This post is in response to the comment Chicken Mama (daughter and recipient of the potholders) made on my previous blog entry.
I make all my potholders 8" x 8" square. It's a size I just find very handy. They're big enough to fold double and still have something to hang on to. An 8" square is ample to protect the table if you want to set a hot dish or skillet on it. Ones I make for myself, I don't put a hanging loop on because in my present kitchen, I have to keep my potholders in a drawer next to the stove. No convenient hook(s) to hang them on. But for those I give away, I always put a loop on each one.
Chicken Mama commented that the Anvil and Road to Heaven blocks were the same, except for a little tweaking, as she said. My, how perceptive you are, m'dear! Except . . . they're really not.
This is the Anvil block.
And here is Road to Heaven.
The diagonals in the above pictures are going in opposite directions, but I think you can still see what I'm trying to explain.
In Anvil, the center square (labeled D) is one solid piece. The same center area in Road to Heaven is made up of six pieces; two squares plus two squares made up of two triangles put together. This allows you to get the different pattern or color configurations in Road to Heaven. But Chicken Mama was correct in observing that the blocks contain the same overall shape.
This is what makes quilting so interesting. Just look what a change that little tweaking and use of colors make in a block. I have seen three blocks made from an identical block pattern (EXACTLY the same pieces) but they appear visually so uniquely different, because of the particular use of fabrics and colors, you wouldn't think they could be the same block.
Even with the simple reversing of the white and colored pieces in the two blocks above, which are the identical block pattern, you have a different look to the block. (Dang, my mind has gone blank and I can't remember the name of this block. Anyone? Help?)
Well, picking, processing and freezing beans today almost kept me from this post, but (pant-pant) here I am. So back to my potholder project.
Here I've got all four potholders sandwiched and pinned, ready for quilting. The pieced block is on top, two layers of Warm 'N Natural in the center, and chosen fabric for the backing on the bottom.
I quilted each according to the block design and my own inclination at the moment. That's another advantage of making potholders that I forgot to mention earlier. They give you a chance to try different quilting lines and designs. Much better to ruin one small potholder while learning free-motion quilting than a whole quilt. Sometime I'll show you the potholders I made years ago when I was trying to learn how to meander. Why I haven't thrown those away is a mystery. They are AWFUL!
Below are the four different potholders after quilting.
Anvil
Brave World
Road to Heaven
Castles in Spain
The front view of all four potholders with binding sewn on and completed.
And the back view.
So what did I learn about these four (actually five . . . but we've already ruled out Southern Belle) new (to me) traditional block patterns I tried?
I like Road to Heaven so much that I know I'm going to use it to make a baby quilt soon. As I was working with Brave World, I found myself drawn to it more and more. Because the pinwheel design is always attractive for a wee one, I might give it a go for a baby quilt also. Anvil seems very plain, but I can visualize a quilt using a different colored fabric for each "anvil" and separating the blocks with sashing. The block was easy to construct so even a full-sized quilt would go together fast using this block. Castles in Spain has good eye appeal but I think I'd like to find a coordinating block to alternate with it. Out of the five blocks I worked with in making the potholders, I found four I'll probably use again . . . not a bad percentage!
Whew, finally done! If you think the blogging about the construction of these potholders took a long time, rest assured it seemed like it took me a REALLY long time to actually get the work on them done. Hope my daughter still wants 'em!
