Blocks – Page 24 – Artquiltmaker Blog

Even More Doing Good

I decided to try out the 3rd quarter blocks (though I thought they were for the 4th quarter. I am behind – whatever), Patchwork Wheel, for the Charity Girls at BAMQG. The kits I picked up made 2 blocks each and they are quite…exciting? Loud? Wild? blocks. I don’t know which. I kind of like their exhuberance, though.

The square parts were already cut, but I had to make the HSTs. No problem. They included the fabric cut the parts and I drew a line down the middle and sewed. Worked like a charm.

I have to say that I did start putting these together stupidly. Instead of waiting to finish the HSTs and then put the blocks together in 4 patch segments, I sewed allt he squares together and had to put them together in rows. Yes, I could have unsewed, but I didn’t.

They came out well. There is nothing hideous about them.

When I saw the four of them together, i decided I wanted to make an entire top from such blocks just to see how it would turn out. Jennifer is saving some kits for me, so I can make more blocks and sew them together in a quilt.

Yes, the fabrics are wild and crazy, but I think they will be perfect for some kid with a wild streak in her. It hought of making some HSTs for the the project using my Triangle Technique but I am not sure if that would be helpful. Each pair of squares makes 8 HSTs and I think the blocks look better scrappy. I’ll have to see.

I wanted to finish another top before the next meeting , as a result, I have been making yellow and pink checkerboards.

These blocks are really cheerful and I am enjoying making them.

I am doing something a little different with these blocks. After the mosaic result of the pink and green blocks, I decided to be a little more choosy about the pinks and yellows I chose. The pink with the gold rings (upper left block, lower left corner, last row, 2d patch) is about the darkest pink I am using. All of the yellows are light and cheerful. I weeded out some of the Pat Bravo yellows-tending-towards browns for this particular project. There are a couple of pinks that are a bit too light and some different pinks that blend a bit with one of the Pat Bravo yellows, but all-in-all I am happier with how this project is turning out.

At the moment I am out of yellow and need to cut some more before I can make more blocks. I do have some that I sewed together randomly to white, black on white, etc. I could rip those out, but I don’t know if I am that ambitious. We’ll see.

I want to clear off my sewing table of 2.5″ squares and pink and yellow were what I had left. Good thing they go together. I might give away the rest of the squares and move on to something else. We will see.

Finally, I took a photo of the back for the Pink and green donation quilt. These colors are a little darker than the fabrics on the front of the quilt, but they are first quality fabrics that I was not going to use in my own work. I really liked some of them, but the pattern or the colors prevented me from putting them into a quilt. I hope someone will enjoy this back.

Jennifer told me today that the group has made 93 finished quilts for charity this year. I think the one I put the binding on might be 94. I would love to believe that is some kind of record for a guild. Probably not, but I like to think this program was a success. Jennifer and Deborah are rock stars.

Various & Sundry #14

Quilt World News

International Quilt Festival in Houston starts on November 1. If you are going, you’d better get organized. 😉

I think I mentioned that I signed up for Threadbias when SeamedUp went out of business. I only signed up. I tried to add a project, but I couldn’t upload the photos for some mysterious computer reason and I haven’t been back. I have nothing against Threadbias, I just feel like a jilted lover. I spent all that time with SeamedUp and now have nothing to show for it. I know it is a risk with free sites, but I will need some time.

All that being said, I don’t dislike Threadbias or anything. I am sure they are a fine crew and doing a fine job. Thus, I wanted to let you know about their Kickstarter campaign to design an online quilt design tool, which is described fully in their blog post. I have not decided whether or not I will contribute, because I am disappointed that they say nothing about EQ7. Why didn’t they call up EQ7 and say “dudes, let’s collaborate on a webtool”? Perhaps they did and were blown off?

I did watch part of the video and the features they have developed so far look pretty cool. Still, I have invested a lot in EQ, so I have to think hard before switching. GenQ Interviews the ThreadBias team on their blog in a Q&A type format. Good info.

Speaking of EQ, follow along with Barbara Brackman’s new Grandmother’s Choice blog starting now. She has started a new blog about blocks. A free block each week. Find the block in BlockBase then build the quilt right in EQ7. The topical topic is: The Fight for Women’s Rights.

Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr of FunQuilts, now Modern Quilt Studio, have a lot of fun news to share with you: classes, books, fabric. Go take a look at their blog post.

