Hello friends! This blog post is dedicated to one of the newer classes we have at Country Sampler, One Block Wonder taught by Linda!
One Block Wonder is a technique created by Maxine Rosenthal. One day she went down to her sewing room and picked out a fabric, unfortunately she could not find anything in her stash that would coordinate with the piece with which she wanted to work. On this day she also had a plumber at her house fixing her kitchen sink, so she wasn’t able to make a run to the fabric shop. She decided that wasn’t going to stop her, and One Block Wonder was born!
A One Block Wonder quilt is created out of one fabric and with only one shape of block, but the end result is one awesome and incredibly unique quilt.
Maxine’s cutting technique and piecing creates distinctive kaleidoscope blocks. It is almost impossible for a block to repeat, unless you decide to intentionally recreate one. The designing and layout of the blocks creates texture and movement through spins and swirls. A One Block Wonder can be created out of hexagons or Octagons, however Linda’s class focuses on the hexagon project.
In a quilt where there is only one fabric, choosing your print is very important.
Maxine does a great job of explaining why some fabrics work well, and others do not. She considers characteristics such as background, stripes vs swirls, size of print, variety in colors, texture, and length of repeat. Smaller prints give less variety from block to block, where larger prints create vastly different looks from one to another. Larger prints also tend to have longer repeats allowing you to cut more blocks from each section.
The book includes examples of all varieties of fabric, so you not only get the explanation for why one does or doesn't work, but you also get a visual representation which is sometimes more communicative.
Maxine breaks down the secrets for cutting and aligning all of your repeats, and then the cutting the individual blocks. Bonus, there is almost NO WASTE. Who doesn't love a no waste project?! In order to discover these trade secrets, sign up for Linda's class! You can also buy and read the book, but I found that having Linda around to help put the instructions into action was very beneficial. Linda has put together several different quilts and different fabric prints allowing her to have some useful insights. One Block Wonder Session 1 covers fabric alignment, cutting, block layout and other general info related to the quilt.
She has two more scheduled on March 10th and April 14!
Although not in her supply list, a fussy cut mirror can be very helpful while choosing a fabric. Maxine includes 'tips' in boxes throughout her book, and the fussy cut mirror is one of the most helpful tips. It gives you an idea of how your fabric will look once you have a finished block without actually having to cut and stitch. It is a great tool to use not only during the fabric selection process, but also to give you insight as you choose which orientation of the fabric triangles creates the design you like the best.
How much fabric do you need? That depends on the length of the repeat. Your project will use 6 or 8 repeats of the large print fabric. Hexagons needs 6 repeats, octagons need 8. This works out to around 4 1/2 to 5 yards of fabric, but measuring your repeat is essential to ensure you have enough. It is important to note that ALL of your fabric should come off of one bolt in the same cut. Small variations in color from one bolt to the other effects the final result.
Linda would like to add that the end of a bolt should not be used. Stretching and warping can occur as fabric is wound onto the bolt and you want your repeats to be as close to identical as possible! (She discovered this the hard way with one of her first classes)
The fabric I chose is called Brassica in Moss by Kaffe Fasset. I loved this fabric, but didn’t have a project for it. Then One Block Wonder came around, and I knew I had to take the class. Here is about a yard of the original fabric so you can see what it looks like before it became hexagons.
Now, once you have cut your blocks it is time to address the design options. This is where it gets fun. You design your own blocks. For anyone who aspires to design their own quilts, this is the project for you. Each block has 3 equilateral triangles resulting in 3 design options. The fussy cut mirror is a great tool to help you narrow down your block layout without having to shift triangles. Keep in mind these representation are mirror images and the final block will vary slightly because we are not actually fussy cutting mirror images, we are using identical pieces.
The mirror helps to determine which layout suits your fancy, but Linda always recommends you build the block out in your work space before you start sewing.
Things too think about as you design is that you will lose 1/4 an inch in seam allowance, which slightly changes the final look of the hexagon. This means small splashes of color around the edge of your piece may not appear once the block is sewn. So that little flash of green in the center layout will most likely becomes seam allowance.
As you can see there are blocks and layouts that appear to be spinning and create lots of motion, some that have minimal motion, and others that have a stationary feel.
You can also create what looks like flowers, similar to a grandmother’s flower garden type block
In addition to motion that is created by the block design, you can also focus on one color by changing the center point.
You chose the option you like the best and sew!
Here is an example of another fabric that was used by a student in the class.
Initially I created all of my blocks with the same 5 points in the center.
With some cuts of fabric I found I did not like any of the three layout options, these blocks I set aside in a pile, unsure of what to do with them. However, as I gained experience, I began to think about the fussy cut mirror, and the possibilities that would result from NOT putting the same 5 points in the center.
What if I alternated two different points in the center?
What if I I rotated the triangle one turn at every position?
This resulted in different types of spinners or propellers. 5 winged propellers, 3 winged propellers, and 2 winged propellers.
It also created new design options for my 'problem pile'.
5 winged propellers are created by using the standard layout discussed in the book.
3 winged propellers are achieved by alternating two different points in the center of the hexagon.
2 winged propellers resulted from rotating the triangle one turn at every position, using all three points in the center position and rotating.
This little guy was initially in the problem pile…
From Left to Right- Indentical points in the center, alternating two points in the center, using three points (two of each) in the center.
My problem pile was all of the sudden transformed! Almost all of the blocks that I did not like in the original and intended format became very interesting.
After speaking with Linda, the idea of rotating the triangles to create other block layouts is not something that she has encountered in her research prior to teaching the class.
These new layout options created very different blocks. The 5 propeller blocks have lots of spin and movement. The three propeller blocks change depending on how the fabric designs meet up.
In the yellow block above, there is still spinning motion, but this propeller does not spin as quickly as the 5 propeller version. While the two propeller version appears to be stationary.
The purple and green block when placed in the alternate layout does not create a propeller at all! It actually creates a smaller flower design.
Just to be clear, in her book all of Maxine’s hexagons are designed with the same 5 points at the center. This little tidbit is just an ‘aha’ moment that I had while piecing my blocks and I wanted to share it.
One of the beauties of this quilt is that there is a lot of movement created by the kaleidoscope type blocks. My final layout has not been set yet, but I am finding that in some areas there is so much movement that it is very busy, sometimes too busy. I think the three bladed propellers will be useful blocks to create more restful areas in the quilt. I am hoping to use them in a way that allows the eyes a place to rest, but does not appear out of place.
I am currently still working on all my individual blocks, but I have begun to group similar colored blocks together.
I am hoping to have all of my blocks put together so I can attend Session 2 in the beginning of April. Session two is the next step in the One Block Wonder progression. This class addresses overall layout, grouping of kaleidoscope blocks, use of cube blocks for transitional purposes. Hexagon cubes add a 3-demensional quality to the quilt to make it more interesting. As you arrange your hexagons, some transitions become awkward and cubes help to solve that problem.
One Block Wonder Session 2- Overall Design and Transition with Cubes
At the moment One Block One Session 2 is on my Calendar for April 8th. Then I am sure I will have more to tell you!
Stayed tuned for the second installment!
Thanks for reading, and happy quilting.
Molly R-D
