Patterns in Architecture, Durham Cathedral, UK

Posted on September 11, 2016 by Maggie Ball

I am always awed by a visit to Durham Cathedral which is a World Heritage Site and is filled with majesty and beauty. I was there last month when I stayed in Durham for three days.

Check out the scale and proportions of the building; the height, length, the size of the arches, the way the circular inlay on the floor mimics the large circular stained glass windows above the altar. This is brilliance in design and we should pay attention. Scale and proportions are both so important in designing quilts and adding borders.The mosaic tile floors and ornamentation around the pulpit of geometric shapes includes our beloved Flying Geese, stars, diamonds and more.

Repeated elements, e.g. triangles, made in a variety of sizes will make your quilt much more interesting than simply using triangles that are all the same size. Adding appropriately sized borders will greatly enhance your quilt top. I recommend auditioning different widths, (as well as a variety of fabric options and considering pieced borders), to help you in the decision making process.

Rock patterns, Isle of Staffa, Scotland

Posted on September 5, 2016 by Maggie Ball

In August, I spent two weeks in the UK visiting family and friends and some amazing places. My sister took me on holiday to Scotland and we went to the magical sacred island of Iona on the west coast of the highlands. While we were there, we took a boat trip to the Isle of Staffa, an uninhabited hunk of rock which is the Scottish end of the Irish Giant’s Causeway.

The pictures shows the spectacular basalt columns and down below is Fingal’s Cave, the very same that inspired Mendelssohn when he wrote his Hebrides Overture in 1830. The photo below is taken inside Fingal’s Cave and there is a detailed shot of the rocks, showing a cross-section of the basalt columns.

60 million years ago, Scotland and North America were torn apart by continental drift of the tectonic plates. Molten lava erupted through the cracks and cooled to form the basalt columns. As it hardened, it shrank and fractured into regular columns. The rate of cooling varied, so some of the columns are perfect hexagons, but most are hexagons with irregular sides and some are pentagons. I’m telling you all of this, because as a quilter (and a fan of geomorphology), I am fascinated by how all the pieces fit together and am inspired by these patterns presented to us in nature. I usually can’t pinpoint exactly the source of my quilting inspiration, but know that experiencing amazing places like this makes a significant contribution.

Theft from suitcase of traveling quilt teacher, Rachel Clark

Posted on August 28, 2016 by Maggie Ball

Rachel Clark is an amazing artist and internationally known in the quilting world for her vibrant patchwork garments. These were stolen out of her suitcase.This is awful. Theft is a risk all traveling quilt teachers take every time they go out to share their passion and no matter how good the insurance coverage, these original pieces are irreplaceable. Please spread the word to increase the small chance that these will be recovered.

Designing Kaleidoscope Puzzle Quilts

Posted on August 21, 2016 by Maggie Ball

During the last few months I have taught my template-free Kaleidoscope Puzzle Quilts workshop at Walla Walla Valley Quilt Guild, Crystal Quilters of Enumclaw, North Pittsburgh Quilters’ Guild, and Kitsap Quilters’ Guild. I love seeing the patterns emerge as my students play with their kite and wedge-shaped pieces to create their own unique designs. It’s even better when I receive pictures of their completed quilt tops. To purchase a downloadable or hard copy of the pattern, please visit my on-line store. Here are some examples from the workshops. The blocks are composed of kite and wedge-shaped pieces. These two are 25 block quilts.

There are many options for laying out the pieces and the possibilities go on and on. The predominantly grey-tone one is also a 25 block quilt, but the side blocks appear as partial blocks completed with the black background. The colored one is a similar design but looks so different from the grey-scale. You can see the partial blocks around the perimeter with the background still to be determined on this work in progress.

Several people chose to use the wedges to create large diamonds helping to generate a strong design in the center.

The on-point versions look very different from the squarely set ones.

Star patterns emerge when an even number of blocks are used (4 x 4 for 16 blocks) as in the left-hand side picture. The one on the right is a scrambled, asymmetrical design. You can do what ever you like! This is a versatile pattern and great fun.

Check out my video demonstration of the template-free cutting technique for the kites and wedges on my video page.

