CRAZY ANN
CRAZY ANN is a quilt that can be done on the sewing machine as it is all straight seam sewing. If you cut the pieces all a seam larger and sew back to the unit sizes above, a block will finish 12 inches square. Its complex appearance unravels very simply — first piece an oblong A and another with colors reversed. Join them to form B, then join four squares B to make the swastika center to which four triangles C are added. Only one caution; the four pieced squares must go together in identical sequence in all of the blocks. If the whirl-like movement reverses in some, they will never set together properly.
This is one of the quilts so well beloved that we chose it to offer you. The Swastika-like motive comes in light blue with the four corner squares a medium blue, remainder of block and alternate plain squares white. Of course any colors may be used if you cut them yourself from a pattern, but the two blues with white always make an excellent combination.
Material Estimate: 42 blocks — 21 pieced and 21 plain — requires: 1 3/4 yards light blue, 6 yards white, l 1/2 yards medium blue — 9 1/4 yards complete.
ALBUM
THE ALBUM quilt is a real old-timer. Its original purpose was for a gift for a bride-to-be. A group of friends would get together and each would piece a block and embroider her name upon it!
One block when completed is ten and one-half inches square if seams are added to these cutting units. Set the blocks together diagonally with alternate white squares measuring ten and one-half inches. The total number of pieced and white blocks used of course varies according to the size and shape of the quilt desired.
Material Estimate: Blocks 10 1/2 inches square, 15 inches on the diagonal, require 2 yards of blue and 6 yards white. This allows for a large size quilt 79 inches wide by 85 inches long. This would be five blocks long and 5 wide, diagonally placed, plus a 5-inch border of white at top and bottom and 2-inch border of white at sides. All together there are 25 pieced blocks, 16 plain blocks, 16 plain 1/2 blocks, diagonally cut, and 4 plain 1/4 blocks on four corner
OLD MAID'S PUZZLE
ONE MAY be certain that "Old Maid’s Puzzle" is a genuine antique, because there haven't been any "old maids" in a generation, and “bachelor girls" are not so easily puzzled!
The triangles and square here given are exact size of the finished parts in a block 9 inches square. Cut cardboard patterns from these. Trace around them onto material and cut a seam larger. This is really quite a simple block to piece, four squares of two varieties. The color scheme suggested uses odd scraps of pink, blue, and green prints with white set together checkerboard style with alternate plain blocks, each color forming a pattern in diagonals across the whole quilt.
The "hour glass" quarter of this block repeated into a strip makes an attractive pieced border.
Material Estimate: 72 blocks, 36 pieced and '36 plain, 8 blocks wide by 9 long and a 5-inch border all around will make a quilt 82 by 98 inches. It requires 1/2 yard pink, 1 yard blue, 1 1/2 yards green, and 6 yards white, a total of 9 yards.
A geometric Tulip design or four flowers would quilt nicely on the alternate plain squares.
WEATHERVANE
This patchwork pattern is called the Weathervane, and dates back to the time when great-grandmother used that commodity to "calculate a change," instead of listening to a scientific forecast on the radio. But her pattern, the weathervane, is one of the loveliest of our old-time quilt designs.
Cardboard patterns may be cut exact size from the units here given, the four-inch center square and three other shapes used. Trace around these with a lead-pencil onto your material and then cut a seam larger all around so the finished block will be 12 inches square.
It makes up very simply; small green and white triangles sew into 8 squares which combine with a green and a white square to make the four corner blocks. White triangles on the gold form four other blocks, then they all set together as shown to form the weathervane. This is a charming pattern for a quilted pillow of silk scraps or calico; as well as for an entire quilt.
The quilt finishes 72 by 84 inches and includes 6 by 7 blocks, 21 pieced blocks and 21 plain. It sets together with alternate plain 12-inch squares and requires 2 yards of green, 2 yards of gold (this allows for binding), and 4 1/2 yards white.
PINE TREE
THE PINE TREE blocks make a very handsome quilt. It takes sixteen pieced blocks to make a quilt about eighty-four inches square, aside from its border. These blocks must set together diagonally with alternating blocks of white, cut the exact size of the pieced block. The cardboard patterns are the exact size in which the pieces should be cut. The size of one block when put together is about fifteen inches. Extend tree trunk three inches longer than pattern given. Lay the cardboard patterns on the material. Trace around with pencil carefully; cut a seam larger, sewing on the pencil line. The two white pieces of irregular shape have to be fitted in as marked on the edges; aside from this, the "Pine Tree" is largely a business of sewing small triangles into squares and adding them together. Allow 61/2 yards of white and 41/2 yards of green. This sounds like a lot of material, but the smaller the pieces the larger the yardage.
DRUNKARD'S PATH
A DRUNKARD'S PATH is easy enough to explain, once the start is made! And this is not a temperance lecture either. It is a set of instructions and cutting patterns for one of the most attractive old-time quilts in the list.
Colors should be sharply contrasted, that is the light really light, and the dark quite dark. Then they piece together into two separate blocks A and B, each 8 inches square, and these set together as shown into any desired size. These do not allow for seams, so cut them 1/4 inch larger all around. The light center of B may be cut in one piece instead of four as shown. Borders in strips of both colors used are specially good on a quilt of startling design such as this.
