Happy 2011 everyone. May it be a happy quilting year for each of you. You have certainly added to my quilting life in a terrific way during the past year. I have a couple of thousand cut 2 1/2" squares left over from previous projects. How can I best use them (some of them) in a new quilt top? What patterns would you suggest? I do only hand piecing and quilting, if that makes any difference for your suggestions. thanks in advance for your in-put.

You can check out the website www.quiltville.com. She has lots of ideas.
Bargello, trip around the world, 9-patch, etc.

Scrappy Irish chain.

My favorite childhood quilt is a 4 patch....2 squares white 2 square print. Hand pieced and hand quilted by my Mother and Grandmother.

I think sometimes the simple quilts are the most attractive of all. I'd suggest either making a 4 patch or a 9 patch. The quilt pictured just above looks great.

I have no suggestions for you, but that quilt pictured above is a beauty!

trip around the world or irish chain

pretty quilt

just a scrappy postage stamp quilt.

I use squares this size to "snowball" the corners of other peices or blocks, as in the quilt below. The reds and greens were all little squares placed over the corners of the base block, sewn across the diagonal, flipped back and pressed, the middle layer trimmed out.

Jan in VA