This is the sixth diary in this sampler series and we are moving right along with four more new blocks to make. The blocks are Delectable Mountains, Log Cabin, Flower Basket and Pine Tree. You will find some of the history to these blocks not what you were expecting. Also we are going to learn about how to make templates and when to use them. The instructions to the Delectable Mountain pattern includes making a template, which is the traditional way of making this scrap quilt block. So please join me and DKQG below the orange squiggle.
Pine Tree Quilt Block
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In the introduction post I mentioned that I was taught using templates.
http://www.dailykos.com/...
Rotary cutting was not yet available to quilters. Large ones were used in garment manufacturing. So the tools that were needed then was scissors. pencil, ruler and a empty cereal box. We would trace the pattern on the inside of the box with carbon paper and a ruler. If it was a curve you had to be careful with free handing it. Most of the time you would dig through the cupboards for a dish or lid that was the same size to trace around to make the curve. We would make more then one template because it would wear out after tracing around it for a while. Today there is plastic that you can get for template making. I save cool whip lids to use as template material. I have been even known to cut the flat part of a milk jug for a template. The only thing I use a template for today is applique or curved pieces. But if you are only interested in making just a quilt or two, making a template and using scissors to cut with, is the way to go with out spending a lot of money on tools. Quilty has a great tutorial on how to make templates.
How to make quilt templates on Quilty.
Here is a link to another video explaining when and why heavy plastic should be used.
http://www.youtube.com/...
Delectable Mountains Quilt Block Pattern
In 1678, John Bunyan published the “Pilgrim’s Progress.” It was an allegory based on the scriptures. This book was the most widely read book for about 200 years besides the bible. In fact it and the bible were probably the only two books in most homes. Many children was taught to read from this book. Delectable Mountains quilt pattern gets it’s name from a passage in the book. In the book Christian and Hopeful journey from the City of Destruction (earth) to the Delectable Mountains in order to reach the Celestial City (heaven).
From Wikipedia
Illustration from the 1678 publication that shows the map of the journey that they took. In the bottom right corner is the Delectable Mountains.
From Wikipedia Click picture to enlarge.
Because this was such an important book in the homes of American families it is only natural that they named a quilt after it. In fact this was one of the few quilt blocks that had a universal name until the end of the 19th century. Ladies Art Co. included it in their catalog as pattern #210 in 1898.
Quilt Index has a picture of a simple designed Delectable Mountains from the last quarter of the 19th century.
http://www.quiltindex.org/...
The pattern in this tutorial was a common pattern that was used for utility scrap quilts. It was simple to draft and make. There were more elaborate versions that were done for good quilts. The Delectable Mountains had many different ways to lay out the blocks.
I searched for a pattern that I remember helping with as a child but ended up drafting one myself from memory. It is was easy to remember how to lay it out but I had to do the math to make it fit in a 12 inch block. Most patterns was usually just a picture and it was up to the quilter to draw it out to make a pattern. We used brown paper bags for this one instead of cereal boxes for the template because you could pin the half square on to the fabric and cut them out. It can be confusing also because you have to make blocks that are mirrors to each other. So marking the paper pattern as to what side it was and weather it was light or dark keeps things straight as you make them. Also I was only making one block so I only wanted one side of each for one mountain.
This is the pattern for the right side of the mountain. The dark fabric is on the bottom and the light fabric is on the top. The angle of the pattern is the opposite of the angle of the block.
This is the left side of the mountain pattern. The angle of the half square line goes in the opposite direction and corners from the right side.
To make this pattern you will need to cut two sheets of paper 7 inches by 8 1/2 inches. You will then need to draw your line from the corners like the two pictures above. Then label them for right side and left side. Also you will need to label the side that is going to be on the right side of the fabric. You will also need to label if it is the dark fabric which is the bottom half and the light fabric which is the top half. Now you cut on the angle line to make the templates.
To use the pattern lay it on the fabric and line up your ruler to cut. I make sure to leave the ruler just far enough away from the template so I don’t cut the paper. Don’t worry about being to large because the block will be squared up after the half squares are sewn together.
Now you will want to square up the right angle. I just lay the template on the square up ruler to line up before I cut. This is something you can do with odd shaped diamonds and other odd shapes for blocks. Having rulers for all the triangles can be expensive so you can use a paper template like this to guide you.
