Tag Archives: snowball block

Fifty-Four Forty or Fight Quilt Block

Posted on November 30, 2012 | Leave a comment

Today, I am showing the Fifty-Four Forty or Fight quilt block from Nancy Martin’s Perpetual Calendar collection of blocks.

Fifty-Four Forty or Fight is drafted from a 6 x 6 grid.

Clicking on any of the photos will show a larger view.

Here is the what the Fifty-Four Forty or Fight quilt block looks like in a basic straight set with borders.

The following design alternates Fifty-Four Forty or Fight with the Snowball block. I love using the Snowball quilt block in designs because it gives the illusion of curves.

Next, I’ve designed with another alternate block, the Basic 4X.

And this design uses a big half-square triangle block as an alternate. With a little simple rotation, large stars can be seen in the background.

It is worth the little extra time to try out a few simple alternate blocks, rather than just putting a quilt top together with one main block.

Have a look at the Fifty-Four Forty and Fight blocks placed on point:

Sashing and cornerstones separate the blocks, making it easier to see them. The sashing also adds another design element. Sashing can be filled with other blocks to create a new design, but I’m keeping it simple here.

And again, using the Snowball quilt block as an alternate:

This last one uses a simple plain block as an alternate. And I like it.

Which is your favorite?

Ferris Wheel Quilt Block

Posted on November 23, 2012 | Leave a comment

This week, I am presenting the versatile Ferris Wheel block from Nancy Martin’s Perpetual Calendar collection of blocks. Why versatile? Just the options in color and value alone make this block an endless project to play with.

Ferris Wheel is drafted from a 4 x 4 grid.

Clicking on any of the photos will show a larger view.

Here is the what the Ferris Wheel quilt block looks like in a basic straight set with borders.

Alternate blocks give a secondary design element. Also, value can make a big difference. Light, medium and dark values emphasize certain aspects of a design.

The following design alternates the Ferris Wheel quilt block with the Snowball block.

And this design uses the Square-in-a-Square block as the alternate block. It echoes the center of the Ferris Wheel block, as does the border.

Have a look at the Ferris Wheel blocks placed on point:

And with sashing so you can easily see the block on point:

And again, using the Snowball quilt block as an alternate:

This last one is too much yellow for me, but I like the design.

Which is your favorite?

Friendship Star Quilt Block

Posted on November 16, 2012 | 2 comments

The Friendship Star variation included in Nancy Martin’s Perpetual Calendar is a bit different from the traditional and more well known version.

Friendship Star is drafted from an 8 x 8 grid.

Clicking on any of the photos will show a larger view.

Let’s begin by seeing what the Friendship Star quilt block looks like set side by side in a simple straight set with borders.

And how it looks with the blocks separated by sashing and cornerstones:

How about adding a very slight change in the coloring of the block, as well as using the Basic 4X and half square triangles blocks.

Alternate blocks give a secondary design element. Also, value can make a big difference. Light, medium and dark values emphasize certain aspects of a design.

Have a look at the Friendship Star blocks placed on point:

The above design alternates both colorations of the Friendship Star block. Where they intersect is where the red and white hourglass patches meet. Without using the alternate coloration, there would only be white squares.

You can see this easier with the sashing and cornerstones separating the blocks: