Thursday, February 25, 2016

More play with orphan blocks

I added one more Northwind block on the left side and that gave me enough length to add the big block near the bottom right.  I'm not sure all that I have added on the bottom will really fit together without spacers.

If you go back to yesterday's post you can see the changes I have made.




I put most of the rest of the blocks up on the design wall so you can see what else I have to work with if I make it larger.  There are 9 red/purple 16 patches that aren't shown here.

The question is do I stop when I like it or keep going and try to use all of the blocks.  This is a double design wall 7' tall, 8' wide.  I would have to design it sideways if I'm going to use all of the blocks.  I'm happy with the top 42" x 42" section so I could sew that together to make it easier to shift sideways.  Right now the whole thing would only be 42" x 67".

17 comments:

Roxanne said...

Oh wow! It's fun to see the puzzle of all your orphan blocks on the design wall. Really like the three small "asterisk" blocks you've added under the bottom left star.

Sharon W. said...

The group of blocks on the right seem to have a unity of their own....I could see them as a runner, or as a panel with hand dyed or shot cotton side panels. Interesting development process: batiks certainly maintain their own sense of identity or unity regardless of color, eh???

Nann said...

What a super-duper design! The size you have would work fine for a wall-quilt (I can imagine it with a black/white striped binding). Then you have "seeds" for the next orphan block quilt.

P.S. I noted those "asterisks," too.

Gene Black said...

Forgive me for being boldly honest, but the more I look at this the more I think the Northwind blocks are distracting.
Could you perhaps switch them out with the chain blocks (I do see that those ar bigger.) I think it would add a more cohesive look.

You have a great stash of orphan blocks to choose from.

Anonymous said...

Sorry, Gene, I disagree with you. I love the Northwind blocks. Love the whole thing.

Debbie said...

Much better....I do like the small blocks like the pinwheels that you added. I think it is a great size.

stitchinpenny said...

I don't have your amazing capabilities, but I love what you have and fear additions would be distracting. You always make the best decisions, even when I think they will be wrong, you see things most of us couldn't even imagine. Love to see where your vision leads.

Anonymous said...

There's much to be said for stopping when you like it. Because then you like it.
Frebblebit

Anonymous said...

I love it the way it is....and if you stop now, looks like you have enough blocks left over to make another quilt!!
You have a real knack for putting colors and blocks together with awesome results....cannot wait to see what you end up doing!
Thanks for sharing, and, especially, thanks for the quilty inspiration you give us!!
Sandra B
scb304@juno.com

donaleen said...

Stop when you are done.

Needled Mom said...

I wish my scrap blocks were as beautiful as yours! ;-) That really looks wonderful.

Shelina (formerly known as Shasta) said...

I like seeing the process and decisions you are making as you make this quilt. I plan on making an orphan quilt someday, and it is helpful for me to see how you are going about doing that.

Linda Swanekamp said...

I think this has been fun watching you with the designs. I even like the ones to the right added to the side!

Verna G said...

Interesting but I tend to think scrap blocks should be made into something smalller.i.e. runners or table squares. I'm not a big fan of putting them all together.

EYSchmitt said...

I love the way the northwind blocks kind of make a border on the left side....and I wonder how it would look to kind of 'border' the right side in a similar manner using those nice log cabins that are about the same size as the northwind blocks...and also use up the rest of the northwind blocks...to maybe kind of contain all the happy busyness of the inside blocks? Just wondering....I love seeing your process of putting these all together! I always open your daily email eagerly knowing there will be something interesting there!

Mystic Quilter said...

Stunning Wanda - it's going to be a mighty quilt when finished. It's amazing how you're getting all the blocks to meld tougher here.

Charlotta said...

I'd say you stop when you like it. You can always use the remaining orphan blocks in the next quilt!