the joys of people watching - long but not really ot

You know how much fun it is to arrange blocks to the best advantage, especially when they are a bit scrappy? Well, yesterday I was quilting at my local seniors' centre, busy machine quilting off to one side of the room, when the activity at the tables in the center attracted my attention. There were four women gathered around the table, trying to find the best layout for some slightly scrappy blocks that would not put large chunks of the same fabric next to each other. It was lots of fun to watch, as they turned, swapped, and re- arranged those blocks, again and again. One person would move a block to a new location, and another would point out that now a new colour was clumped, and a third would move another block, and they would all start flipping and swapping again. They finally got a set-up that satisfied them, carefully piled the blocks in rows and went off to three different machines to put the rows together. However, no-one kept track of where the rows went in relation to each other! So then they had to meet back at the tables and start to try and place the rows in the right order. Of course, no arrangement of the rows would recreate the satisfying order they had before, even though they 'knew' that the blocks had been put in the rows the right way. After a good five minutes of frustration, they decided that 'good enough' would have to do, and away the rows went to be sewn together. I'm glad that I was too busy on the machine to be drawn into that committee meeting! But it was fun to watch.

Reply to
turtle
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Reply to
Susan Laity Price

When I get blocks into the order that pleases me, I mark each one! Each vertical row has a letter designation -- A,B,C, etc. from left to right, and each block in the row has a number designation from top to bottom -- A1, A2, A3, etc. I have small scraps of paper with the letter/numbers on each, and a pin stuck in each piece of paper. (I tend to be thrifty -- or perhaps just "cheap" -- and keep the papers/ pins to use from quilt to quilt.) All I have to do is lay the scraps of paper on the blocks and pin them while they are still in order. Many times, of course, which direction a block goes makes a huge difference, so I always pin the labels in the center of the block with the labels facing the same direction, so there is no question about what block edge is top, bottom, left, or right. If I drop a stack of blocks or forget where I am in the assembly of the quilt top, the little pinned labels are a lifesaver. When the blocks are assembled I unpin the little pieces of paper, which I stack up and put a rubber band around, and they go back into the sandwich baggie to wait for the next quilt. It's a cheap trick, but it works for me!

Reply to
Mary

Works for me. I usually transfer the photo to the computer so that I have a bigger picture to refer to. My computer is in the sewing room; it might not help if you have to run to another room to check it.

Julia > Laying out scrappy blocks is a good time to use a digital camera. You

Reply to
Julia in MN

I like that idea! I have quilt blocks waiting on my design wall at home and I am going to try out the labels on them. Just what I needed!

Turtle

Reply to
turtle

I have a set of flower-head pins with number/letter designations written on them with fine-tipped felt pen. They work great...just pin the rows together with the appropriate letter on top if I have to move them.

Reply to
Kim Graham

Mary

i do this too!! except i haven't been keeping the scraps of paper, i use paper arrows. i found a multi-colored assortment in a large package at Staples one day and keep them in my sewing machine cabinet drawer. The arrow tells me where the "top" of the block is and i always stack from left to right. it works for me!

amy in CNY

Reply to
amy in CNY

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