Quilting Rulers

Posted on August 14, 2016 by Maggie Ball

I feel the need to re-run my thoughts on rulers because I am appalled by what many quilting shops are offering. In May, I visited Shipshewana, IN, an Amish quilting Mecca. The only rulers at both the Yoder Department Store and Lilly’s, the two impressively large quilting stores in town, were Creative Grids rulers with an extra 1/2″ added which I hate. Despite the huge array of sizes displayed, there were no rulers without the extra 1/2″. I wanted to get a ruler for my friend who is a beginning quilter and could not bring myself to buy her the 6-1/2″ x 24″ which is so confusing. I do not understand the logic of producing rulers like this except for 9-1/2″ and 12-1/2″ squares which can be used for easily cutting finished-sized 9″ and 12″ blocks for applique. I am a huge fan of Omnigrid rulers without the extra 1/2″ and always recommend these to my students.

The Omnigrid rulers are clear and easy to read. If I could only have one ruler for all my quilting, I would choose the 6″ x 24″ and this is the one I advise new quilters to purchase. With my 6″ x 24″ I can use either long side for measuring my cuts. For the Creative Grids 6-1/2″ version I get confused by the extra 1/2″ and I find it easy to make a mistake if the ruler is turned round the wrong way. My second favorite is the 15″ square which I find extremely useful for cutting large squares and squaring up my Kaleidoscope and Op-Art Kaleidoscope blocks. Another I like is the 6″ x 12″ ruler. This is especially good for cutting strip sets into segments which I do frequently when making my Bargello block quilts. When you are making these repeated counter-cuts, it is easier to use this smaller ruler rather than the long 6″ x 24″. You can line up the horizontal lines on the ruler with the seam lines on the strip-sets which helps to keep everything square and even.

I realize that part of this is simply due to habit and what I’m used to, but for me it is hard work using rulers that have the extra 1/2″ or that have variable divisions in the measurements marked on the ruler. I have seen some appalling specimens on my teaching travels and my students get frustrated when their rulers are so difficult to use.

Bargello block baby quilt

Posted on August 7, 2016 by Maggie Ball

I made this quilt for my new great-niece from my Bargello blocks as featured in my book, Bargello Quilts with a Twist. This month, I am going to England so will be able to deliver it to baby Bea in person.

I used 20 Bargello blocks arranged in the style of a Log Cabin Straight Furrows pattern. The fabric was designed by me when I was a consultant for David Textiles several years ago, and we produced three lines that would appeal to young quilters. The detailed shots below show how I machine quilted the quilt on my home domestic sewing machine (Viking Designer I).

The serpentine stitch is very easy using the walking-foot and also really forgiving. It is much easier than stitching in the ditch or stitching an accurate straight line from corner to corner of the block. The pattern created by the blocks is strong and the fabrics are busy, so there is no need for an elaborate quilting pattern which would not show up. You can see how the stitch is much more visible on the light colored fabric which reads as a solid. On the floral fabrics, the stitch disappears.

MacGregor Ranch Museum, Estes Park, CO

Posted on July 31, 2016 by Maggie Ball

I spent a week on vacation in CO in June, where I stayed in Estes Park and had the good fortune to explore the surrounding area and the Rocky Mountain National Park. What a gem of a place with such natural beauty. We visited the MacGregor Ranch Museum just outside Estes Park and had a tour of the house and grounds nestled against the backdrop of spectacular rocky cliff faces in the Black Canyon Creek area.

The MacGregor Ranch is a showplace of early life among settlers and homesteaders in the early Colorado Territory. Founded in 1873 by Alexander and Clara MacGregor, and left in trust by their granddaughter Muriel MacGregor, the Ranch today is a working cattle ranch and a youth education center. There were a small number of quilts on display in the bedrooms and I was particularly drawn to this one made by Clara MacGregor in the early 1900’s from 1890’s fabric scraps.

I’m sure all these fabrics have their own stories. There’s a good chance that the triangles were cut out of leftover pieces from dresses or other home made household items. Perhaps Clara’s friends gave her some of their scraps to increase the variety of fabrics in the quilt. The result is beautiful.

