geometric designs

Below is a pattern that you commonly see in Amish quilts (but without the prints and in a full size).  When the blocks and colors are lined up correctly, it gives a scallop look. I was amazed at the difference made when the same pattern was used with a mixture of prints and solids. And it opens up a few possibilities on what I might do with some fabrics I have. :)

And a close up of the print.

 Quilts like the one above always intrigue me. The last quilt shop I went to with my mother-in-law had quite a few of this style on display.  She commented, "Quilts aren't what they used to be."  I don't know if it's the influence of modern art or the increasing number of men who are engineers that have joined their wives in quilt making that have made the difference. But I like it.

 The above quilt was a blue ribbon winner. It was in a section with a lot of other "modern" (i.e. strange in my book) quilts, but I loved this one and could see it in my house. I like the colors, the dots, the lines, and the quilted swirls. It makes me think of music.

The quilt below is another example of geometric designs that have influenced the world of quilts.I'm giving you the overall view of the quilt first. I like how it seems to be moving.

 

 

 Quilts are pieced in small sections called squares.  If you look closely above, you can see four squares that meet (look at the yellow, red, darker yellow, and orange bursts that meet on their flat sides and the surrounding area).  Once you break it down like that, the pattern doesn't seem quite so busy.  So how did it get to be so chaotic?

 You change the squares! Notice the small red square placed in the center above?  That throws all the squares off balance.  Same pattern, just adjusted with one very small square.

 I also like the swirls quilted around the circles. It reminds me of heat rising off pavement and adds to the movement feeling.

I'm not a big fan of the above quilt. The colors are not my favorite, and it's a little too Dr. Seussy for me. But I do like how you can make something flat like fabric appear to be dimensional, just by the way you use color and blocks.

And this just made me smile. The fan pattern is a VERY traditional quilt. This quilter flipped the fans in different directions and tilted the inside blocks at an angle, giving it a very different feel. The outside border is also flipped backwards, as well as curved. I love this, though I know others hated it.

Quilting ain't what it used to be. I don't know whether or not the geometric craze in quilts is a trend that will last or that others will look back on and shudder, but I think it fits our time, as well as makes life a little interesting.