Piecing a Portrait in Solids: A Guide to the Lucy Loo Wall Hanging Kit
Some quilts are built from simple repeating blocks. Others are pictures, built piece by piece until a face emerges from the fabric. The Lucy Loo Quilt Kit from Legit Kits belongs firmly in the second group: it turns a painting by Joan Frimberger into a small, characterful wall hanging in which Lucy appears to be peeking through a window — or, as the makers cheerfully put it, posing for an imperfect selfie.
What This Kit Makes
The finished piece is a wall hanging measuring 30 inches wide by 22.5 inches long. That is a versatile size: large enough for the portrait to read clearly across a room, small enough to suit a hallway, a sewing room wall, a nursery, or the spot above a desk that needs a smile. Because the subject is a single expressive character rather than an all-over pattern, the hanging works as textile art — a framed moment rather than a bed covering.
The design's charm is in that captured expression. A portrait quilt lives or dies on shading: small shifts in tone are what turn flat pieces of cotton into a face with depth and personality. That is exactly why this kit is built around solid fabrics rather than prints — solids let light and shadow do the storytelling without a pattern competing for attention.
What's in the Box
Lucy Loo is described as a complete quilt top kit, and its contents are:
- Generous cuts of 52 Kona solids — the wide tonal palette that builds the portrait's shading, from highlights to the deepest shadows
- A fully printed pattern, so there is nothing to print, tape together, or scale before you start
- Lots of guides to help you along the way, keeping the many pieces and colours organised as the image comes together
Note what the kit is focused on: the quilt top. The product description lists the top fabrics, the printed pattern, and the guides — it does not list backing or binding, so plan to choose those yourself at the finishing stage. That is no hardship on a piece this size: a single favourite solid for the binding can frame the portrait like a picture frame, and a modest cut of fabric covers the back.
Skill Level and Time
With 52 different solids in play, this is a project for a quilter who enjoys methodical, organised work. The sewing itself is guided at every step by the pattern and the included guides, but keeping dozens of similar shades straight asks for patience and a tidy workspace. If you have completed a few pieced projects and like working section by section toward a picture, Lucy Loo is a satisfying next step — and its wall-hanging scale keeps the commitment manageable.
Plan on several sittings rather than a single afternoon. Most of the time goes into sorting, placing, and piecing the many small pieces accurately, not into difficult construction. Worked in regular sessions, a portrait like this typically comes together over days to a couple of weeks, depending on your pace — and watching the face appear piece by piece is half the pleasure.
Tips for Success with 52 Solids
Sort and label before you sew. Fifty-two Kona shades include many near-neighbours that are easy to swap under artificial light. Keep the cuts in pattern order, label each one as you prepare it, and check pieces against the guides before they go under the needle.
Work in natural light when you can. Judging subtle tonal differences — the very thing that makes the portrait read — is far easier in daylight than under a warm lamp, which can flatten the differences between shades.
Build in sections and step back. A portrait reveals itself at a distance. Pin up each finished section and view it from across the room; shading errors that are invisible at the machine stand out clearly from six feet away, while the piece is still easy to adjust.
Press as you go. Small pieces and many seams reward consistent pressing. A flat, well-pressed top not only looks sharper on the wall, it also layers and quilts more smoothly when you add your chosen backing and binding.
Finish it simply — light quilting that follows the portrait rather than competing with it — hang it where it can catch someone mid-glance, and Lucy will do the rest, peeking through her window at everyone who passes.
Shop the Lucy Loo Quilt Kit at Linda's Electric Quilters.
