since the 1890s, and the area is now especially famous for its peaches. Long, sunny days followed by cool Colorado nights help create peaches that are extra sweet, extra juicy, and completely deserving of their reputation.
Every late summer, roadside farm stands begin filling up with boxes of them. This is the point in the season when I become a complete glutton for peaches.
I used to crack open the box while we were still driving home and dig right in. Peach juice would run down my hands, drip onto my clothes, and somehow spread across an impressive portion of the car. My husband loved this for us.
Apparently peach enthusiasm is hereditary because now my five-year-old loves them just as much as I do. Between the two of us, a box of Palisade peaches does not stand a chance.
You can read more about the orchards and farming history of the area through Visit Palisade.
The pattern that started it all
When I released Palisade in 2022, I was still building Modern Moon Quilt Studio and learning what it meant to be a quilt pattern designer.
Because it was the first pattern I had ever written, it became more than another quilt in my collection. It marked the beginning of a completely new part of my creative life.
The design uses modified courthouse steps blocks set on point. The center squares and surrounding strips create a clean geometric rhythm, while the corner details add another layer to the design when the blocks come together.
It felt modern, but the warm colors and roadside inspiration gave it the touch of nostalgia I was always chasing during the Modern Moon years.
A little Modern Moon time capsule
In 2023, Quiltfolk came to Colorado while working on Issue 28: Colorado. I was featured in their online journal story, “Megan Fowler: Modern Nostalgia,” written by Rebecca Bratburd with photography by Melanie Zacek.
The story explored my love of pairing vintage inspiration with modern quilt design, which was at the heart of Modern Moon Quilt Studio. The photos throughout this post were taken during that Quiltfolk shoot.
Looking at them now feels a little like opening a creative time capsule. They capture an earlier version of my business, but they also remind me how much of that original vision is still here.
The name has changed. The business has grown in directions I never could have predicted. I still want to make quilts that feel at home in modern spaces while carrying a little bit of history, memory, or personality along with them.
Fresh Picked fits right into that story.
About the Fresh Picked quilt pattern
Fresh Picked is a quick, modern pattern written for confident beginners. Strip piecing helps the blocks come together efficiently, and the on-point arrangement makes the finished quilt look more involved than it really is. We love a quilt that accepts compliments without revealing all its secrets.
The pattern includes:
- Instructions for four-color and two-color quilts
- Options for 2½" strips and precut 5" squares
- Regular yardage requirements for every size
- A printable coloring page for planning your own version
| Size | Finished dimensions |
|---|---|
| Baby | 34" × 34" |
| Lap | 51" × 51" |
| Throw | 68" × 68" |
You can use a coordinated precut bundle, shop your stash, or begin with a palette built entirely from yardage. The different color options leave plenty of room to make the pattern feel like your own.
A new name and a fresh spot in the collection
As I brought my earlier patterns into the Quiltbound collection, I knew this one needed to come along.
The name Fresh Picked keeps the farm-stand feeling and the Palisade peach story tucked inside while giving the pattern a name that feels at home in this next chapter.
It still reminds me of late-summer drives, boxes of peaches on the back seat, and the pattern that started me down a completely unexpected road. Now it also makes me think of sticky little five-year-old hands reaching into the box beside mine.
Some things change. The important parts tend to find a way to come with us.
Longarm quilting services were provided by Lilo Whitener-Fey of Trace Creek Quilting.
