Coloured Cabins - Let's Sew a Quilt!

I'm starting a blog series called Coloured Cabins. There will be 2 parts to this series.

Part 1 will look at some basic colour theory and Part 2 will look at sewing quilt blocks. I've decided to focus this summer on Log Cabin blocks as a way to use up some of my many tubs of scrap fabrics. There are a wide variety of methods of piecing these blocks. I'm going to focus on 1 method of cutting and sewing the blocks. This is an easy method and I am finding that I don't have to think, just spend some enjoyable time sitting at my machine, piecing.

In partnership with the colour theory, I'm going to give you directions each post for cutting, sewing and pressing the blocks as well as some ideas for designing!!!

You can follow both parts of the summer blog posts or just stick with the colour theory or just the Log Cabin quilts.

This all started when my Mum made this beautiful curved log cabin quilt for a "grand nephew" for his up-coming wedding. She asked me to quilt it for her. I had so much fun working on this quilt that I had already decided that I wanted to work on a quilt for me. I was in the process of researching the block construction when she asked if I could piece and quilt another curved log cabin quilt for another "grand nephew".

She had started a few of the blocks and had a specialty ruler. Everything got mailed to me and I tried, I really did try to use the specialty ruler, but couldn't get my head around it! I did a bit of computer sleuthing and found that a curved Log Cabin block was super easy with a few simple steps and no fancy ruler needed.

Log Cabin Blocks are really easy to make and are the perfect project to use up scraps. Scraps!!!! I've got 6 flip top tubs of scraps and after a short visit with my Mum, I have 4 more! In my studio a scrap is the backing trims from quilting projects, left over binding strips and anything that is less than a Fat Quarter size of quilting fabric and even some of those "I don't know what I was thinking when I bought this" ugly (to me now) fabrics! This summer I'm going to use up my fabric scraps and make a variety of Log Cabin quilts. I've already started and have suffient blocks for 2 quilts - but those are going to be other posts.

Each of the Log Cabin posts will be a variation of a basic and not so basic log cabin design block. We'll be looking at different sizes of strips and how to create a variety of fantastic visual effects! The following gallery shows some simple layouts of basic blocks.

So, remember this series of blog posts is about using up scraps. I may (depending on the fabric I use) include fabric requirements, but mostly plan to tell you how many units to cut for each block. You become the designer and make as many blocks as you want for the quilt you are planning.

Join me this summer for a celebration of colour and a few completed quilts!