Tutorials and Help

Here is another way to make bias binding, if you are looking to try a new way or you have never done bias binding.

Around the Web

Little Bluebell also wrote about the Whole Cloth Quilt Challenge at BAMQG on her blog.

I liked this blog and the pieces shown on the blog. One of the blog posts has a great Swoon block. The blog post is good in general.

Check out Quilter in the Gap (Rhonda)’s giveaway: Dots and Chevrons!!! Don’t enter, just take a look. I want to win. You know I love dots. I have to make a project with all dots, I think.

A-B-C Challenge

You might be wondering why I am writing about my A-B-C Challenge blocks when the BAMQG meeting was definitely not yesterday.

First, I am sewing pretty slowly lately and I am short on things to write about. Yes, you will see some more book reviews. 😉

More importantly, Rhonda finished all of her blocks. Yes, all of them, through Z. She sent a message to us saying she was done and I thought that I had better get busy. I had been thinking about finishing them all anyway. Finishing all of the blocks will buy me time later. Who knows how long figuring out the &^%$ sashing will take?

Yes, all of my blocks are done.

Yes, there are more than 26, because I made some bonus blocks. What the heck?

The first block I sewed over the weekend was the Ninja Throwing Star, according to Sandy of Quilting for the Rest of Us, Darla of Scientific Quilter, and Gretchen (@mafiretones) of 120 Blocks. It is actually my X block and the official name, according to Around the Block is X Quartet. It does look like a Ninja Throwing Star and once I caught up with their Twitter hijinks, I thought their jokes about wrapping myself in black Jelly Rolls and wandering around throwing the X Quartet were pretty funny.

X Quartet was a pretty straightforward block to put together and I like the way the color combination came out. And, I have to admit, it does kind of look like a Ninja Throwing Star.

I really wanted to make the Japanese X block that Kathleen combined to make into a pillow for the Pillow Swap challenge at BAMQG for X. I was nervous that the other participants would call me out since the block doesn’t technically start with X, so I decided to make it as a bonus block. I really like the design and want to explore it a little more in the future.

I have been trying to use more of the Zoe Pearns dots to create some continuity in the blocks. I don’t know if it is working, but the blocks, in general, are looking quite cheerful.

I skipped Y at first and went straight to Z. Y and Z are difficult blocks, mostly because not a lot blocks have names that start with Y or Z. I didn’t see any that I liked that started with Z. I thought about Zanzibar, the block from Weeks Ringle and Bill Kerr that I resized and used for the FOTY 2009 quilt.

Been there done that, so I looked around to see if there were any other options. I found a printout from the Judy Martin site of a quilt made from a block called Zipper. It has a little different look than the other blocks I have made, namely because of the lack of HSTs, but I made it anyway. I like the way it came out.

Then I got to Y.

Y was a problem.

The first problem was finding a block I wanted to do. The next problem was making it. There are a lot of Yankee something or other quilt blocks. None of them really spoke to me. I had books opened to sections on Y blocks all over my workroom. Finally, I decided on Young Man’s Fancy. It has a nice propeller look in the center and I am not scared by long, thin, pointy triangles.

Young Man's Fancy: Fail — Young Man’s Fancy: Fail

I should have been, because I had no idea what I was doing with this block. No matter what I did, this block would not go together. Remember: I am making 6″ blocks, so I am sure the size had something to do with my problems.

Finally, I gave up.

The thing I did like about this block is the outside row of squares. The colors are grouped so that two pinks are in two corners and two greens are in the two other corners. I like the way that looks and will keep it in mind for future blocks. The suggested coloration had the border squares of this block colored in that way.

So, I was back to the Yankees. I just picked one, which turned out to be Yankee Puzzle, made it and moved on.

I have to say that my favorite color combination in all of the blocks is the color combination in Yankee Puzzle. That fun pink (may be called Lipstick) coupled with the dark, but cheerful greenish blue are awesome. You can see, from the photo at the top, that I have used this color combination a lot.

After Yankee Puzzle I had one open spot left in a 5 block x 6 block layout. As an aside, I am not sure why I picked that layout. I put all the blocks up on the design wall and I thought it looked good, so I went with that layout.

The last block I decided to do was the Rambler. The X of Flying Geese stuck in my mind as I looked through block dictionaries. I also liked the way the Flying Geese were sort of backwards.

The layout of the patches reminds me of something (a gift?), but I can’t think what. I especially like the way the first Flying Goose highlights the square-in-a-square in the middle.

This block has a lot of scope for imagination, as Anne Shirley would say, I think. I may make more of the for another project, but larger next time.

I have a vague recollection of a car called Rambler, but I don’t think my parents ever owned one.

I thought I would get a lot farther, but the Young Man’s Fancy and the Rambler took me a long time. I wanted to make some progress on the sashing, but only was able to sash one block.

The grey looks dark in the photos, but it doesn’t look dark in real life. It looks perfect. I am considering buying a whole bolt of that fabric.

You might think the sashing is wide, but I purposefully made it wider than the ratio calls for so I could trim all the blocks to the same size. Most are about 6 1/4″, but there are a couple that are nearing 7″. I think it has to do with me trying to figure out the math for quick piecing HSTs. I am thinking I will trim them all to 8″ and then put one of the red dots from the sashing post in between the grey of the sashed blocks.

I like all the blocks, but some of the fabric choices could be better. There are a couple of blocks that I may remake. I’ll think about it and see.

QuiltCon Block Entries

If you have not already sent off your blocks for the QuiltCon block design challenge, it is too late. I sent mine in earlier and wanted to share what I created with you.

You can find the original directions at the QuiltCon/MQG blog.

I bought a set of fat quarters from Pink Chalk fabrics. I bought FQs from Pink chalk, because they were a bit cheaper than the other vendors (did not include the white) and I like the Pink Chalk customer service. It is ridiculous for me to try and save a few bucks. I buy enough fabric to insulate my house, but I have my moments of sanity.

The colors, which were selected by Elizabeth Hartman of ohfransson fame, are:

Kona Cotton Cyan
Kona Cotton Azure
Kona Cotton Candy Green
Kona Cotton Lime
Kona Cotton Chartreuse
Kona Cotton Buttercup
Kona Cotton School Bus
Kona Cotton Tangerine
Kona Cotton Medium Grey
Kona Cotton Coal

I wasn’t very fond of the yellow. It is too wishy washy for me. The orange in the upper left hand corner shows up very red on my screen, but it is orange.

I thought some of my Block-a-Long blocks were pretty modern, so I entered some of those. The first one was a block I named Four Columns Squares (Block-a-Long #52). I did rearrange the columns a bit from my original post, because I wanted to take advantage of my perception that the modern quiltmakers like assymetrical quilts (blocks) as a general rule.

I found the 12.5×12.5 unfinished size to be unwieldy for me. Most of the blocks I make are much smaller. I didn’t have to make them 12.5″x12.5″. I could have made them 12.5″ by whatever width I wanted, but I didn’t do that.

I also thought it would be a good idea to make the same block in two different colorways. I also included a printout of how the block would look in a quilt.

I wanted to make several, but read the directions and found I could only make 3. At the time I found that out, I had already made two, so I thought I had to select the third carefully. Instead what I did was send in the two as the same pattern in two different colorways. Clever, eh?

Well, it won’t be very clever, if I get disqualified.

I was thinking about the rules saying that blocks could be any width. I kind of wanted to try a different width than 12×12 finished, so I reduced one of the Block-a-Long blocks by not making all the pieces. I think it looks very similar to the block I used for FOTY 2009.

If you remember, that is a block I found in a book by Bill Kerr and Weeks Ringle. Not sure which one anymore. 2009 was pretty long ago, especially in the number of quilts I have finished.

I am pretty pleased with this one. I added one print, as you can see just to add a bit of interest.

I found that a fat quarter pack ends up being a lot of fabric. If I count up, what I bought was 2.5 yards of fabric. That is a lot of fabric and I really didn’t want it hanging around, so I made more blocks.

3 is the limit, you say? Yes, you are correct, but what I did was count QuiltCon entry block #1 and #2 as the same block in different colorways. I sent them off as such and then finally got around to making more blocks towards the end of June. I didn’t post this back then, because I didn’t want anyone copying my work. Shocking, I know, but it happens.

This one is more asymmetrical, but is not wonky in the Gwen Marston style. I just couldn’t do it.

I was glad to get this out of my hair. I don’t expect anything, but hope the judges will choose one of my blocks. If not, they will go to a good cause.

Stay tuned for more about the BAMQG block challenge that I worked on as well.

