Block of the Month 1800’s Quilt –
August
Unfinished
Blocks are 9.5”
We will be making two old favorite blocks during August. First up
is an Ohio Star. This block has
been found in quilts from the mid to late 1700’s through today. It was prominently featured in the American
Eagle quilt in the National Museum of American History. Mimi Dietrich featured the quilt and her
version of it in her book Quilts from the Smithsonian.
Take a few
moments to view the YouTube video by the American History Museum of the Civil War Sunday School Quilt: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gFS34M_5PIM
Does it remind you of anything?
Yes, what quilters do today by making quilts and donating them to the Quilts of Valor and the Virginia Memorial Quilt Project as
well as other programs that benefit our military personnel is what the Sunday
School class did during the Civil War.
It’s wonderful that we are
continuing this great tradition.
Cutting:
I made this block using three colors although I’ve seen it
in two colors. I would not use
directional fabric for this one. I
chose dark for the triangle star points, medium around the center square, and
light for the corner and center squares.
Background Fabric: Cut five - 3 ½” squares of
background fabric
Cut one 4 ¼” square and then cut it
diagonally twice.
Dark Fabric for star
points Cut two – 4 1/4” squares of dark
fabric. Cut diagonally twice.
Cut One – 4 1/4” square of medium fabric
Cut diagonally
twice.
Sewing
Using the photo for color placement make 4
broken dishes blocks. To trim it
to 3 ½”, place one of the diagonal
lines on your ruler on the diagonal of the block. The 4 fabrics should meet in the center at the 1 ¾” mark on
your ruler. Trim the block to 3 ½”. If you have the Tucker Trimmer ruler this is a great
time to use it.
Lay out the block. Sew in rows and then sew the rows
together. I pressed the seams to
the plain blocks.
Although I thought this was a Jacob’s Ladder block, my friend, Sharon, found out what it really is. It was featured in the September 2012 issue of American Quilter. It was called Crosses and Losses in the article. The antique quilt it was shown in was from the Civil War. The normal Jacob's Ladder block I found in a quilt that was circa 1860 to 1880. I have found many of the quilts that
have been preserved in museums are appliqué or crazy quilts. There do not seem to be as many pieced
block quilts around. Although if
you want to do a Carpenter’s Wheel, it was definitely a popular quilt block in
the 1800s!
Cutting:
Pick two fabrics that contrast with each other. This does work with directional fabrics
but you might want to plan in advance how you want to cut the directional fabric. Additionally you can switch the light
for the dark. However, I have given cutting instructions as I show it above.
Cut 3 –3 1/2” squares dark fabric
Cut 3 – 4 1/4” squares dark and
light fabric
On the back, draw a line diagonally down the center of each light
fabric.
Sewing:
To make the
half square triangles, place a dark and a light 4 ¼” square right sides
together. Stitch ¼” away from both
sides of the drawn line. Cut on
the drawn line. Iron seam to the
dark side. Square up the unit to 3 ½”.
Repeat with the other 4 ½” squares.
Lay out the units as shown above.
Stitch in rows and then stitch the rows together.
