King’s Cross Quilt Blocks

 

All 48 King’s Cross quilt blocks have been stitched. The blocks have all been put on my design wall now, and the intense colors are especially welcome today because of our snow storm.

The 6 x 8 block arrangement will be used.  My 4 yard stash of black Kona cotton didn’t last long and I only have a yard remaining. (Sometimes the fabric really does tell you what to do!) Since I need some yardage for the border and binding, 48 blocks it is!

My next step with the King’s Cross blocks is to sew block units of 4 x 4, making “X” blocks. Each of the “X” blocks will be joined into rows to complete the top.

My first border will be using a strip of solid Kona black cotton. the next border will be made of leftover pieces of the dyed cottons.

My quilt backing is going to be hand dyed and the color-formula I will use is my Mint Green. 

The yardage for the backing will be sewn together before I dye the cotton so that the overall scrunch-resist is continuous and appears to be a whole-cloth backing.

This morning, our woods are covered with the snow fall. Snow is always is lovely when it falls. Most woodland animals have sought shelter from this winter storm, but birds flock to our feeders in search of their morning seed and suet.

A pot of ham and potato soup is now simmering in the kitchen. Perfect food for a Sunday lunch in snowy February.

King’s Cross Patchwork Block

 

Many strips and triangles have been cut for the King’s Cross quilt. I’ve now made 16 King’s Cross patchwork blocks to mount on the design wall.

To keep the overall “X” arrangement, the King’s Cross blocks need to be arranged in even-numbered settings.

How many blocks will I need for this quilt top? I would like for this quilt to be able to serve as a functional bed quilt on a queen size bed. I will need to think about the size as I sew more blocks and mount them on the design wall.

The King’s Cross quilt top will either need a 6×8 block arrangement or an 8×10 block arrangement. My first goal will be 48 blocks, to see what the 6×8 block arrangement looks like.

Making The Hand Dyed Palette

After sorting through 2 plastic tubs of my hand dyed cotton fabrics, I began ironing some of the fabrics for the Kings Cross block.

I want to limit the use of too many earth tones.  After pulling the fabrics together, I decided to use a solid black cotton for the large triangles on either side of the “X” piece. Fortunately, I found a 4-yard piece of Kona solid black in my stash. (I love when the fabric stash gives you what you need!)

The measurements for the Kings Cross block are defined, and the finished block will measure 9-inches.

The “X” strips will be cut 2 1/2″ x 13 7/8″. Some of the fabrics will be pieced together to get the full length of the “X” strips.

Now it’s time to start cutting strips to make a few blocks today!

Scraps From Hand Dyed Cottons

I’ve been hand dyeing fabrics since 1992, and began selling hand dyed cotton fabrics in 1993. Thousands of yards later, it is no wonder that I have a large supply of hand dyed cotton scraps.

My dyed scraps are stored in large plastic tubs: strips, discarded patches not used, leftover pieces, 3-inch swatches, and rejects (hand dyed fat quarters that were not acceptable for resale).

Being in the dead of Winter in February and having finished way too many UFOs (Un Finished Ordinaries, see sidebar article on this), it’s time to dive into one of my tubs of hand dyed cotton scraps. I’m going to make a large quilt using some of these bright scraps.

I have had a few ideas for several different scrap quilts made from my hand dyed cottons, but I’ve chosen to work with a traditional block — the Kings Cross Variation.  The design inspiration comes from this photo, showing the block variation worked in traditional Amish style. The photo is from The World Of Amish Quilts by Rachel and Kenneth Pellman.

After I cut out the ”X” strips for a number of blocks, I’ll mount them on my wall to decide on the background. I’m not sure if I’ll overdye solid cottons, discharge solid cottons, or if I’ll choose a solid black.  Decisions, decisions….

Eagle Lake, A Waterscape

Eagle Lake

Dark green Pine trees and other conifers are now being embroidered onto this small waterscape.

For the branches, I am using a variety of silk and rayon threads.

This photo shows the beginnings of the embroidered Pine branches in the left portion of the foreground. Using accents of green Sulky Sliver alongside some of the Pine branches gives a rich shimmery depth here and there.

The fabrics are all hand dyed cottons. The 3 mountains were hand appliqued to the hand dyed background fabric. Including the raw edges, this small quilt measures about 4″ x 10″.  No decision on border or binding treatment yet.

My inspiration for this work came from a trip to Eagle Lake. The Lake is highly alkaline and the trout fishing is superior! Eagle Lake is near Susanville in northern California (in case you want to go there).

Spending long days trout fishing on the lake from sunrise to sunset gave me a chance to take some fantastic photographs while catching some very large Rainbow Trout there.