It Takes a Village; 32 1/2″ x 38 1/2″, designed and pieced by Darra, machine quilted by Chris Porter
If you read Part 1 of my post earlier this week, you know today’s post–Part 2–features instructions for the House block from my quilt, “It Takes a Village,” from Cuddle Me Quick. At the end of the instructions, you’ll find a few more examples of fun, funky, and fabulous house-themed quilts.
For one 4″ x 6″ finished block, you’ll need:
Door: One 2″ x 3 1/4″ piece
House: Two 1 3/4″ x 3 1/4″ pieces; one 1 3/4″ x 4 1/2″ piece
Background: Two 2 1/2″ squares
Roof: One 2 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ piece
From left: door, house, background, and roof pieces
To make the block:
1. Sew the 2″ x 3 1/4″ door piece between the two 1 3/4″ x 3 1/4″ house pieces; press away from the door piece.
2. Sew the 1 3/4″ x 4 1/2″ house piece to the top edge; press toward the newly added piece.
3. Draw a line from corner to corner on the back of each 2 1/2″ background square. Pin one marked square right sides together with the 2 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ roof piece. Sew directly on the sewn line. Trim, leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance. Press open, toward the corner.
4. Pin and sew the remaining marked square to the unit from step 3. Trim and press.
5. Sew the roof unit to the top edge of the house unit; press toward the house unit.
In their book, Fresh Perspectives, Carol Gilham Jones and Bobbi Finley reinterpret 18 classic quilts from the collection of the International Quilt Study Center & Museum in Lincoln, NE.
One of those quilts just happened to be a circa 1890 -1910 Schoolhouse quilt.
Schoolhouse, circa 1890 – 1910, probably Oklahoma, maker unknown, 78″ x 72″, International Quilt Study Center, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 1997.007.0314
Look how Bobbi “reinvented” this old favorite:
Happy Houses, 70 1/2″ x 70 1/2″, pieced by Bobbi Finley, machine quilted by Holly Casey
Bobbi says: “For the record, Barbara (Brackman) provided me with the pattern for Happy Houses, which she designed on BlockBase as I recall. It was a fun quilt to make, and she watched me make it at the Point Bonita (CA) retreat one year.”
Artist Adrienne Yorinks works in a variety of media, but specializes in fabric. Her unique, house-based quilt, Woman to Woman, appears in Episode 1: Quilts 101 – Antique & Contemporary Quilts of the documentary series Why Quilts Matter: History, Art & Politics. Very different from the blue-and-white Schoolhouse quilt I showed from that series in Part 1 of this post!
Woman to Woman, designed and made by Adrienne Yorinks, 2009, 80″ x 60″, photo by D. James Dee, appears in the documentary Why Quilts Matter
In speaking about this quilt, Adrienne says, “I was commissioned to do the piece by the UJA (United Jewish Appeal)…(it) was presented to a woman’s shelter in Jerusalem and hangs there permanently. The photographs of the women on the quilt support the UJA and wanted to share a part of themselves with the women in the shelter that they help fund. I created a house image to encompass the photographs, anchoring the work as well as to hopefully bring comfort to the women and children who are living in the shelter.”
Ricky Tims is another versatile quilter who has put a unique spin on the traditional House block. He designed his quilt, Sunset Strip, for the August 2010 issue of The Quilt Life magazine (which includes instructions), and made it using his own hand-dyed fabric.
Sunset Strip, 42″ x 36″, designed and made by Ricky Tims
Ricky says about this quilt: “I love seeing what happens to one multi-colored fabric when it is cut up and slightly shifted. The technique used in the sky is one of my Convergence variations–Blended Convergence–which is one of the projects in my book, Convergence Quilts. By adding the paper-pieced houses, I was able to have a focal point. I really like making easy quilts that look sort of complicated. This one is a piece of cake!”
I hope you’ve enjoyed this two-part post. It was fun to write, and more than fun to track down so many wonderful quilts.
‘Til next time, happy stitching!
P.S. For those of you who’d like a full view of Mary Stori’s quilt from my previous post, here goes. Don’t you just love the pieced sashing and cornerstones? (Thank you, Mary!)
Little Red Schoolhouses, made and quilted by Mary Stori, 56 1/2″ x 71 1/4″
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