Join me (Jackie O’Brien, aka Quilt Ninja) for a creative journey learning to making a kaleidoscope/hexagon block using one fabric or pre-cut panels. I have made 71 One Block Wonders. Two of my quilts are featured in Maxine Rosenthal’s book “One Block Wonders of the World”.
In this class I will guide you to: Identify & cut 6 fabric repeats – Align the repeats – Cut equilateral triangles – Sew the hexagon blocks – Sort the blocks by predominate color – Design with the hexagons
The blocks are made from one fabric with very little waste! You cut and sew equilateral triangles forming hexagons and then design with these kaleidoscopic blocks. There are NO “Y” seams.
Because this quilt features one repeated block, design involves playing with the colors and shapes in any way you choose. The quilt you produce will have more energy and movement than the original fabric.
I have declared it “Hug A Quilt Day”! I lovingly carried all my quilts back down to Tuckerville. I hugged each one as they were either hung or folded on a shelf. I’m so happy my quilts are home! Thank you all for your prayers, kind words and support!
Holy Moly, thank you Judy Jackson! My OBW quilts were delivered safe and sound 9:00 AM this morning after being lost for 13 days. Funny thing, they were in TWO boxes as I wanted. The UPS store in Lake Havasu put all 15 quilts in one box even though I didn’t want it that way.
Needless to say, there is a One Block Wonder in Judy Jackson’s future!
Thank God and Judy Jackson of UPS – they found my quilts in Georgia. The UPS office in Lake Havasu, AZ didn’t package them correctly. The box was severely damage and the label came off. Luckily they found my list of quilts and my address inside the box. They are at the corporate office in Georgia and will be packed correctly and be on their to me in several days. Thank You all for your concern. I was overwhelmed with the your responses. God bless you all & Judy Jackson!
UPDATE: my quilts have found! Thank you all for your prayers and kind words!
I’m completely devastated! After my One Block Wonder Trunk Show for Quilting by the Lake in Lake Havasu, Arizona I shipped my quilts home by UPS only to have them disappear at the Chicago Area Consolidation Hub (CACH) Facility in Hodgkins, Illinois. I have no idea how long their investigation will take. These Quilts are irreplaceable. I can not just remake them. I am writing this because I feel helpless and frustrated!
I have been in Lake Havasu since January 4th. I was honored to be invited to teach One Block Wonder at “Quilting By The Lake” for the Havasu Stitcher’s Quilt Guild. I had a great group of ladies. They did a fabulous job!
The week ended with a OBW Trunk Show
The best part of the trip was meeting my half Sister Marti for the first time! We found each other through Ancestry DNA test. We had never met until January 2020.
Marti and her husband Mike! We have had so much fun.
I even got to meet “Walter the Orphan Donkey” from Oatman, Arizona! Walter was abandoned by his mother and this family brought him home, saved his life and are now raising him. Walter thinks he is a German Shepherd dog and even uses the dog door! You can follow Walter on Facebook. The donkeys roam around the town waiting for us to feed them.
A few more days and I will be heading back to snowy New York! I had such a great time. I can’t thank my new sister Marti and her family enough. They have made me feel so welcome and loved. I have a whole new family!
I knew I was busy this year, but I didn’t realize how much I accomplished until I took a look back over 2019! It’s almost New Year’s Eve, in less than a week I’m off to Lake Havasu Arizona to teach a One Block Wonder Workshop for Havasu Stitcher’s – Quilting By the Lake. I will also be teaching Studio 180 Design Doves of Hope at Copper Canyon Quilt Shop. Last, but not least, I will be meeting a sister for the first time, I can’t wait Marti!
Here is a gallery of projects I completed in 2019:
Below is my sister Marti and her wonderful family, I cant wait to give you a hug!
The Unicorn is all about opening up to infinite possibilities and that the infinite possibilities surround you and are available to you at all times.
I made this One Block Wonder for my son Jason’s birthday in a few weeks. Spiritually the Unicorn symbolizes success. If you summon the power of the Unicorn, the Unicorn will give you the blessings to be a success in whatever you choose to pursue. I love you Jason, Happy Birthday!
Here are my tips for using panels to make a One Block Wonder:
You may have realized I love history and cemeteries. As my sister and I were visiting family in Forest Hills Cemetery (Utica, NY) we were drawn to this tree.
When I saw this panel I couldn’t believe my eyes. I have been taking photo’s of this tree since 2010. It is very near the grave of John Adams Great Granddaughter Mary Louisa Adams. Johnson and not far from our family. I love trees, I think I was a Druid in another life! Needless to say I just had to make a One Block Wonder using this panel from Quilting Treasures.
First attempt at designing.
When I stitched the rows together, I discovered I needed to add some fabric so the hexies would line up as I wanted them to. Then I had to disguise the added fabric and soften the edges.
I’m pretty happy with it. Below is a downloadable description of how I design a OBW with panels.
At least when it comes to One Block Wonders (OBW) it does. There are so many “Size” questions when it comes to choosing our fabrics. What size repeat should I choose? What size panel? What size strip width should I cut? What size design elements. The first thing I do when choosing OBW fabric is check the size of the repeat. Then I decide what size to cut the strips based on the size of the design elements. If I want to cut my strips 3 3/4″ wide then I want the design in the fabric to be larger than 4″ or I will not be taking the fabric apart.
I was going through my OBW stash and this found fabric I had started to cut up. I don’t know how long I’ve had it. It was The Saturday Evening Post line by Quilting Treasures. I had 4 yards of this striped pattern and another 4 yards of a different layout. I separated the strips and then found the repeat which was 8″ x 23″. I decided it was large enough to align the repeats and cut into 3 3/4″ strips. I could have cut the strips narrower for small blocks but I decided the design elements were large enough for 3 3/4″ strips which make 6″ finished hexagons. I used the ripping method to separate the strips to be sure they were straight. I have to say I don’t like this method. It made the edges wavy and was rough on the fabric. It may have easier to rip but next time I will use ruler rotary cutter,
It is not quilted yet but I do like the design. I used strips from the original fabric for the inner border. The outer border is from fabric number 2. It was also a striped with these small 5″ squares and larger 10″ squares below:
I have eight 10″ blocks of each, that leaves 6 panels for the blocks and 1 for the top with one leftover. Repeats can be from yardage or 6 panels can be used for our hexagon blocks. If I cut the strips 2 3/4″ I will get 3 strips will a little wiggle room left over. If I cut the strips 2 1/2″ wide I will get 4 strips with very little margin for error.
I made this 12″ block from hexagons cut from 1 1/2″ strips.
The photo of the tree is from Forest Hills Cemetery in Utica, NY. It is just above the grave of Mary Louisa Johnson, Daughter of John Adams, granddaughter of John Quincy Adams (6th President of the United States) & Great Granddaughter of John Adams 2nd President of the United States. The panel was 36″ 44″. It was so large it took 12 flowers pins to align it instead of the usual 6. I can’t wait to design it.
I spent last weekend cutting these panels into equilateral triangles. Now I’m ready to stitch away to my hearts content.
