What is your log cabin method preference?
 

Hi everyone! What is your log cabin method preference? Specialty Rulers? Creative Grids Log Cabin Ruler? Judy Martin? Marti Michell? Eleanor Burns? Other? I want to make a king size half-log cabin. There is so much information online but it is hard to cull the best advice and tips. I will need to learn how to figure out how much fabric per color I need. And so much more!! Are there any excellent tutorials or books and/or blogs you can lead me to? Thank you so much. This is a great group!
Mary Ann

I don't know about the half log cabin, but I love Eleanor Burns. She is a great teacher.

I like Eleanor Burns method. She makes the last strips a little wider than all the rest so you can easily square up all the blocks to the same size. I don't know how to figure out the fabrics. If you have EQ software you could use that.
Otherwise it depends on the width and length of the strips and how many blocks you are making.

Will all blocks be exactly the same fabrics in every block or just the same colors? Controlled scrappy might be an easier option - using several fabrics in each color.

I much prefer Eleanor Burns' method. Some people don't seem able to get good blocks with this method, but I have never had a problem and it is much faster for me. I started one quilt with Judy Martin's method of cutting each block to size and gave up; I really hated the cutting that much.

For half-log cabin blocks, I think Sharyn Craig's little booklet is very good:
http://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Half-...dp/1885588402/

Edit: Oops! I think this is the one of hers I actually have:
http://www.amazon.com/Design-Challen...dp/1885588208/

I made the Eleanor Burns version. She made it so easy to learn and fun to make the quilt. Oh and it was so fast.

Have you looked at Judy Martin's Log Cabin Books? There are so many different ways to set your blocks together. How wide are your stripes going to be? I prefer the narrower stripes. Log Cabin is one of my favorite Blocks. Thimbleberries Books have some great Log Cabin Quilts in them too, and her directions are so easy a child could follow them. Have fun whatever you do!!

i'm with the eleanor burns camp

I like Eleanor Burns method as well.

Don't know what method this is, but I try and cut the strips length of fabric rather than selvedge to selvedge to minimize stretching. I also cut the logs to length first, rather than sew then cut off excess. I get a more consistent result and to me it's worth the extra effort.
I like the tip mentioned above where the last logs are a bit wider to allow squaring up.

EB makes the log cabin simple and easy. My first quilt I did for my very fist commissioned quilt was a Judy Martin log cabin with the star points in the corner of each bock. They can be a little complicated at first.