Line the two pieces like this with the right sides facing. They should look like the picture above. If you labeled all your pieces correctly, you will be able to pair them up correctly.
Square up your half square to 6 1/2 inches by 8 inches. Make sure your seam line falls in to the corner on each side. This can be hard to see so I put tape on the square up ruler at the correct measurements so I can line up the seam at the correct angle into the corner it needs to be. There should not be much but a sliver to cut off all around to square it up.
Cut strips 2 inches wide. I fold mine in half and figure press to help me double check my line up of the ruler. Check twice and cut once.
Line the pieces up this way to sew. Check you quarter inch seam allowance on each one so that your block will be 6 1/2 inches square. You will not have to do a square but just check. I check to make sure each section in the center is 1 1/2 inches wide and the outside pieces is 1 3/4 inches.
Sew the four mountain pieces together. It will measure 12 1/2 inches square.
You can now see why this was an popular pattern to use in the 19th century. It was not difficult to draft. Before there was sewing machines the light and darks was sewn together individually after the strips were cut, but after sewing machines became available the piecing was quickly done on the machine. The light and dark was sewn together before cut into strips. The large half square blocks were folded in half and pressed to form a line for scissor cutting. Paper and cardboard templates kept everything in correct sizes. Machine piecing was normal in patterns like this one. Hand piecing was done on more complicated patterns.
I chose to mix the red and blue to give the block more interest. Also I chose the red and blue because I needed another read and blue block. My flag block is bright and will require a couple of other blocks with red to balance the color in the sampler quilt. I am now laying the blocks out on the bed to see how they will work together and what colors I need to add to make it pleasing to look at.
Log Cabin Quilt Block Pattern
The Log Cabin quilt originated in Europe in the early 19th century or maybe a little earlier. On the Island of Mann, red and white wool was torn into strips and sewn in this pattern called ” The Roof Pattern.” None of those quilts survive today but descriptions of this quilt is found in diaries. Scissors were rare and expensive among the peasants, so a pattern like this could created from torn pieces. They would use the length of their fingers and hands to measure with to make the strips. Most women did not have any education plus there was probably no rulers around for them to use.
Some quilt historians contribute it to the Egyptian artifacts that was brought to Europe in the early part of the 19th century. Nineteen tons of mummified cats were brought to Europe to use as fertilizer in the 19th century. The way they were wrapped could of inspired the patch work in quilts.
From Wikipedia
The pattern of the weave on the left cat looks just like the log cabin quilt. Anything Egyptian was in high style in the first half of the 19th century and lower class women would copy the fashion of the wealthy. One of the ways they would have copied fashionable homes was with home made bedding and rugs from scraps of fabric and worn clothing.
The earliest known log cabin quilt in this country was just after the Civil War in 1869. Historians have found that the pattern was used in raffles to raise money for the war and the name may have been associated with Lincoln. The style lent it’s self to the settling of the West as Pioneers set up homesteads. The red centers was a symbol of the hearth and warmth of the cabin. The yellow centers was the symbol of the light in the windows of the cabin. The light fabric side was the symbol of the sunny side of the cabin and the dark fabric side was the shadow of the cabin. The pattern was ideal for heavy assorted fabrics that could be sewn on to a foundation piece of cotton fabric. This would stabilize the pattern and then the top would be hand tied to a backing with out batting in the center. The fabric sewn on cotton scrap fabric was to bulky to finely hand stitch. This created a heavy quilt for winter use. This would utilize the heavy fabrics that was not suitable for most pieced quilts.
In the link below, you will see various lay outs of the the blocks and the common name of these quilts.
http://www.museum.state.il.us/...
This link shows some wonderful close ups of log cabin quilts. One of the ways they would make them was to fold the fabric in half and sew them to a foundation piece. This would add extra thickness to the quilt. You will see an example of that in this link.
http://www.historic-american.com/...
There are many other examples of block lay outs that I have not covered.
To make this 12 1/2 inches block of “Lights and Shadows” you will need:
Four red 2 1/2 inches squares for the centers. Also and assortment of 1 1/2 strips of fabrics in lights and darks.
This block is based on 4 by 4 grid. Each unfinished section is 6 1/2 inches. The seam allowance is 1/4 inch. There is no need for a foundation piece to sew these strips on.