Swoon #11 & 12

I am calmly making these blocks one after another. I refuse to think about whether they will be a quilt or whether they will turn into anything at all. Of course, they will be something. What? I don’t know. Some kind of quilt, I am sure, but for now, I am just making blocks.

You all liked this blue, so I made another block using it. The pink is the block is a little different from the pink I selected and used in Swoon #7. I didn’t have enough of the smaller dot (that I could find), so this one is a suitable stand in.

I am pleased with the way the piecing came out in this block. If you look at the blue wings on the star, you will see how the vine looks like it continues from the middle out to the wings, especially on the left. I wish I could say I pieced it that way, but it was the luck of the draw.

Swoon #12 (middle photo, right) uses a yellow flower print, which is ok, but not great. It has all the right colors, but there is something about it that is just a little off for me. In this block, the orange of that flower print makes some of the points of the star drop out. I didn’t notice until I was done with the block. I think there was some yellow still showing before final sewing, but when I sewed those parts together, the yellow was taken up by the seam allowance. I thought about unsewing it and making the wings over, but I couldn’t be bothered. Perhaps it will make viewers come closer to the quilt to see what I was doing? For all of these little things that are not quite right, I think about antique quilts and how there is a often a fabric that doesn’t go or a botched piecing job. These quilts are charming, so I will think of these little things as adding charm to my quilt. 😉

And Then There Were Twelve

It is so interesting for me to look at all of these blocks together. Different parts of them stick out, which is all about the fabric, of course.

Some of them look like wreaths and some of them highlight the stars.

Making these blocks is turning into more of an intellectual exercise than I thought it would. Very fun.

Swoon #10

I like this one and I was able to do a little adjusting of the colors. I really like the blue print in this piece. Again, it is from the Sophie line by Moda.

I didn’t, however, want to have part of the block drop out because the pink flowers would blend with the dots. What I did was, where possible, I would put the pink flowers in the part of the block that would get cut off. For example, there are many places where I place a square over a corner, sew on the diagonal and then cut off the remaining triangle. I made a big effort to place the flower part of the blue fabric in the location that would be cut off. I think that the effect is of more blue in this block than pink. The larger dots really give these blocks a different look.

I think the blocks are starting to look like a group. There are some fabrics I need to use a second or third time, but I am getting to the point where I might want to stop making blocks.

Swoon #8

It took me awhile to get back to the Swoon blocks. I keep the latest one on the design to remind me to do it. It has been awhile since I made the last one. I think, after reading Landscape Lady’s comment from last week, I am in transition. I am trying to be in transition.

I spent last Saturday making blocks. It is kind of meditative work, but also clean up work in a way. I made some blocks for the A-B-C Challenge. I also made the Swoon block.

It is funny when I make Swoon blocks. I make one and then I want to make another, but I put it off, because there is so much cutting. Then I have to learn to make the block all over again. I made some notes when I made the last one and it was easier this time. I hope not to put it off so long until I make the next one.

Since I had cleared the design wall, I put all the blocks up and took another picture of them all.

One thing is that I think I will add sashing. Yay! I get to go through the drama of picking sashing fabric all over again. Perhaps I should take my time making more blocks? 😉

I think the look is pretty good. I will make more and then see how I want to proceed.

Swoon #9

I quickly made up this next Swoon block on Monday night. I was blatantly avoiding my regular household tasks. I found it to be an intellectual challenge to keep the background lined up so that it didn’t look strange.

I am pretty happy that I did such a good job. I am also pleased that I was still able to use Deb Tucker’s technique to make the Flying Geese and the Triangle Technique to make the Triangle Squares.

Now I have to decide if I am going to make more blocks or if I am going to stop and put these together. I have an interest in using the pink dot on white for the background in another block.

We’ll see.

Deco Block

I saw this as I was walking down the street. Interesting, don’t you think?

More Yellow Donation Blocks

As mentioned last week, I am working on the yellow donation quilt and it is going well. I made several more blocks while I was off over the Fourth of July holiday.

I was spurred on by seeing the finished blue donation quilt. Jennifer finished it on her longarm machine and did the binding as well. It looks so great to see it done.

It made me think that this Yellow quilt is an even better exercise for me, because the yellows are really different than what I have done with yellow before.

The brown-y yellows are a challenge, but I like the prints, so I am working with them.

I still have a few more blocks to make, but already have cut some pieces for sashing in hopes that I will get this top done before the next BAMQG meeting.