Material Estimate: This quilt takes equal amounts of light and dark, but they do not cut to as perfect advantage as they appear, so would allow 41/2 yards of light and 4 1/2 yards of dark. 55 blocks of A, 55 blocks of B, 10 blocks wide by 11 blocks long or 80 inches by 88 inches.
A Maple Leaf or any other Leaf design would quilt nicely on the large white spaces, with a Feather Circle in the large centers.
ROSE APPLIQUE
SOMEBODY always wants an appliqué patchwork and so in very small space here one is. Satine or fine weave gingham is good material to use.
The cardboard cutting patterns should be made carefully, exact sizes of the seven here given. These do not allow for seams, so cut a bit larger all around. This creases and bastes back. Sometimes sheet wadding is used under appliqué patches to give a raised effect. Plain blocks are cut 12 or more inches square. Appliqué parts are basted and then
blind stitched onto the block. Fancy stitching does not add to the simple charm of a design like the rose appliqué. In a built-up rose a row of print between plain tint layers is quaint. Many antique rose quilts alternated turkey red with yellow print calico and surrounded the flower with bottle green leaves for a vividly colorful block.
When setting the top together the Rose Appliqué will make a better design if the stems lead out to the sides of the quilt, that would make the three left rows place as shown in the sketch above, and the three right hand rows reverse.
Material Estimate: 42 blocks, 21 plain, 21 appliqué, 51/2 yards white, 1 yard rose, 2-3 yard pink, 11/2 yards of green, total of 8 2-3 yards.
The finished quilt will measure about 72 inches by 84 inches.
V BLOCK
ONE BLOCK of a V quilt has no chance to show the beauty of the design repeated. Blocks are all pieced and placed parallel to the quilt’ sedges so that one color follows a general vertical pattern and the other crosses in horizontal rows. This makes both a dainty overlay of designs and lovely background areas for quilting.
The V Block is a perfect example of a pattern that gives entirely different effects depending on the way the quilt is "set up." With alternate plain squares, with white or colored strips, with color V's alternating or forming a pattern, each plan would certainly make a different looking quilt.
An especially firm weave cloth must be used for any pattern like this that can not cut on true bias. Small sketch A shows the procedure of piecing a unit which in turn combines with the large white corners and other pieced triangles to form a 12-inch square, that is, inseams are added to the sizes printed here.
Irregular patterns are of course more difficult to complete smoothly than some of the many square and triangle projects.
Material Estimate: 42 blocks, 6 blocks wide by 7 blocks long would finish about 72 by 84 inches without border. For a top of all pieced blocks allow: 6 yards white, 11/2 yards ea of two colors.
A Spider web design would be an excellent choice for quilting where the 4 long white pieces join.
LAFAYETTE ORANGE PEEL
YOU may know this block as just the "Orange Peel," but there is such claim to distinction in its heritage that we proudly add the name” Lafayette." The story is that once when the beloved Marquis was feted in Philadelphia, a fair guest at the banquet took home a most beautiful fruit as her souvenir, an orange, imported from Barcelona. To preserve her treasure and the memory of gala days, a pattern was carefully made from the pared rind which comes down to us as the Orange Peel quilt block. Some localities call this a "Rob Peter to Pay Paul” which is a sort of general name highly expressive, where the cut part from one section appears to pay the part robbed from another.
The small background pieces marked” print" do not entirely surround the elliptical pieces, but added as shown they form the squares. Each square will be about 6 inches or a block as shown where the four join twelve inches square if a seam is added. This is really daintier and prettier if the pat-tern is small. You might try a sample block without allowing seams extra.
This is one of the all-over plan patterns, rather difficult to get all the corners exact but a really lovely quilt when accurately made.
Material Estimate: Allow 5 yards of unbleached and 5 yards of print. This design takes considerable material as it does not cut to a saving. Forty-two blocks put together, 6 blocks wide and 7 blocks long, finishes about 72 by 84 inches. Allow one yard extra for 3-inch border all around if desired.
FRENCH STAR
NO COLLECTION of quilt block designs is complete without many stars as this symbol was always a favorite.
The French Star is a Canadian pattern varying the eight-pointed star of diamond-shaped blocks by introducing small melon-shaped pieces of the background color or of contrasting hue. These melon-shaped pieces in turn forma wreath and may divide the star into two colors, as rose and pink, two shades of green or orange and yellow as suggested.
In making the French Star, sew two of the cone-shaped pieces to each white triangle, and then sew the corner squares to two of these blocks. The small melon-shaped blocks piece on to the center blocks; these in turn sew into a circle to which are added the oblong blocks and strips which were made first. This takes precise piecing but it makes an unusually attractive design when complete, either for patchwork pillows or for a quilt top. For the quilt, piece the star blocks together, using alternate squares of white of exactly the same size as the pieced blocks and finish with a border of white and color set in strips. Material Estimate: 11-inch blocks which measure I51/2 inches diagonally, may be effectively set together on the diagonal with alternate plain white blocks. 25 pieced blocks with 16 plain blocks, 16 half blocks and 4 quarters, plus a 3-inch border of white at top and bottom only, finishes 78 inches by 84 inches, requiring 6 1/2 yards of white, I 1/2 yards orange, and 2 yards of yellow.
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