Kaleidoscope Quilt - Need Tips Please
#21
Super Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Mendocino Coast, CA
Posts: 5,007
Agree with Jordan Fabrics tutorials - they were very helpful. I made one using 8 pieces and had trouble with the center of the block not being flat. I had success when I started stitching the pieces together 2x2 at a time if I started from the center about 1 thread deeper than 1/4” and tapered to edge about 1 thread less than 1/4”. I also had better luck pressing the seams open, which I typically never do.
~ C
#22
Super Member
Join Date: Aug 2018
Location: Greater Peoria, IL -- just moved!
Posts: 6,168
The really nice thing about using hexes instead of octagons is you can line them up into rows easier. You keep them in half until you lay them out. I'll see if I can find a thread we had here before where I really grasped the concept!
With octagons you have to set in, or put triangles into the corners which can be a design element.
edit: it wasn't the thread I was thinking of, this older one has some great pictures, diagrams, and hints!
What am I missing (or am I really that dumb)?
With octagons you have to set in, or put triangles into the corners which can be a design element.
edit: it wasn't the thread I was thinking of, this older one has some great pictures, diagrams, and hints!
What am I missing (or am I really that dumb)?
Last edited by Iceblossom; 08-18-2020 at 11:45 AM.
#23
Super Member
Join Date: Sep 2014
Location: Middlebury, IN
Posts: 1,484
Thanks everyone! You won't believe it. I went to town today and did the shopping. I treated myself to a couple of quilting magazines, (which I do about once every 3 or 4 years.) They were sealed in plastic, so I had no idea what was in them. The issue 62 of Today's Quilter has a big spread on these kinds of quilts! Oh lucky me! They are calling them, "Millefiori," quilts and Willyne Hammerstein is the designer. I love all of them. If any of you have that magazine, please look it up. I wanna make one of those. I'll have to look up her book.
Thanks for that video, Barb.
~ C
Thanks for that video, Barb.
~ C
If you are on Facebook, there is a group for one block wonder quilts only. Not only lots of pictures posted, but they also have tips and techniques in PDF format.
Good luck!
#24
Super Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Mendocino Coast, CA
Posts: 5,007
SuziSew...I was wondering about that. That magazine that I picked up has a pattern and instructions for one of the quilts and it is hand pieced. However, I think that I can machine piece it, because it is in rows. It has one piece in the block that is supposed to be inset, but there are ways around that.
Thanks for that FB tip. I don't do FB anymore, but my dau does. I'll see if she can look it up for me.
~ C
Thanks for that FB tip. I don't do FB anymore, but my dau does. I'll see if she can look it up for me.
~ C
#25
I have only made one kaleidoscope quilt, and don't know if I'll ever make another one. But I used a tool that I haven't seen anyone else mention. I went to a local quilt shop and found a mirror that was a HUGE help! It actually is 2 mirrors connected in the middle with a strip of plastic to form sort of a hinge. When you place the mirror on your fabric, the multiple reflections show you exactly what the block will look like once it's finished. 🙂
Donna
Donna
#26
Power Poster
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 17,827
Here's a link for a free SAW (aka 8 piece) pattern ....
http://www.bethanyreynolds.com/downloads/SpinCycle.pdf
Mirrors .... yes, very helpful to help you get a prediction of your outcome.
You don't need to buy the quilt-store version ... Just go to a $ $tore and get two mirrors. I found school locker mirrors, about 6"x8" with a plastic edging/backing, to make them safer and easier to handle. Then added duct tape to hold them together. That way, they will stand up, so you can admire without needing to hold them in place. Fan then in/out in different angles to see how a 4-repeat would look, or 6 or 8 .... or more!
There are so many "rules" that are said about the fabrics designs to use or not use. However, many here on the board have proven those wrong!!! ..... look for some of the old threads. What I discovered is that the smaller the print, the smaller your triangle/square size needs to be to make it work.
Four Patch Posey ... Sorry, I don't have a finished picture. I didn't have a lot of virgin fabric, so I cut four squares the size of the 4-P blocks, and put them into the corners as references to the original fabric.
My Maiden 4-Patch Posey !!!!
