Wednesday, January 18, 2017

tumbled blocks

Well this was fun!
I participated in the Building Blocks Quilt Along hosted by Jess (@craftycop) and Jess from Bloomerie Fabrics.  I had purchased the Moda pattern when it first came out a few years ago.  I love quilting along with others so when I heard about this on Instagram I signed up.

section A
The pattern is divided into 7 sections.  We spent two weeks completing each section.  

section B
I used all Denyse Schmidt fabrics.  Some prints from her lines offered at JoAnn’s.  Some from her newest quilt shop collections. 

section C
The solids are all from her Modern Solids box.  (I purchased mine through Massdrop awhile ago.)
 
section D
The pattern assigns specific colors for each block.  I used it to guide me on some of the blocks.  On others I changed up the colors completely based on my available scraps.

section E
These individual section photos are what I posted to Instagram for the QAL.  They show how the pattern arranges the blocks.

 
section F
Well, almost.  The small 6" blocks in sections E & F are supposed to be all lined up in one long row.

section G
This is by far the largest quilt I have made.  When all my sections were complete I had to move some furniture around to have enough floor space to lay out all the blocks.  I spent about 2 weeks arranging my blocks:  building, tumbling, building, tumbling…seeking balance, not only in color, but also with the blocks sizes and patterns.

I finally decided on this.  I like it.  Now I just have to decide how I’ll quilt it…

the back
Linking up my progress from this fun quilt along with Sew Fresh Quilts for Let's Bee Social
and the finished top with Crazy Mom Quilts for Finish is up Friday.

It's been kinda cloudy over here.  I hope the sun is shining in your neighborhood.

19 comments:

  1. Hey Karen! I found your blog from Sew Fresh Quilts Let's Bee Social! Your quilt is AMAZING!! I am a sucker for a sampler amd this one takes the cake!!! It's stunning!! Hope I can still find the pattern out there somewhere!!! Congrats on your finish!

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    1. Thanks so much Cathy!
      The pattern is still available a few places including Fat Quarter Shop, Amazon, and Etsy. Actually I just checked and a few vendors on Etsy still have the whole kit available if you wanted to make it just like the pattern. Just search "Moda Modern Building Blocks" and you'll find them. Happy sewing!


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  2. Love your version of this in DS fabrics! Your colour combo is lovely! I too have made it, not too happy with my end result as it seemed so big & so bright!

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    1. Thanks Linda. I visited your blog and found your quilt. I love it! Bright and happy is always good. Also, as a guild member often reminds us, nobody ever wishes their quilt was smaller!

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  3. The quilt is stunning and has such a fun look. I love it.

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  4. What a lovely quilt with fantastic colours. So happy to visit your blog.

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    1. Thank you. The pattern has been sitting here for awhile. The quilt was so big and overwhelming. Breaking it down into smaller sections made it do-able. Sharing progress with others - and a timeline - got it done!

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  5. That is just gorgeous! It has two ingredients that really speak to me: a sampler quilt with different blocks and Denyse Schmidt fabrics!! Perfect combination!! I am looking for a wedding quilt pattern and this is very inspirational!!

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    1. Thanks Kathy. This is nearly a queen size so I think it would be a perfect wedding quilt.

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  6. What a great big beauty! Love the blocks and the arrangement you decided on. And that last photo with the light shining through... Glorious! Congrats on a gorgeous top, Karen!

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    1. Thanks so much Lorna. I don't always take that backside photo but it's been SO cloudy this month. The sun was barely shining, but it was, so I snapped it.

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  7. So pretty! The varying sizes of the blocks really create a lot of movement here, it's wonderful.

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    1. Thanks Judy. There are six different sizes of blocks it this so yes, lots of movement!

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  8. This is a lovely sampler. So many techniques can be learned with just one sampler quilt. What I like best is the neatness - perfect points.
    Hugs,
    Preeti.

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    1. Thanks Preeti. With this pattern I needed to make my all the cuts a little bigger than the pattern directions then square everything up as I sewed. It helped a lot! Thanks for stopping by.

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  9. It's a really pretty quilt top, Karen! I especially like how you incorporated solids with the prints. Did you learn a lot of techniques while making each block? A BOM or an Along is a good way to get started when you're first learning to quilt. Hope you have fun with the quilting. I'd be looking to customize each block, but that would surely take a lot of thought and effort!

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    1. Thanks Linda. Picking prints that read as solids proved important here, too. I participated for awhile in the Farmer's Wife QAL and really learned a lot about squaring things up and matching points. Especially when there are lots of them in a 6" block! So for me this pattern wasn't necessarily a skill builder. I just really enjoy sewing along with others. I learn a lot watching other people's fabric choices and how they vary a pattern. In this quilt along I especially loved how a quilter used ombre fabric. Now I've put that on my list as something to try...eventually. Also, for me, QAL deadlines work! Thanks for visiting!

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  10. What a fun and colourful sampler quilt!

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