Making Moda Blockhead 1: Whirligig

Here is my second Mini-toot video tutorial. I made it to demonstrate the first block on Moda's new FaceBook site, "Moda Blockheads -- Public Group".

The block is "Block 1: Whirligig - Kansas Troubles Quilters, Lynne Hagmeier, Designer". A PDF file with complete directions can be downloaded from the Internet by clicking on this link.

This design is not optimum for a mini-tutorial, but since I wanted to make the block, I thought I might as well take the photos and use the free Adobe Spark application to make another video. I think my first mini-toot, "Cross Block", is really cute; and I am learning more about the video process as I go along.

I made the "Cross Block" mini-toot because it showed an improvisational block, and I wanted to make this "Whirligig" mini-toot because it uses a "layered" patchwork technique that I wanted to investigate.

In this "layered" patchwork method of making the Whirligig block, instead of sewing the triangles to the rectangles, these instructions give an alternate "layered" method that just stitches the triangles right-side-up on top of the rectangles, then the rest of the process is traditional patchwork seaming.

"Layered" patchwork technique from L. Hagmeier's "Whirligig" how-to

I'm sure this technique could be very useful and interesting, but I can't say I found it all that compelling in this instance. The "Whirligig" block can be pieced in the traditional way, too. I think if I try it again, I will increase the block size (this one is 6.5-inches) and piece the design in the traditional way.

A new block comes out every Wednesday on the Moda Blockheads public group on Facebook; it's fun, and instructive, to see all the different blocks that readers make.

UPDATE 03/14/17: Lynne Hagmeier, the creator of this "layered patchwork" version of the Whirligig block, stitches her triangles closer to the edge of the fabric than shown in this video. Hagmeier's post on how to make this block is available on the Kansas Troubles Quilters blog at http://kansastroublesquilters-lynne.blogspot.com/2017/03/moda-blockheads-bow-1.html.

Resources
Whirligig mini-toot, https://spark.adobe.com/video/mtq31iLZbeeX5
Whirligig directions PDF, http://unitednotions.com/Block1LH_Whirligig.pdf

Comments

Notes on Purl Soho Cross-back Apron pattern

Purl Soho Cross-back Apron, regular sized, front view Purl Soho Cross-back Apron, regular sized, back view by Linda Theil This is the Purl Soho Cross-back Apron featured on their website at https://www.purlsoho.com/create/2015/11/20/cross-back-apron . Their page includes complete directions for making this one-size-fits-most apron with large, side-pockets and cross-back straps. This retro apron is so nicely made and looks so much like the apron my grandma wore in the Nineteen-fifties that I had to make one for my friend who appreciates the nostalgia and the beauty of this design. Although this apron pattern, as published, can adjust to several sizes from 2-10; I also made a larger option, adjusting the width of the pattern pieces to accommodate up to size 16 and up. Size adjustment may also be made by varying the length of the straps. These notes are a record of my experience with the pattern, and should only be viewed as commentary; y

Holiday weekender

by Linda Theil Alisa's always cleaning house and often asking me if I want some item I'd given her before she sent it to a new home. I couldn't refuse the holiday-print, round table cloth I had bordered in red pom-poms forty years ago, even though she had slit the cloth to the center so that she could use it as a tree skirt. I decided I would make a holiday-getaway bag from the salvageable remnant. The olive-drab faux waxed canvas I ordered on sale looked really great with the old print. I used Diane Spencer-Ogg's outstanding "Escape Pod Travel Collection" patterns. Pictured below: The holiday themed “Weekend Bag” and "Travel Clutch" in olive-drab faux waxed-duck canvas from Sally Tomato , vintage holiday print exterior and interior, and accents of Mora bordeaux faux leather from Emmaline Bags . Pattern and video tutorial "Escape Pod Travel Collection: Weekend Bag and Travel Clutch" by Diane Spencer-Ogg. Weekend Bag front Weekend Bag bac

Sujata Shah's no-template piecing

16-inch, four-patch "pinwheel" block designed by Sujata Shah, pieced by Linda Theil 2016 Fabrics: Sturbridge line by Kathy Schmitz for Moda and Daily Zen line by Michael D'Amore for Benartex. I attended quilt artist Sujata Shah's "Pinwheel" class sponsored by the Greater Ann Arbor Quilt Guild at Washtenaw Community College in Ann Arbor on July 17, 2016. Shah is inspired by the work of Gee's Bend quilters and has developed a no-template method of piecing to emulate their unstructured designs. Shah's book, Cultural Fusion Quilts , is available at Amazon.com. Shah's uses four 11-inch squares to make each block, but she said a quilter could use any size base they choose. Since I had a package of precut 10-inch squares in the "Sturbridge" design by Kathy Schmitz for Moda, I based my block on that size. We were instructed to bring a variety of backgrounds in one color and brights in another color. Since I signed up late for

Appleton Dance

Search This Blog