Tag: log cabin block

Posted in quilting

SAHRR 2025 Round 5 – Daily Fiber

Posted on by Laura Kate

Thank you, Brenda, of Songbird Designs, for choosing log cabin block for this round. It’s just about my favorite block to make, and one of the most beginner-friendly as well. Brenda has chosen to use the quarter log form of the block in her quilt. I like that, and made a few test blocks in this version.

Quarter logs, some borders added
or maybe they look better on point?

I’ll likely use quarter logs at some point. But for this round, I want to use a Japanese version of the log cabin. My block directory has two to choose from:

Pieced raimon, also known as the spiral block, is interesting. But those are very narrow logs to squeeze into a nine inch square block.

Hiratsume sanmasu is what we in the West might call Courthouse Steps log. I also like that this pattern has one set of strips cut 1 and 1/2 wide, to finish at 1 inch. And I have the perfect fabric to take advantage of the layout:

When I unwrapped this fabric, among the selection I purchased from kimonomomo on Etsy, I knew it would be a good companion for my crane star blocks. So I made three concentric square log cabin blocks. Here they are in place.

And this round finishes out the rows of blocks for the back of my kimono.

Next week will be the last challenge, and I have a whole front side yet to make. I will be repeating some of the block patterns used on the back, especially the blocks that make up the sleeve section. And I will be doing some improvisational design, inspired by Japanese quilts, of course.

To see how other quilters handled this challenge, visit Songbird Designs and click on the InLinz link. Here is the complete list of SAHRR 2025 host sites.

Posted in quilting

SAHRR 2025 Border 1 Japanese style

Posted on by Laura Kate

I wanted to write a bit about the traits of Japanese style quilting compared to Western style quilting, but today’s schedule is a bit tight and the posting deadline is here. I’ll just show a few pictures. Or maybe I’ll use bullet points:

Types of fabric: plain cotton, woven patterns, large and small scale dyed patterns, stencil dyed cottons, silks and wool.

I tried to choose colors that were present in the center block.

From my mother’s stash
From my own stash
A few fabrics purchased from Hobby Lobby

Block categories: patchwork, Sashiko, Kamon (traditional family crests worked as applique or sashiko) and Takarazukushi (good fortune symbols worked in applique.)

Now to the clue: Kathleen suggested King’s Crown pattern for this round, or choose a block that begins with a K, or that begins with the first letter of my name, L. I immediately thought of Log Cabin. But turning to my Japanese block design book, I saw no examples that looked like a log cabin. In studying the block names, I realized that the “L” sound is absent from the Japanese language! Lots of blocks start with a K. I settled on this pattern – Kumiko – which translates to Lattice.

And its construction begins with making four strip-pieced squares built around a center square. Hm, that resembles the beginning of a log cabin.

And here is my first block for Border One.

I ended up making three blocks, which I plan to place just below the center block row.

And so the first round is done, and my post written before the Linky party closes.

I see that my chosen path will hold much challenge if I stick to the plan.

If you want to follow along with Stay at Home Round Robin, here are the hosts and the weekly schedule. Check out their posts!

Posted in knitting

Cast-on Monday: Mindless Knitting

Posted on by Laura Kate

Here I am, in a new year dedicated to stash-busting. Opening my yarn closet doors, I see that there are now only two bags of stash yarn projects. That’s good. But it makes me want to get more projects queued up. I’m looking at you, cheap acrylic skeins purchased five years ago! You were rejected by my student knitters.

I pulled out all acrylics that appear to be worsted or bulky weight and assessed their total volume. Hm, looks like it’s enough to knit a lap blanket. Searching through my knitting patterns folder, I found this image plucked off the internet some time ago.

Garn Studio Drops Design offers it patterns for free on Ravelry. Unfortunately, I didn’t download the pattern or the pattern name. Conducting an advanced search on the Ravelry database using all possible combinations of search terms, I failed to find it.

My notes say that the design reminds me of a log cabin quilt block. So, I will improvise a knit pattern, using the log cabin technique of sewing strips around a center block. In this case, the starting block is in the lower corner, not the middle.

I cast on while watching All Creatures Great and Small on PBS. Here is my progress after the first session of mindless knitting. It is a good start.

This mindless project will be ideal for taking on a late winter car trip that Bill and I have planned. It’s impossible to screw it up, even while barreling down the interstate at maximum speed.

Posted in quilting

SAHRR 2023 Round 2: Stars

Posted on by Laura Kate

Pieceful Wendy has suggested stars, and I’m tickled about her choice. A star block will fit perfectly at the points between my rows of spools.

SAHRR Border 2

I’ve decided to adopt Wendy’s little four-point star for my own. The yellow batik fabric will form the star body and arms. I’ll vary the construction by using three rectangles and one square with stitch-n-flip triangles sewn on. These pieces are then sewn around the center as in log cabin block construction.

Test Block completed

The result is slightly wonky star arms – a look I find sort of charming.

Stars in the heavens like snowflakes: No two alike.

And here is my quilt with the addition of rounds two and three.

While I’m happy with the result, it’s clear that I will need a plain border to give breathing room to the center. I’ll continue with the little sparks of yellow throughout the design, hoping that this device will create unity and lots of rhythm.

Feb 3 – Border sewn together and added to the center block.

Don’t forget to check out the work of other participants at the InLinkz party.

SAHRR Border 2
Posted in quilting

Finished Object Friday – Quilting

Posted on by Laura Kate

After three months, I have finished the pet-friendly quilt that started with this fabric.

Inspired by Rayna Gillman’s improvisational piecing technique and using a combination of log cabin and strip pieced squares, I designed a pair of blocks I call Dog House, Cat Barn.

The blocks finish at 12 inches square. But how can they turn into a bed quilt? After mulling it over for awhile and making several sketches on graph paper, I found that I could fit four blocks across five rows to come up with a twin-size quilt. To create balance, I staggered the rows by four inches with a spacing strip, alternating between left side and right side every row.

I also felt that the balance would improve if the center row was different. Thus was conceived the Pet Condo construction project in “mid-town,” (if you will permit my flight of fancy.)

Four inches of sashing in a grey polka-dot fabric between the rows made a “street,” giving the animal neighbors a nice boulevard for walking over to visit. With my concept complete, I re-named the quilt Animal Friends.

Oh, another group of animal friends were introduced via the background fabric: Our hardworking and very dear bees.

The Animal Friends quilt measures 57 by 84 inches. It was quilted with a combination of walking foot “stitch in the ditch” and free motion stitching on my Bernina.