Kaleidoscope Sample Blocks

 I am working on another Kaleidoscope quilt and have been obsessed with exchanging wedges between 2 slightly related blocks.  While the blocks appears difficult, it is one of the first I learned, and is not  difficult at all and the blocks are a perfect choice for using leftover WOF strips.  The corner have not yet been selected.  There is NO effort at matching wedge seams - your eye does the "matching".      

I was getting mixed up - these 2 were NOT made of related fabrics.  (Obsessed for a while!) 

Another Quarter Log Cabin

 Apparently I am "stuck" on this design, the fifth I've made recently.   This is ready to be gifted.

The back ..., 

This is all straight-lined quilted with 2 sets of double lines through each diagonal block sets (i.e., both ways).  The recipient is an almost-adult teen guy - hope he likes it.  I sure do!  Size is 72" x 90" and again, includes fabrics left over from DH's shirts that I made for him.  No finished shirts were harmed.   I paid little attention to strip width and just hoped for the best.  That worked great for construction but the straight lined quilting plan ran into "occasional non-perfection, albeit unimportant issues."    

Despite 5 of this type quilt I've made, there is absolutely NO diminshment of scraps.  

2468 pieces. MORE Kaleidoscope Blocks!

Finished!  I learned this "system" from Jackie Robinson /Animas Quilts, called Strip and Slash and  purchased her DVD years ago.  Her method is precise, and productive, as well as an effective method to use scraps.  I've made 5-6 quilt using her "technique".   Thank you, Jackie!

A close up ...

You can see the individual block of 12 pieces, less than 4 inches, at the far right, lower corner.  

I'm playing with Kaleidoscopes, again. The wedges have been exchanged with each other on these two, resulting in greater richness.    Not sewn together yet.   The plan is 5 x 7, 14 inch blocks.   No corner pieces yet - I'll save that decision until later. 

I promised myself to STOP playing after 4 blocks - gotta gather tax materials ... ugh.  Let's see ... which  jobs would I rather do?  

Minor Improvements in the Studio

What is that?  My second sewing station is a door on 2 file cabinets with the machine on the door, and a chair slides under the work area between the file cabinets.   Occasionally the  top area needs a little extra room when quilting a large quilt.  I pulled one drawer out on the file cabinet, and inserted this piece of firm masonite (or similar), glued the paint sticks onto the correct place on the back so it stayed in the right place, turned the masonite over, and I have a good size area for additional support for the quilt.  It is loose enough so I can just pull it off and slide it under the cabinet, and close the drawer up as needed.  This cost me all of $5.10 - the large paint sticks were free, and the lumber yard cut the masonite for free.  

A better view.

A customer is required to purchase a standard size for the masonite, so there is some leftover.  As it happens, the leftover is EXACTLY the right size to do the same trick for the other sewing desk drawer that holds a million little "things", but are neatly hidden by the second board.   It's a total different size - how lucky I am!   Again, it slips easily out if not needed and takes up little space.  Additionally, both of these boards can be use as a lap work surface.  I'm happy!

Progress adding borders QAYG

 See that teal and turquoise block?  It's looking like "transparency", an effect I'm liking.  The center blocks were all sewn and machine quilted traditionally, and I actually used a pattern.  Because it's very large and I also had issues with "what machine can I use? (I hadn't purchased the Janome 6700P yet)  so my plan  was to make and quilt the borders separately, and add them QAYG, to eliminate some of the bulk.  It's working quite well.  I set up a large table in the middle of the room, to take some of the weight off my lap when finishing the last seams when hand sewing.  Size is about 88" x 104"  I'll make 2 pillow cases and send it off soon.  May take me another 2-3 weeks for final finishing.  The blocks were so much fun because while they are all almost the same, value alterations from block to block resulted in a myriad of different looks.  

Here is the 3-fabric mitered border, not yet finished.  I'll sew that last bias seam by machine and add a seam binding to cover seam.   

I absolutely find it impossible to use just ONE machine quilting design -- gotta try them all!  LOL    

Kaleidoscope, dark corners and something NEW

 

If you add DARK corners to the outside Kaleidoscope block, the entire "look" of a regular Kaleidoscope is altered.

I added the fused triangles to the one piece border when it seemed the border needed something extra.  Fused triangles are difficult to piece onto other triangles.  Live and Learn.

Backing fabric was perfect.  I'm going back for another 6 yards for another project.  

My "old" Janome 6500 just could no longer be fixed for free-motion quilting, altho is does regular sewing perfectly.  After trying out a number of other machines, until I was just plain discouraged and/or confused, my dealer suggested the Janome 6700P, which is pretty close to the 6500, but with a  nice     W   I   D   E   10 -inch bed.  

Yeaaaaa -- Perfectly wonderful, out of the gate!  I'm happy.  This block is from a book - yes, I actually used a pattern - Rock that Quilt Block by Linda Hahn & Deborah Stanley.  This star is one of many crown/star arrangements from almost the same design, yet colored in many ways to suggest different designs.   I wanted a block that filled up the 12 in. space, and I also came up with 20 different star designs.  They blend because of general shape and/or fabrics.   Corners were pp'ed and made that secondary design when the sashing was inserted between blocks.   

Where have I been?  right here, teaching, sewing and quilting, a little mentoring, running a household, keeping up the yard, etc.,  moving furniture, just like the rest of you.  It's been 4 long years since DH passed - still very difficult to be without him.