Tartan Diamond in a Square began with leftover Half Log Cabins/Housetop blocks. The bright, colorful ones quickly went into a simpler scrap quilt. These remaining blocks were so dull I almost donated them until... That plaid fell on those dull blocks and a perfect match was born.
About that plaid. I'd been on a business trip and wandered into WalMart one evening. This was before they standardized their offerings at every store so there was always the chance of finding something unusual. This fabric was on top of a station. From a distance it looked woolen and like the Sirens of old, it called to me across the store. I only bought 1.5 yards. {Why? There was certainly more and it was on sale.} Every scrap went into this quilt. In fact, that's why the inner section is not symmetrical.
Can you see the two block setting? It a bit of an illusion.
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| Tartan Diamond in a Square |
The first block is composed of four Housetops.
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| Tartan Diamond in a Square detail with Half Log Cabins/Housetop blocks |
They alternate with a simple dark or light centered block sashed with a loud plaid. Because the Housetops had subtle color variations I didn't want a single fabric in the alternate block. Neither did I want an obvious pattern. So I sewed two fabrics together, cross cut, and spun the resulting squares into a simple whirligig.
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| Tartan Diamond in a Square detail of dark block |
While it contains some of the same shapes as the Housetops, the larger rectangles add some needed scale/shape variation.
The colors and layout fool the eye into seeing a different layout. Although more subtle than CCII, the plaids and bright purple posts seem to float in front of a background of duller dark and light. This quilt taught me that blocks don't always have to be the focal point.
The colors and layout fool the eye into seeing a different layout. Although more subtle than CCII, the plaids and bright purple posts seem to float in front of a background of duller dark and light. This quilt taught me that blocks don't always have to be the focal point.
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| Tartan Diamond in a Square detail with light block |
Of course I wanted a large quilt so I combined aspects of the Amish Diamond in a Square with Middle Eastern rugs to create the border. The two different bright blues on each section define crisp edges. Creating the checkerboard in tans tied it back to the golden browns in that crazy plaid.
The stems of the vines were the only guidelines drawn for all this free motion work. I'd been told quilting doesn't show on prints so I used 40-weight thread and fearlessly quilted across the narrow borders. The work only shows on the lights but it was a joy to sew.
Sharp eyes will notice the same Alexander Henry fabric from my Thirty Year Sampler in the border and binding.
Many two-block quilts are alternate blocks but there are other ways to combine them. Chaos #5 by Erin Wilson and Sunday Best by Michelle Wilkie demonstrate unconventional ways to create quilts of two or more blocks.
Enjoy the day, Ann
InLinkz removed because it was hacked.
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| Tartan Diamond in a Square border detail |
The stems of the vines were the only guidelines drawn for all this free motion work. I'd been told quilting doesn't show on prints so I used 40-weight thread and fearlessly quilted across the narrow borders. The work only shows on the lights but it was a joy to sew.
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| Tartan Diamond in a Square border corner detail |
Sharp eyes will notice the same Alexander Henry fabric from my Thirty Year Sampler in the border and binding.
Quilt Details
Size: 84" x 102"
Design: Two block quilt with Housetops and original block
Batting: Mountain Mist Blue Ribbon100% cotton
Thread: variegated cotton 40 wt. thread
Quilting: SID and freemotion quilting, various freehand designs
Enjoy the day, Ann
InLinkz removed because it was hacked.