scrappy diamonds

This latest WiP on the design wall is everything I love about a quilt, it's bright, it's happy, and I love that I am constantly dipping into my stash, very satisfying. I'm using a lot of different AM Parry fabrics that I've collected over the past few years - leftovers, favourites, and not-so-favourites. Sorting them by - you guessed it - colour value to create a scrappy quilt with structure.

The most versatile block - it would have to be the HST surely? I'm using a pattern that I've wanted to try out for ages now, it's a free one #outbackvaluequilt by Blair @wisecrafthandmade.
I noted that the pattern is constructed row by row, but I'm piecing these a block at a time. I’ve always enjoyed the rhythm of making repeat blocks. Then, if I spot a colour or fabric that is working really well, I’ll cut a few more. And if a fabric doesn’t seem to be working, I don’t already have a gazillion units cut.

My default is mad, large floral prints. So, I'm using these bright prints and mixing them up with lighter, 'not quite' low volume prints, just to give the eye somewhere to rest.
I'm now about 1/2 way, and I'm starting to repeat combos that I really like, so there will be some semblance of continuity within the pattern. I'm also planning on adding in a few more "blues" as blue has always been my go-to colour.

 

 

Until next time, Linda

a colourful weekend

Thanks to everyone who took the time to comment on my layout decision for this 'corn & beans' quilt project. I went with the 2nd option and added borders to make it rectangular. It's a riot of colour, all from my stash. A real chance to showcase lots of vibrant fabrics, with another opportunity to do the same in the borders.

I think I like colour. A. Lot

Linda 💜

corn & beans

These corn & beans blocks are made from HSTs,

using stashbasket fabrics in a combo of coloured scraps & light scraps.

Exploring a few setting options this week, which I figured many of you would like to see too ...

A

B

C

D

Chip in if you have any preferences 

Linda

something new on the design wall.

Some of you may remember when I started sewing a rainbow? (see back here for details). I spent heaps of time digging deep for fabrics that read as one colour. As I started sewing them all together, very roughly in ROYGBIV order, I just wasn't feeling the love :(

Everything went into the cupboard for a bit, and when I pulled out all the little piles of HSTs this week I decided I needed a change of direction. When I was making a couple of corn and bean blocks for my folk sampler I had wondered what a whole quilt of them would look like. Then I spotted Leah's latest colourful scrappy corn & beans over on insta, and that sealed the deal!

So now I'm making **corn and bean blocks, also known as the 'northwind' block. I made a test block, adjusted my measurements, trimmed my block to 12". 

There's lots of different layout possibilities, see above pic. As you can see though, my original collection of HSTs were all very definite light/dark & light/medium combos, all way, way too stark. (maybe that's why things didn't gel for me with my original plan?)

Following along with Leah's process, I'm playing with the values a bit more. It'll be controlled scrappy, using lots of different, unrelated fabrics & sewing them into colour value groups.

Hopefully that will create some kind of shifting value effect across the quilt top without the value contrast being too stark in any one block. 

Hmm-m-m- it's a bit of work admittedly. I'm keeping many of those early HST combos, but there has been some unpicking too! And a bit of questioning if a particular fabric is light, light medium or medium light?  I'm trying to make quick decisions, and I'm happy if there's some blurring of the lines a little. 

The jury's still out on my final layout, but here's a few design wall progress pics ... 

**I was keen to find out more about this block & it's various names,

and I found this comment from Jodi at tales of cloth

... I was amused this week to discover that 'Corn and Beans' can only be called Corn and Beans if it's made from yellow and green! The block was first published by the Ladies Art Company, who sold mail order patterns, somewhere between 1890 and 1906. Then along came Carrie Hall in the 1930s and claimed that if the colours weren't yellow and green, then the block was named Duck and Ducklings, or Hen and Chicks, or Shoo Fly, or Handy Andy. 

we've ended up back at the beginning

and one final pic as the sun went down ...

As a few have already commented, this quilt reminds me of the very 1st sampler I made way back when I first began my sewing journey. I hope maybe this one - with different weights of fabric & soft limited palette - will capture that intersection of traditional quilting with a modern twist quite nicely.

Thank you, Sara @farmandfolk for this great sewalong!

See my last post for details, or pop over #folksamplersewalong for more inspiration

happy weekending, Linda