Last week I posted a number of choices for my center block in the annual Stay At Home Round Robin quilting challenge. Readers of this blog will not be terribly surprised to hear that I chose the mountain painting on fabric.
Now I am forced to consider the short-comings of my choice. First of all, it wasn’t square, having a slightly portrait layout. I sliced off the top and bottom to the limit that I was willing to sacrifice the image. It was still out of square.
My solution was to applique it to a 12 1/2 background. By choosing to applique instead of piece, I avoided seam allowance, retaining more of the painting. With a center block finishing at 12 in., I have lots of options for sizes of the rounds to come.
The second shortcoming became clear when I observed that the painting was mostly one value – it’s medium value nearly throughout. There are some darks, but no real lights. I’ll have to find a way to bring in some light, perhaps with embroidery.
Now I am confronted with a number of design decisions. I have resolved to make the entire thing out of scraps, if I can manage it. Coming up with the palette was easy. It will be an analogous one, featuring a range of colors that exist in the painting. Purple, blue, teal and cool greens will predominate, with a generous dash of reds as accent. Here are the eligible scraps, organized by color and value.
With any luck, I can avoid buying more fabric, outside of the backing.
The final design decisions that I can make prior to getting the first clue concern size and layout. I spent hours thumbing through books and looking online before I made my choices. Ultimately, I settled on a square, with an expected size of 45 inches, more or less. My plan is to add the rounds in log cabin fashion, keeping each round within a strict color range. To see how it would work I made a mock-up using colored pencil on graph paper.
I’m old school. No computerized design program assistance in my studio.
To see all the challenge participants’ center blocks, click Here.
💜
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I like your choice and your plans! I think adding some embroidery will be perfect! I can’t wait to see this come together!
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Me too. There are always surprises.
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I love the log-cabin color plan.
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Thanks, I’m excited to experiment with blending colors into each other.
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Your choice of center block and plan of action are awesome.
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Thanks. I hope I can realize my ideas.
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I like your approach to planning your quilt – painterly and methodical!
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They are not shortcomings but design opportunities. Will enjoy watching this one.
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Yes, you are right. Thank you.
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💚💓💯
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I like your block and the way you have planned this out. I’ll look forward to watching it come together 🙂
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Thanks for stopping by my blog.
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I love that one! I look forward to seeing your work come together.
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This is a gorgeous center block. Your idea of doing the rounds in log cabin style is super interesting. I am very curious to see how you put this all together. Very much looking forward to watching this grow.
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Thank you, and thanks for stopping by Daily Fiber. I am curious too! Lots of options are swirling around in my head. We’ll see what emerges.
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What an awesome centre block!!! I’m sure that you’ll have no problems adding the rounds and making a beautiful quilt!!! Thank you for linking to the SAHRR ’24 centre block party! Happy Quilting!
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Thank you Gail.
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Beautiful center block!!!
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What a gorgeous center ❤️ Great idea to make log cabin design.
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As you identified your challenge is going to be getting a range of values that establish contrasts as you work your way out. When you appliquéd the central painting to the background, did you use a satin stitch or a thin binding strip? Watching you improvise is very interesting.
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Thanks for commenting. I used a satin stitch. I also cut away the fabric inside the seam so that there is less thickness under the central block. I am considering appliqueing on top of it.
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