Seeing March Blocks everywhere, 1
Did I mention that I LOVE this month’s block? So much so that I saw possibilities for it everywhere. I went to North Carolina to see my niece play in an All-Star basketball team for her league (she was GREAT!). My ever-patient brother agreed to stop by Jo-Ann’s where I saw a photo of the black and white table runner (apologies for the worse than usual picture, it was way up high). It seems a variation of the Step block, but with the final border using two strips sewn log cabin style (if that makes sense).
Side by Side
I have really enjoyed seeing all the quilts the last couple months from the Hot-Crossed 9-Patch lotto blocks. I couldn’t resist putting them side by side and all on one page to enjoy one more time to enjoy:
From Michelle (left) and Julie P (right)
 Plaid blocks from 2012 |
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I stole Julie’s quilt photo from her blog because I loved this image of it.
And two from Laurina
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All cool and each quilter made it their own, or in Laurina’s case, made it her own in two completely different ways.
All the quilts are in the Gallery, if you want to go back and see what the makers had to say about their quilts.
Another Setting Idea for March Blocks
Peaches and Dreams is a free quilt pattern from Judy Laquidera, available on her Patchwork Times site.
Judy Laquidera’s Peaches and Dreams
It is made from 12 inch blocks that contain one large rectangle and three small ones.
If you wanted to use our March blocks in a similar layout, you could make 18 inch blocks, using three lotto blocks and one large 9-inch by 18inch rectangle. I would probably start with a center cut at 3-1/2 by 8-1/2, add 2 rounds with 2-1/2 strips on the short sides and 1-1/2 inch strips on the long sides and 2 more rounds with 1-1/2 inch strips all around.
Adding the larger rectangles and making 18 inch blocks could make a pretty quick quilt.
Of course, you could always make Judy’s quilt using our March color-way. I think that could be interesting, too.
Weekend Update – March 1-4
There is no topic for weekend update this week, so please feel free to share anything from your blog this week.
The link list will be active through Monday.
NEXT week will be the Second Saturday–a specified topic weekend. Check the At-a-Glance page for the March topic.
Hindsight, Low Volume Fabrics and How We Learn
Earlier today I took a photo of this quilt. I pieced the blocks in a workshop almost 5 years ago and finished the quilt a few years ago in Texas. Last night I sewed a hanging sleeve on it and today, I realized I’d never taken a photo of it.
As I looked at it, hanging at the other end of the studio, I thought how a couple of the low volume fabrics could have been better chosen. Today they seem so obviously wrong. How did I miss that? The pattern specified light, light-medium, dark-medium and dark fabrics. I remembered how challenging it was for all of us in the workshop to “see” those values.
In an Art Gallery Management class I took long ago, I remember being told how just LOOKING at lots of art trains the eye and the brain. Today I was thinking that if I made this quilt now, after our adventure in low-volume strings this month, it would be easier and the results would be better.
Live and learn 🙂
I think the quilt is also an example of how you can use low volume fabrics in combination with other fabrics. Instead of using a light background in a single color, you could choose a scrappy, colorful, low volume set of fabrics.
It reminded me of …
I received email from Kim with this photo. She said it reminded her of the “log cabin rose” block we made during our liberated year. She took the photo at the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Show in Hampton, VA. The quilt is My Secret Garden, made by Shelley Stahl.
My Secret Garden – Shelley Stahl
(I have no idea why this image is displayed side-ways in the post–I’m guessing it’s that pesky problem with some iPhone photos– but if you click it, it will open in a new page and appear right-side-up.)
I’m glad I’m not the only one that walks through quilt shows and sees beautiful quilts that remind me of some of the lotto blocks we’ve made over the years for the Block Lotto 🙂
Thanks, Kim for sharing.
I have some of those rose blocks on my design wall now and plan to make more. If you’re interested in the directions, you can find them on my blog here: Let’s Grow Roses. FYI, they’re also linked from our Block Patterns page and from the Lotto Block Index page for the lotto blocks from 2010.
If You like Strings, but …
If you like strings, are interested by the rectangular proportions of the blocks we’re making this year, but aren’t crazy for hearts, check out these scrappy herringbone blocks Michelle is making on Quilting Gallery.
The proportions are slightly different (her rectangles finish at 3-1/2 by 8-1/2 inches). If you like the look of string fabric but struggle with making strings on foundations, there’s a good tutorial in her post, too.
Weekend Update
Have you blogged about something you’d like to share?
Do you have some interesting plans for the weekend that you’d like to share?
Add your link below.
Don’t have a blog, but want to share a finished project or work-in-progress? Blog about it here and then add a link to the post below–like I did to share the quilt show pic from Kim.
FYI, our next TOPIC weekend update will be the second weekend in March, March 8-10.
(I’m sorry that I completely stressed out and spaced out last week and forgot to post the weekend update linky party)
Topic Ideas, Please
It seems my choice for a February topic fell a little flat and was especially frustrating at my house since my machine of choice has now died for the second time in a couple weeks and I was unable to complete the quilty thing I’ve been planning to try–using the backing fabric as a quilt design and quilting from the back.
So I’m asking for suggestions for a topic that anyone could use as the basis of a blog post to share as part of weekend update. Please leave your suggestion in the comments.