Make Blocks from the past with me each Month of 2012

January 18, 2012 1 Comment

Hello I have been busy playing with fabric. Oh what fun!! I have decided its time to make a dent in my stash, I have been collecting reproduction fabrics for a few years now. (its scary to think how many) I have been pouring over block patterns and designs, there are so many really really nice pieced blocks from the past that I am not sure I would ever have time to make each one in my lifetime. I have come up with a plan to make interesting pieced blocks each month, for the 12 months of this year. Of course I will not be able to resist  designing a few applique blocks to add some interest, so you will have to indulge me with that. As I make each block I will go through my process with you all here on the blog. Starting with the colour choices, products I use and why, how I pieced the block together and pressed the seams. etc, etc. Oh.... I could blurb on for ages about all of that good stuff. If you would like to make these blocks with me, I will be attaching a free pdf pattern to the Pine Valley Quilts newsletter each month. Free for all my subscribers, so if you have not subscribed yet please do, so you can join in on all the fun. At the end of the year you will have 12 blocks to make into a lovely quilt. BLOCK ONE I have chosen the Arrow Crown for my first block. There are so many ways you can play with your fabrics to create a totally different look with this block. Here are a few pictures of what I have created just by playing. These pictures were done with fabrics from the website. Take a look here: http://www.pinevalley.co.nz/catalog/reproduction-fabrics Choosing fabrics for this block I will be choosing fabrics from my stash to make this block. When looking at this block I will be looking for tone on tone fabrics of light medium and dark. The print on the fabric is not too much of a concern, only if it is large and has too much of a contrasting colour that may not interact with the depth of colour I am trying to create. I like to use a lot of fabrics to create interest in the colour selections, so I will look for more then one of each colour way in the darks, mediums and lights. Here are some pictures of some of my selections. [caption id="attachment_777" align="alignnone" width="300" caption="This is what I started with"][/caption] [caption id="attachment_778" align="alignnone" width="134" caption="Here is what I have ended up with"][/caption] I have ended up with a selection from each colour way in the same tone or at least as close as my stash would allow. In some of the fabrics I have noticed that the patterns have more than one colour but they do blend in with what I am trying to create and not too much contrast. I will also try to use the directional prints to my advantage. The directional prints can create some very interesting design bonuses. Now it is not set in stone that I will use these fabrics when I make my block and I may make some changes as that is a women's prerogative isn't it. I will let these fabrics rest on my desk for a couple of days before I make my final decision. Sometimes I find placing them on my design wall helps, that way I am looking straight at them. I hope you have enjoyed this post. I am excited about making this quilt with all of you and hope you will leave me lots of comments and ask any questions if you need to. Happy Stitching Sharon        

1 Response

Leave a comment

Name *

Email *

Comment *

---

Also in Sharon Keightley Quilts - Quilty Ramblings