My first OBW ... Lots of virgin fabric this time, so I used it for the backing for the quilt, matching it where I seamed it.
Shabby Chic OBW .... Tout Fini! :)
Warning ... these are addictive and once you start into it, you don't want to stop, as you want to keep doing another and another to see the surprise that each group of triangles hold for you!
Have Fun!!
(now you have me thinking of making another!)
http://www.bethanyreynolds.com/downloads/SpinCycle.pdf
Mirrors .... yes, very helpful to help you get a prediction of your outcome.
You don't need to buy the quilt-store version ... Just go to a $ $tore and get two mirrors. I found school locker mirrors, about 6"x8" with a plastic edging/backing, to make them safer and easier to handle. Then added duct tape to hold them together. That way, they will stand up, so you can admire without needing to hold them in place. Fan then in/out in different angles to see how a 4-repeat would look, or 6 or 8 .... or more!
There are so many "rules" that are said about the fabrics designs to use or not use. However, many here on the board have proven those wrong!!! ..... look for some of the old threads. What I discovered is that the smaller the print, the smaller your triangle/square size needs to be to make it work.
Four Patch Posey ... Sorry, I don't have a finished picture. I didn't have a lot of virgin fabric, so I cut four squares the size of the 4-P blocks, and put them into the corners as references to the original fabric.
My Maiden 4-Patch Posey !!!!
My first OBW ... Lots of virgin fabric this time, so I used it for the backing for the quilt, matching it where I seamed it.
Shabby Chic OBW .... Tout Fini! :)
Warning ... these are addictive and once you start into it, you don't want to stop, as you want to keep doing another and another to see the surprise that each group of triangles hold for you!
Have Fun!!
(now you have me thinking of making another!)
Last edited by QuiltE; 08-19-2020 at 01:15 PM.
#28
Super Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Mendocino Coast, CA
Posts: 5,007
Thanks QuiltE!
So, I got my Millefiori quilt book yesterday, (Millefiori Quilts 4 by Willyne Hammerstein,) and oh...my...Gawd! These quilts are all fabulous! They are also all hand-pieced and hand-quilted...sigh. I don't know if I'm ever going to to a hand-pieced quilt, not to mention a hand-quilted quilt, but the book is still a wonderful inspiration. Her color choices are so lovely. I have a deep fondness for quilts that use tan, or khaki as one of the main colors and she has both in her book. I did notice that many of her patterns could be adapted to machine piecing and quilting. Not the same as that soft, hand-worked look, but still, a machine-made quilt could be very nice.
I started cutting fabrics for my One Block Wonder quilt and I'm having fun with that. The fabrics I'm cutting now are what I would call my, "blender blocks." They aren't as dramatic as some that I've seen, but I'll need them for my design. I'm still waiting for my fabric panels to come in. They will make blocks that have a lot more movement and color to them. I'll be sure to share pix on the next Virtual Quilting Weekend, coming up soon.
~ C
So, I got my Millefiori quilt book yesterday, (Millefiori Quilts 4 by Willyne Hammerstein,) and oh...my...Gawd! These quilts are all fabulous! They are also all hand-pieced and hand-quilted...sigh. I don't know if I'm ever going to to a hand-pieced quilt, not to mention a hand-quilted quilt, but the book is still a wonderful inspiration. Her color choices are so lovely. I have a deep fondness for quilts that use tan, or khaki as one of the main colors and she has both in her book. I did notice that many of her patterns could be adapted to machine piecing and quilting. Not the same as that soft, hand-worked look, but still, a machine-made quilt could be very nice.
I started cutting fabrics for my One Block Wonder quilt and I'm having fun with that. The fabrics I'm cutting now are what I would call my, "blender blocks." They aren't as dramatic as some that I've seen, but I'll need them for my design. I'm still waiting for my fabric panels to come in. They will make blocks that have a lot more movement and color to them. I'll be sure to share pix on the next Virtual Quilting Weekend, coming up soon.
~ C
#29
Super Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Mendocino Coast, CA
Posts: 5,007
~ C
#30
Power Poster
Join Date: Apr 2011
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 17,827
Anxious to see what you make Tropit!!
... Post pics please as you go, as I love seeing these kaleidos come together!