A couple of years ago, I designed a whole safari of animals. At the time, I was keen to include a rhino, but somehow could never get the pattern to work. No matter what I did, the pattern looked clownish and wrong. I drew it, redrew it and the pattern slowly inched its way forward, but there was still something not quite right about it. Finally, help came from an unexpected source: my brother took one look at the pattern and diagnosed the issue. From that day forward, I have loved this design. The Fabric Requirements list below is for the quilt with two rhino blocks. See Potential Uses for this Block at the end of this chapter for fabric requirements for a single rhino lap quilt.
Block: 30in x 20in
Quilt: 40in x 40in
COLOUR DIAGRAM (REVERSE VIEW) – LEFT-FACING RHINO
I think it is important to be conscious of the effect that you want to achieve when piecing a fractured background. When I was choosing fabrics for the background of this quilt, I wanted each piece to be different from its neighbour, but I also wanted the differences to be unobtrusive and subtle. The fabrics needed to add interest and texture but not detract from the impact of the rhinos. Other options would be to create a scrappy rainbow of fabrics or to graduate colours from one shade to another, as I did in the Panda quilt. Remember to check your colour value no matter what effect you are creating.
I spent a lot of time playing with fabric choices for the rhinos themselves. In the end I chose to use a single print for the majority of the beast. If you prefer, you could use different fabrics for the different shells of the rhino’s armour. You could use the same colour for all the bits of armour, but in different textures, or add an extra dimension with the careful use of lighter and darker shades.
To me, the relatively large size of the rhino welcomes a large- to medium-scale print, but be sure to choose a print that does not overwhelm the pattern by containing too much high-contrast detail.
You could keep things clean with a simple, blender-style print for the rhino. Or if you were up for a bit of fun, I think the pattern offers great potential for wonderful fussy cuts in the different areas of the armour – maybe he could have a small bird piggybacking on his rump or a large flower centred on his flank. Have fun and experiment with your fabrics.
The patterns have been provided in two parts, one for the right-facing rhino and one for the left-facing rhino. Diagrams for the left-facing rhino are included in the book pages. They may be used to assist with the piecing of either rhino. Choose the rhino that you wish to sew. Print the patterns and check the 1in square is the correct size. Cut out the pattern pieces and glue them together where necessary.
Take the time to plan your fabric placement by referring to the diagrams, colouring in the Colouring Chart and writing notes on your pattern pieces. Pay special attention to the tiny pieces in the fractured background. I generally like to hide them and to make it appear as if all the pattern pieces are the same size. Do this by using the same fabric for adjacent small pieces. Be aware though that the most suitable adjacent fabric may be on a different paper template.
I personally find it easier to sew one rhino and then the other (especially when the rhinos are facing in opposite directions and I am using different fabrics for each one), but work in the way that suits you. Whatever you do, be sure not to confuse the templates of the right-facing and left-facing rhinos.
Foundation piece the project (see Paper Piecing: Paper Piecing Process).
Once each section is pieced, sew them together in the following order:
A→B. AB→C. D→E. ABC→DE. ABCDE→F. ABCDEF→G. H→I. HI→J. ABCDEFG→HIJ. K→L. M→N. KL→MN. O→P. OP→Q. KLMN→OPQ. KLMNOPQ→R. S→T. U→V. ST→UV. W→X. STUV→WX. Y→Z. STUVWX→YZ. KLMNOPQR→STUVWXYZ. ABCDEFGHIJ→KLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ.
Remove the papers. Press and starch the work (see Perfecting the Technique: Finishing a Block).
Follow the Quilt Assembly Diagram, sewing the two rhino blocks together first. From border 1 fabric, cut two strips 11⁄4in x 401⁄2in. From border 2 fabric, cut two strips 5in x 401⁄2in. Sew the narrow strips to the right and left sides of the quilt. Press seams open. Sew the wider strips to the right and left sides and press open.
Prepare a quilt sandwich of the quilt, wadding (batting) and backing and quilt as desired (see General Techniques).
For the binding, cut five 21⁄4in x width of fabric strips and bind to finish (see General Techniques: Binding).
QUILT ASSEMBLY DIAGRAM
COLOURING CHART (REVERSE VIEW)
LARGER QUILT: For those who like their patterns big, this pattern would be suitable to be increased in size. I would not recommend decreasing the size of the pattern, as the pieces around the eye would be too small to work with.
SINGLE RHINO LAP QUILT: If you wish to create a single rhino quilt, the pattern can be squared up by adding 51⁄2in x 301⁄2in borders to the top and bottom of the block. For a single rhino block you will need: 5⁄8yd rhino body fabric, 1⁄8yd black fabric, 1⁄8yd contrasting leg fabric, 1⁄8yd ear fabric, scrap of white for eye, scraps of fabric for eye lids, 11⁄8yds background fabric (low-volume), 3⁄8yd border fabric, 38in x 28in backing fabric and wadding (batting), 1⁄4yd binding fabric.