Burgoyne Surrounded

Posted on July 24, 2016 by Maggie Ball

Here is a beautiful Burgoyne Surrounded quilt in red, white and blue. I recently visited the La Conner Quilt & Textile Museum and saw the latest exhibits. On the ground floor, there is a display of Colonial Revival Quilts made by members of the American Quilt Study Group. Participants create a quilt which is copied from, or inspired by an existing antique quilt.

This example, (32” x 46”), was made by Anita Loscalzo from Dover, MA. This traditional pattern reflects historical events during the War of Independence. The British Army led by General Burgoyne was surrounded at the Battle of Saratoga which resulted in their surrender in October 1777, and convinced the French to ally themselves with the Americans. Anita used red in the large and small squares in the center of each block to symbolize the surrounded British army of redcoats. This quilt exhibit also includes several beautiful appliqué Colonial Revival quilts. On the upper two floors of the museum (where photography is not allowed), there are many exquisite hand-pieced and hand-quilted Japanese quilts made by Sachiko Yoshida and her students, utilizing antique kimonos. The display of Colonial Revival Quilts runs until the end of August, 2016 and the Japanese quilts will remain until early October, 2016.

Quilt Barn Art

Posted on July 17, 2016 by Maggie Ball

In May, I spent a day exploring Shipshewana in the heart of Amish country in Indiana. See previous blogs for Lolly’s Fabric Store and Little Helpers Quilt Shop. The Amish are quilting masters and an expansion of this craft is to paint quilt blocks on large wooden panels which are displayed on the outsides of buildings. They are beautiful. Some are quite large and colorful such as these on the outside of the building that houses the Yoder Department Store and other shops. Usually the patterns painted are those of traditional pieced quilt blocks.

You can purchase these Barn Quilts, as they are called, at the Little Helpers Quilt Shop, 1,030N 1,000W, on the outskirts of Shipshewana. The ones shown above are about two feet square and there is a nice assortment of patterns available. The pictures below are of the outside of the Little Helpers Quilt Shop. It was rather a grey day, but these barn quilts still look very attractive and add color to the outside of the building. Several other states boast barn quilts. Perhaps there are some near you?

Chicago Botanical Gardens

Posted on July 10, 2016 by Maggie Ball

In May, I visited IL and taught at the Village Quilters Guild in Lake Bluff/Lake Forest. After my workshop, one of my students took me to the Chicago Botanical Gardens. What a fabulous place on a par with other world class gardens I have visited, such as Kew in London and Kirstenbosch in Cape Town. I never quite know where my inspiration comes from for quilting, but I love flowers and it seems that in gardens and nature, the colors never clash. I think that my observations of many color combinations in these places has made me more adventurous in my choice of fabrics. It’s not only the colors, there are so many differing textures and shapes. Look at these magnificent jewel towers.

As you can see, it was a beautiful clear sunny day. The late afternoon light made the colors brilliant as well creating gorgeous shadows. Look at all the shades of green from the fresh chartreuse of the leaves on the tree, to the darker evergreen and the dusty green of jewel tower leaves. The brick wall provides a nice backdrop.

The formal Japanese gardens were immaculately manicured and the trees and shrubs were scaled to ideal proportions so that all the components fit together in perfect harmony. Then there was this lovely meadow of red and yellow poppies and all shades in between with a few white ones thrown in too. If you are in Chicago and have time to venture north a little way, I can highly recommend these gardens. We only saw about half of them in an hour and a half. You could easily spend all day there.

Maggie Ball | Dragonfly Quilts

Author Archives: Maggie Ball

Patterns in Architecture, Durham Cathedral, UK

Rock patterns, Isle of Staffa, Scotland

Theft from suitcase of traveling quilt teacher, Rachel Clark

Designing Kaleidoscope Puzzle Quilts

Quilting Rulers

Bargello block baby quilt

MacGregor Ranch Museum, Estes Park, CO

Burgoyne Surrounded

Quilt Barn Art

Chicago Botanical Gardens

Maggie Ball | Dragonfly Quilts

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