Diamonds in Quilts

I was asked to teach my Flying Swallows class again, though it hasn't been confirmed. I started thinking about those diamonds and how they appear in several other vintage inspired quilts I've made. First, my most recent Flying Swallows quilt using Michael Miller's Fairy Frost fabrics for those diamonds:

Flying Swallows: 48" x 48"

The diamonds are easily rotary cut from 2-1/2" strips (this shows cutting from 3-1/2" strips, but the same method). Think differently about those diagonal lines on your rulers!

My first Flying Swallows:

First Flying Swallows from 2000.

Now let's look at the diamonds - very neat, huh? NO templates!

Rotary cut 45 degree diamonds

Swallows in the Window uses the SAME diamonds. The way the background triangles are arranged and the addition of a center square makes this unique. Here's the vintage pattern for a 9" block (gasp!!)

And my most recent Swallows in the Window quilt (my second one). Uses the SAME diamonds.

Swallows in the Window

How about my Snow Crystals quilts? I'll share one - and it uses the SAME diamonds in a larger size.

Notice that this quilt resembles a Lone Star, right?

Snow Crystals

Snow Crystals is also a vintage block which first appeared in the early 1930s.

Let's move on to the Nosegay quilt. Again, a vintage pattern with the arrangement of those diamonds a little differently. Here is a photo of a vintage Nosegay quilt as it was photographed for Quilt Magazine.

Vintage Nosegay quilt

And one of the several Nosegay quilts I've made. Yes, 45 degree diamonds with a base "cone." Those setting triangles of Baltimore Album flowers are just printed motifs! This was donated to my local quilt guild for charity. Kind of wish I kept it!

Nosegay

I'm almost done. The quilt we think about most often using 45 degree diamonds is the Lone Star. In fact, I created a Lone Star Week a few years ago where I featured quite a few of these. Here is the latest one that's quilted (I have a few in the closet that still are tops!)

Lone Star

And one from my One Day Lone Star class (now retired):

Lots of diamonds in these quilts. 45 degree diamonds. And one I made with those diamonds out of ultra suede!

Ultra Suede Star

Whew! I'm done. But, so many ideas using 45 degree diamonds - and all rotary cut and NOT from templates!

thanks for stopping by.