Just follow the picture above sewing the strips around the center. Check your quarter inch seam allowance after each seam and also square up to the correct size. Press each seam after sewing. After the strip is sewed on it should be 1 1/4 inch and then when the second row is sewed the same strip should be 1 inch wide. The finished center block is going to be 2 inches square after all four sides are sewed on. When the last row is attached, the block will measure 6 1/2 inches with the last row strips measuring 1 1/4 inches.
Sew the block as you would a four square.
Make sure you line up your seams so that your intersections come together in the same place.
Flower Basket Quilt Block Pattern
A sampler quilt always needs a basket block. This one is called flower basket or scrap basket. Ladies Art Co. was the first to name this block flower basket. It was block #57 in there 1898 catalog. My block has a few more half squares in it then the original pattern because it was just a 9 inch block. My sampler is 12 1/2 blocks so I just made an extra row of half squares and enlarged the basket. The block isn’t difficult to make but you do have biases to be careful with. The pattern is based on 6 by 6 grid of 2 inch blocks. I should have used some more very light fabrics but originally I was going to use a tan fabric for the back ground. All very light fabrics would have made the saw tooth edge stand out.
To make this block you will need:
23 assorted prints in light and dark of 3 inch triangles for half squares. This gives a little extra in size instead of cutting 2 7/8 inches triangles. When the half squares are sewn you can square up to 2 1/2 inches squares. 3 triangles will be left for the bottom of the flower strips. 7 of them should be light and the rest in dark and medium prints.
One 8 inches triangle of gingham for the basket bottom.
One 3 inches square of gingham.
One 3 inches square of background light fabric.
One 2 1/2 inches square of background light fabric.
Two 2 1/2 inches by 7 inches rectangle of background fabric
One 2 1/2 inches by 10 1/2 inches strip of background fabric.
One 2 1/2 inches by 12 1/2 inches strip of background fabric
Sew assorted triangles into half triangles except for 3. choose light and dark combinations or contrasting combinations. Square up in to 2 1/2 inches squares. The 3 remaining with be for the bottom of 3 rows.
Arrange your blocks with the lights on the outside and the triangles on the bottom of the rows.
Sew rows in strips making sure that your seams allowance is a quarter of a inch. This will make your point turn out sharp. I keep a ruler handy will I sew to check my seams. Three of the rows you will add the triangles to the bottom. Don’t worry about them being a little over size. This will come useful later when squaring up the bottom to attach to basket piece.
Sew rows together starting with the longest row. That makes it easier to line up points and to iron the seam going in proper directions so everything lays flat. End with the smallest strip.
Trim bottom edge leaving a quarter inch seam allowance from the points of the half squares. You won’t have to take much off just a sliver and the dog ears. I line my ruler so the quarter inch line just touches the tip of the points. Everything should line up nicely if you have been checking your quarter inch seams as you sew and press. Pressing after each seam is also important to have everything line up.
Sew the bottom basket triangle on. Square up to 8 1/2 inches. You will only need to trim around the basket triangle the rest should be exactly the right size. Now you will add the border and the bottom of the basket. You can see in the second picture from the top that I had to cut triangles for the bottom of the basket. I didn’t have enough fabric to cut a 3 inch square but I was able to get the triangles from the fabric. You will make to half square using the 3 inch square of boarder light print and basket print. Square up to 2 1/2 inches square like the other pieces that was used in the floral part of the basket. One of the half squares will be sewed to the 2 1/2 inches square of boarder fabric. The sew your boarder like the picture. Starting with sewing the bottom of the basket to each 7 inches strips. then sewing them starting with the shortest one first around the basket. You have a little extra that will have to be trimmed from the strips with the half squares before you sew on the last 2 strips. Press and it should be 12 1/2 inches square. I always wait to square mine when I add the sashing.
Pine Tree or The Tree of Life Quilt Block Pattern
When making a sampler quilt, adding novelty blocks add interest to the over all quilt design. Some sampler quilts add applique patterns to the mix but for this project I have decided not to and just stick with pieced blocks. I set out to find some patterns that would fit the bill. I wanted a tree block because that was a pattern that was used in the second half of the 19th century. The Ladies Art Catalog did have some but they were for much larger blocks and based on 5 by 5 grid. I did find a picture of a pine tree pieced pattern block in a magazine from ten years ago. It was in an ad for quilting flannel. That became my inspiration for this block.
