Quilt Inspiration 2010: Tumbling Blocks

This year we had the opportunity to show some of our favorite optical illusions in quilting.  We love looking at these Tumbling Blocks quilts again !

 

Row 1, L-R: Amish quilt from the collection of Faith and Stephen Brown, as seen at the Amish Abstractions exhibit; Tumbling Rainbows, by Lynn Harris;  Antique Orange and Blue tumbling blocks quilt, at Material Pleasures; What's In Your Box, by Elisa Lawrance, at the Arizona Quilters Guild.  Row 2: Tumbling blocks quilt, by Penny Halgren, at How-to-Quilt; "Y? Why not !" by Kathy Klassen; Hexagonal Rhythm, by Jane Wilson, at Jane's Quilts.  Row 3: Tumbling Blocks by Ann Moran, at Ann's ULT Embroidery Site; The Big Tumble, by Diana McClun and Laura Nownes, at From Me to You Quilts; Hollow Cube, by Carol Capshaw, at the Oklahoma Quilters State Organization. Row 4: The Shirt Off My Back , by Betty Leppin; Tumbling Blocks quilt, ca. 1910, from the exhibit Common Threads, at the Adirondack Museum, New York; Menger's Cube, by Arnout Cosman; Row 5: Hand Painted Tumbling Blocks Quilt, by C. Jean Horst; Blue Cubes, by Martha Borders; Twin Towers, by BJ Reed.

For more information and links, see these original articles: Optical Illusions,   Tumbling Blocks -More Illusions, Cubic Construction, and Tumbling Blocks Divided by 4 or 9.  "Shirt off my Back" by Betty Leppin was shown in Waste Not, Want Not: Quilts from Reclaimed Clothing.  "Menger's Cube" by Arnout Cosman was shown in New Dimensions. "What's In Your Box" by Elisa Lawrance was shown at the 2010 Arizona Quilt Show.

Tumbling blocks divided by 4 or 9

We're continuing our series on tumbling blocks variations, and the artists who have inspired us with their creations based on this versatile pattern. In the versions we're showing today, each side of each block is made up of four or nine different fabrics. The tumbling blocks are oversized, allowing for each side to be divided into fourths or ninths without each "tile" becoming too small. The use of multiple fabrics in a single block adds to the mosaic appearance of the quilt.

Hand Painted Tumbling Blocks Quilt, by C. Jean Horst



Hand-painted batiks were used to create the above quilt, which was pieced and quilted by the Amish of Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. The tumbling blocks are huge. Each side of each cube is made of nine different fabrics, such that each cube is made up of 27 individual pieces (3 x 9 = 27). Notice that the three-dimensional illusion is preserved by careful arrangement of light, medium and dark values. We can't help but notice the perfect piecing. For more information, click here.


The Big Tumble, by Diana McClun & Laura Nownes


In the Big Tumble, Diana and Laura have combined bright solids with dots, stripes and other prints to produce a riot of color and texture. Each cube is made up of twelve different fabrics (3 x 4 = 12) but the textures and colors are carefully repeated throughout the quilt to avoid chaos. For the pattern and workshops, including strip piecing methods, click here.

Images courtesy of John & Arlene Volk at Amish Country Quilts, and Diana McClun & Laura Nownes at Diana and Laura.