This is the latest quilt made using my Pickup Sticks pattern . It's 49" x 49" and it's been in the works for several years. (That means it was a UFO all that time . . .) Pickup Sticks using the Shoreline Collection by Windham Fabrics Here's a photo of the blocks on my design wall. It's a simple pattern that uses 10" squares in sets of 4 prints. NO TEMPLATES! (Hint: a freezer paper guide helps.) They're stacked, sliced and then shuffled. Thin strips of 1" inserts are added. Some tilt left and some tilt right. Pickup Sticks blocks I ran out of fabrics along the way. My thin inserts are not as uniform as I wished! I first made this about 15 years ago with a set of batiks: Stained Glass Pickup Sticks : 54" x 64" I went on to make several others. Click those links and you'll see them. I'm going to get this quilted and donated to my local quilt guild's charity endeavors. The fabrics are full of fun prints of crabs and beach chai...

This is a block that I have used many times in quilts. It's almost like a vortex in that the arrangement of the colored triangles is very clever to create a "swirl" movement that draws your eye to the center of the block. Let me show you the block from the calendar: This is a set of four blocks that I made for Creative Grids rulers several years ago. I was designing some patterns for their Square on Square Trim Tool by Jean Ann Wright . Four Snail's Trail blocks We decided that I should use a different coloring. Here is some of the art that accompanied the pattern. Can you imagine trails left by snails? Not sure if I do, but it is an interesting block! Here is the final quilt I made and published for Creative Grids. The blocks are 8" and the quilt is 42" x 42". The block in my calendar is a whopping 16". That's because I don't like working with tiny pieces. Snail's Trail Quilt: 42" x 42" I think having the 16" blocks woul...

Well, they're probably hiding out to stay warm with all these piles of ice and snow. But, we can look at some doves stitched up into blocks! This is the January 29 block in my calendar. It is a whopping 18" size, but that makes it easier to sew. Here it is done by my sister Janet, who is one of my Calendar Girls. Dove at the Window: 18" I also made not one, but TWO of these using the Solstice and Fantasy Collections from Windham. And the blenders are from their Moonlit line. Dove at the Window #1 And my second one: Dove at the Window #2 Notice those "diamonds" which are really two half-square triangles in the same fabric. This block is a close cousin to the vintage Carpenter's Wheel. Yes, Dove at the Window is also a vintage block, only I simplified the piecing as you see here. If you compare the block made by Janet and my two, you will notice that she doesn't use as strong a contrast between the units. Hers is a bit more "blendy." I hope to...

Sometimes it's not that important to have a lot of pieces in a block. That's the case for this block from earlier in the month. The January 2 block is the Turnstile. A traditional block made with 2 sizes of triangles. Linda D. used her collection of Insectarium and Watermark - both from Windham Fabrics - to make all of her blocks so far. Beautiful fat quarters of Insectarium and Watermark   Here is the block she made: Turnstile: 12" Thank you, Linda, for letting the butterflies take charge! What fun collections she has been working with, too. Click the link above to see all the fabulous Insectarium prints !

Today is January 27 and the featured block is Prairie Flower. This also appeared in my 2007 quilting calendar and I had several students make theirs in the larger 16" size. But first, my 4 block quilt in the 8" size as shown in the Quilter's New Perpetual Block a Day calendar: 4 block Prairie Flower quilt in Fossil Ferns  Don't you just love how those Fossil Ferns seem to glow? Here's a digital image I created and patterned for my Calendar Girls program in 2008. This uses 16 blocks in sets of 4 blocks each! 16 block Prairie Flower quilt Now for 2 more student quilts using the pattern above: What fun to put all these blocks together. They are simple and let the fabric do all the work! If you don't have your calendar yet: Check your local quilt shop for my calendar so you can have your own  Prairie Flower   blocks. You can find my calendar here, also: on  Amazon at  C&T Publishing and in  Barnes & Noble  stores

It's always fun to see blocks made up in different fabrics and that's what the focus is today. The block for January 22 in my Quilter's Block a Day Calendar is Underground Railroad and I shared my version on Thursday. Here is another one made by my friend Kathy M. Underground Railroad by Kathy M. - 12" She is using the Find Your Way collection by Lisa Ruble for Benartex Fabrics. Compare it to the one made by Diann C. with the Holly Jolly Christmas fabrics by Windham that I featured back in the Fall: Underground Railroad by Diann C. And remember the one I made in reds and blues using tiny 4-1/2" blocks? Thank you, Kathy and Diann for making such lovely blocks. This is a vintage, traditional design that has a lot of possibilities - and history, too!

The calendar block for today is the Autograph Block. It is a vintage design and has been used for signature quilts for well over 200 years. The calendar size is 14" and here is how my Calendar Girl Diann C. made it: Autograph Block: 14" Note the center light "cross" section. That's where the signature would go. Diann has staged this with pens at the ready! She's been working with the Tempest Collection by Windham Fabrics. Aren't they lovely?! Thank you, Diann, for sharing your block with us today.