Playing with Diamonds

I enjoyed making my Halloween eyes quilt block enough to keep playing with diamonds.  One of my favorite elements of quilting is creating and discovering secondary patterns in simple quilt blocks.  So of course I jumped right into that idea with these blocks.

Rather than stick with a limited color scheme, I selected 12 different solid fabrics for a colorful experiment.  Black and white were simple choices, and they provide good contrast for a first look at the idea.  These blocks are foundation paper pieced, but they came together VERY quickly.  Another fun element is their size.  Although thin, they are tall, so a dozen blocks make an 18″ quilt block.  It’s a good study, I think.

When I look at the blocks before sewing them together, I like their strong diagonal presence.  It would be interesting to pursue that element.  My favorite part is the center of this block.  I love the black and white diamonds that emerge when the blocks are sewn together.  While it’s more white than I often use, I do like the playful feel of bright colors, crisp lines, and black and white.  It reminds me a little of my Gleaned quilt pattern.

I feel like I’m learning a lot about myself this year.  One lesson is that if I stay engaged with creative sewing, the ideas flow freely and I stay motivated to finish projects.  But if I step away for a few days, it’s harder to break back in.  Isn’t it interesting how many parts of life are like that?  Consistent practices are powerful.  In these little studies, I like to test ideas with no pressure to create anything special.  Just sewing for sewing’s sake.

Will anything come of this?  Maybe.  Maybe not.  There’s another idea tickling in the back of my mind, and I hope it surfaces soon.  For now, I’ll jump back into a new quilt design, grateful for the chance to play with diamonds.  Life is good.