A Do Over

Mix & Match # 1

Last year some time I cut a Jacob's Ladder block into 4 quarters and then did the same with an Ohio Star block. I shuffled the pieces and came up with two new blocks. Then I used the blocks to design a quilt top.






The quilt top deserves a better border than the one I gave it. So I thought it was time I did something about that.

Mix & Match # 5

Jacob's Ladder
& Ohio Star

Ohio Star on the left and Jacob's Ladder on the right are two very traditional blocks that anybody can easily make.

Anybody means you.

Outline Block #1

Ohio Star is a simple block. I got to wondering how I could dress it up.

Then I remembered my Shaganappi alphabet. It's an outline alphabet.

What if I made Ohio Star an outline block?

Even better, what if I outline all the pieces that make up the Ohio Star block?

Mix & Match #3

Start With Two Blocks 
Everybody Knows

 Ohio Star                    Shoo Fly

And Make Two Blocks 
Nobody Has Heard Of

 Ohio Fly                       Shoo Star

Mix & Match #1

What If Two Blocks Became
Two Different Blocks?

Jacob's Ladder           Ohio Star

What if you take two blocks. Cut them into 4 quarters each. Take 2 quarters from each block and sew them together to make a new block. What do you get?

We're about to find out as I'm going to do that very thing with a Jacob's Ladder block and an Ohio Star block.

Echo Block #1

Ohio Star

I'm going to play with a kind of block I call an Echo block. I make an Echo block by combining a traditional block with a smaller version of it to make a new block.

Playing with Fabric

Elegant Spirit

by Kay Koeper Sorensen

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Recently on her blog, Quilts + Color, Kay Koeper Sorensen showed some fabric she had designed, called Elegant Spirit.

Quarter of Nine #10

What If You Made

 

An Ohio Star

 

Block..

...Then Cut It Into

Four Quarters?

Quarter of Nine #1

What You Can Learn From

A Disappearing Nine Patch Block

This quilt design was not made using Disappearing Nine Patch blocks; but it was inspired by them.

Another Way

You Can Design A New Block

Using An Old One

Admit it, you've always wanted to design a block. Other quilters do, so why not you? What's holding you back is not knowing where to start. Well, that's not a problem any longer because I'm about to show you any easy way to design a new block by starting with an old one.

Paired Blocks #16

What Else Can You Do

With A Drunkard's Path Block

It's easy to think that Drunkard's Path blocks can be used for only one purpose - to make Drunkard's Path quilts. But you can take a Drunkard's Path block and use it in combination with other blocks to make a variety of different quilts.

Colors

Ohio Star & Sawtooth Star

When I designed this on 17 October 2010, I was pleased. Looking at it now I can see it needs more punch. So I'm going to play with the colors.

Paired Blocks #1

Ohio Star & Sawtooth Star

Ohio Star and Sawtooth Star are two very similar blocks.

What if I use them both together in a quilt top?

Borders

Ohio Star

This quilt design appeared in my 19 August 2010 post. It needs borders.

Colors

Ohio Star

Yesterday I played with the colors for this quilt design and got nowhere. I'm going to try again today.

Colors

Ohio Star

This quilt design from yesterday's post was intended to be a series of Ohio Star blocks separated by a sashing of alternating white and beige squares. Instead it looks like overlapping Ohio Star blocks and Nine Patch blocks.

Sashing

Ohio Star

This Ohio Star quilt is colorful but I think it needs something more.

What if I try adding some sashing?

Blocks

Wonky Ohio Star

What if I start with an Ohio Star block and change the grid so that it is part of the Fibonacci series 1, 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 13, 21...?

On Point

Ohio Star

I've decided to see what I can do with an on point Ohio Star block.

Playing with Colors

Ohio Star

What if I try various monochromatic color schemes for an Ohio Star block?