This block was set on point and based on a 5 by 5 grid like most that I saw on antique quilts. But I could take this one and use it in a 12 1/2 inch unfinished block. I drafted the pattern and dug through my scrap pile for green, brown and back ground fabric. I found a wonderful forest green square that was only 6 1/2 inches that was perfect for the bottom of the tree. Only it was too small for that piece so I thought about it and decided I could use it by cutting the half squares larger of the background fabric. It turned out looking quite nice. In order to make this block you will need: Nine 3 inches squares of assorted green prints and five 3 inches squares of background print fabrics. One 2 1/2 inches square of background print for the top of the tree. One 2 1/2 inches medium green print for the center of the second row of half squares. One 7 inch square of green print cut from corner to corner for the bottom of the tree. One 5 inches square of background fabric cut from corner to corner. This is going to give you a little extra to square up with. One 2 1/2 inches by 7 1/2 inches rectangle in brown fabric for the tree trunk. This will also give you a little bit extra for squaring up. Two strips of 1 1/2 inch wide boarder fabric from the width of the fabric. One strip does not quite make it.
Sew the light and dark 3 inches squares together by putting right sides together and drawing a line from corner to corner. Make sure that the background fabric is mated with green fabric to make the saw tooth outer edge of the tree. Sew a quarter inch from the center drawn line on each side. Then cut on the drawn line to make two half square blocks. Press open and square up to 2 1/2 inches square
Arrange your pieces like the picture above. Make the medium green 2 1/2 inches square is in the top of the second row and the background print is in the center of the top. I moved mine around until I got a good mix of colors.
Sew the right side half squares together in two strips first. Then sew them together following the picture below. Checking after each seam to make sure you have sewed a 1/4 inch seam and that each bock is 2 inches from seam to seam. I keep a ruler at my sewing machine to check that as I go. It helps keep your points from being to short or too long. You can see where you need to adjust before going to the next piece. You want the point to come to the quarter inch mark.
Then sew the top half squares together. Take care with lining up seams together in the intersections as you sew the half square sections together. Then sew the trunk strip and the two background half squares together like the picture above
Next sew the trunk piece to the large green half square. What I did was fold both pieces in half and finger pressed them so I could line up the center of each piece on that line. This keeps you from having the trunk off center. You can see that my green square is too small but I wanted to use that fabric from my scraps of reproduction fabrics. You can also see that my background fabric is a little larger to make up for it. The brown trunk fabric was already precut left over from another project. It was 8 inches long. I just left it that way because I wasn’t sure how much I would need since I was using the undersized green half square. I knew I was going to square up the corner.
You will now sew the top of the pine tree to the trunk quarter. See picture above.
When you have the pieces all sewed together square up the bottom trunk piece. This will make the point on the trunk. It is always better to make the point that way then before because you are working with so many biases. Things can get a little wonky and you won’t have a head ache trying to line that corner up. Make the corner in the end is easier and no one will notice the wonky part. Also you won’t be upset and tossing it in the trash. The block should now measure about 10 1/2 inches square.
To make it 12 1/2 inches square we will add the 1 1/2 boarder to it. I chose a small brown print. This board piece was already cut left over from a friend’s quilt. She gave me the scraps and it was just perfect for this boarder. You can select a boarder from what ever you may have on hand.
In three week I will be back with the seventh installment in this series of DK Quilt Guild Sampler Quilt. We will be doing some paper piecing on a Mariner's Compass. Also we will be making a Feathered Star for the center of the quilt. The total of blocks done so far for this quilt is twenty one.
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Would you like to write a future DK Quilt Guild diary? Please join in! Please volunteer within the comments. Thanks!
DKQG Diary Schedule:
03/30 -- Sara R on the DK VA Hospital Service Project
04/06 -- Elizaveta
04/13 -- trkingmomoe~Sampler Quilt Along
04/20 -- winifred3
04/27 -- trkingmomoe~Sampler Quilt Along
05/04 -- OPEN
05/11 -- trkingmomoe~Sampler Quilt Along
05/18 -- OPEN
05/25 -- trkingmomoe~Sampler Quilt Along