Yellow Donation Blocks

I am back on the donation block bandwagon, though I don’t think I ever really got off. 😉 I am using all of the Art Gallery scraps, but I had to add some additional scraps otherwise there would not have been enough different fabrics. At least, in my mind, there would not have been enough different fabrics.

I started working with the yellows using a different method than I used with the pinks. I sewed squares together and then started stacking them up. I am not sure I like this method, because it is confusing and may yet switch. I was trying to vary, not only the yellows, but also the backgrounds. It made the process a bit more challenging and I thought the variation in method would work better. The blocks definitely go together quickly when the pairs are already sewn together.

I was able to make 3 more blocks yesterday, in between making the backs.

I have an idea in my mind that I want to complete another donation top by the meeting on Saturday. The rational side of me knows that is madness, but the driven crazy person knows she can do it and doesn’t care.

I was able to add a couple of more fabrics as I worked on the yellow back yesterday. As I mentioned, I thought there was too much brown. In general, though, I think the blocks are coming together nicely.

We’ll see what the rest of the week brings for my sewing and see if we can get a quilt top finished. I have a lot of other stuff to do.

More Donation Blocks

I am working steadily on the pink donation blocks. I have all 16 finished, though I just had 12 finished when I started writing this post.

I have the Corner Store on the portable design wall, so as soon as I finished the last donation block, I started to cut sashing. I haven’t cut all the sashing, but started to sew sashing onto donation blocks anyway in between sewing Corner Store blocks together.

I can’t see the blocks all together yet, because, as implied, both design walls are covered (could I, possibly, do fewer projects at once?) with other projects (A-B-C Challenge, Swoon, FOTY 2012, Corner Store).

I have about 6 blocks sashed and need to cut a bit more sashing.

In between sewing, I also cut some ~8″ pieces to make additional pink 2.5″ squares for a future donation quilt. I used the ~8″ pieces to cut 2.5″ squares using the Accuquilt. I have a big stack waiting for me to sort.

The blocks are all a bit different, but I used many of the same fabrics, as I did in the Blue Donation quilt.

I intended to make the top and back and give it in to the Charity girls at the BAMQG, but since my sewing machine seems so happy, I wonder if I could practice some free motion machine quilting on this piece? The last time I did free motion quilting, it was such a disaster that I might have developed a phobia. I have to see if I can do it…physically, too.

And there are more pink quilts to make as Mrs. K sent me more pink fabric. Just what I needed. 😉

I am going to use the large piece on the left as backing. It is a very soft lawn, I think, and a bit thin, but I think it will be fine. Most of the fabrics Mrs. K sent were shards and strips. I washed them all and am preparing to cut them up into squares. A couple of the pieces, in addition to the lawn, are larger – FQ sized or so. Perhaps they will go on the back as well. We will see.

Cupcake Block

Lynn of Country Crossroads Quilt Shop started a project to make a quilt for Mark Lipinski. The theme was cupcakes and the block to the left is the one I made for him. Lynn said that he likes pink, so pink it was. I had the pink dot out for the Swoon #6 block, so I used it for the background. The cupcake pattern is from the Tarts Come to Tea. I just made the cake part a bit taller so it looked robust.

Lynn must be a woman to be reckoned with, because I got a photo of the quilt and someone delivered the quilt to Mark in time for his birthday.

I was really thrilled to get a photo of the quilt from Lynn.It is a wonderful quilt. There is a block in the upper left corner that has the Facebook “Like” thumbs-up symbol. There is a really a lot of nice work in this piece.

Someone also made him a very cute chef’s hat. I saw a photo of Mark wearing the hat on Linda Lum deBono’s Facebook page.

Just fun.

Sherri D on Progress on LupineSunday, December 21, 2025
Oh I agree! They ARE basic. I guess it'd be more correct to say I don't have the patience lol…
JayeL on Progress on LupineSaturday, December 20, 2025
It is a lot of piecing, but all the units are pretty basic and once you have made them, you…
Sherri D on Progress on LupineFriday, December 19, 2025
I can attest to the specialness of 1954 ;) I don't know if I'll ever be up to doing one…
JayeL on Triumphant StitchingWednesday, December 17, 2025
I am really happy with the progress so far.
JulieZS on Triumphant StitchingWednesday, December 17, 2025
Ooh that's looking so good! Thanks for the in-process long arm pictures, so fun to see the progress.