michelleoc

and how do they work? Has anyone done them? Are they fun? Difficult to understand? Any thoughts would be appreciated.

jlm5419

A mystery quilt is when you don't know what the quilt will look like before you make it. I recently did one; we were given fabric and tool requirements first. Then we made a lot of half-square triangles. Then we were given the grid layout which revealed that we were making a carpenter's star. Because it was a mystery quilt, choosing colors was a challenge, and while working on the half-square triangles, I was unsure if I liked the fabrics I had chosen. Once the quilt was finished, however, I was pleased with the result.

Tartan

Bonnie Hunter with be starting another mystery quilt after Thanksgiving at http://www.quiltville.blogspot.ca She chooses really pretty coordinating colours and patterns. If I was to do a mystery, I would do hers because I trust her quilting instincts. Several people have posted their Celtic Solstice pictures on QB and they are beautiful. I did a mystery once from our guild and I did not like how it turned out. Because I had to choose the fabrics and colours without knowing the pattern, the top looked weird and it went to the second hand shop.

toverly

Mystery quilts are fun but can be frustrating. Choosing fabrics without a pattern in mind can backfire. I have done one. I liked the results but probably won't do the pattern again. I made my scrappy with lights and colors. So there was a heavy contrast. I have seen some that don't "work" because many of the colors are the same intensity and they "blend" into each other.

michelleoc

tartan: thanks for providing the website for Bonnie Hunter. How in the heck do I find the information for the next mystery quilt? I've been wandering around that site and there's so much stuff there!

Tartan

If you look on the left hand side of the site, right under Blog Her, there is a little search box. Type in Mystery quilts and previous ones should come up. The one for next year will have fabric selection earlier but the clues do not go public until after this Thanksgiving weekend. Her other site http://quiltville.com has the previous mysteries along the left hand side of the site but once they are retired, they go into her books I think.

nygal

I did a mystery quilt wall hanging once. It came out okay but I prefer to KNOW what I am making because that would have helped me choose either different fabrics or put them in different places. If you are the adventurous type you may love it!!

susiequilt

On this board we have a mystery train ride. I have never participated but everyone that does seems to have a great time and make a nice quilt.
You can do a search here and see how one progresses.
Here is the last one they did.
http://www.quiltingboard.com/blocks-...d-t240020.html
You can find more under the Blocks of the month and week forum.
It sounds like another is starting in September.

Nammie to 7

I've done mystery quilts and love them. The directions will tell you to pick x yards of light, x yards of medium, dark, etc. I've learned so much from doing the mysteries. You really learn the distinction between light medium and dark. The quilts shown below were mysteries. Usually you get the fabric requirements and some cutting instructions with the 1st clue, the following instructions will give piecing and cutting directions with the last clue giving the layout instructions. Try one -- I think you will like it.



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bjchad

I have been doing the mystery quilt class by Kimberly Einmo (sp?) on craftsy. I have really enjoyed it and she is very good with her instructions. I would recommend the class. She shows you how to make the individual blocks as you go alone. Easy to follow her instructions and she is fairly specific about how to pick your fabrics. She also gives a number of size choices so you can do crib, full, etc. as desired.
I will be looking for other mystery quilts to do and hope they are as well planned and have as good instructions,