I appreciated this quote in The Firebird by Susanna Kearsley. She said, “We rarely see the things we don’t expect to see.” Which is mostly true for me, but also, when things are out of place, I notice them but when everything's in the right place I don't notice.
And I thought this short video showing the selective attention test was fun and interesting. Talk about seeing! I missed everything except what I was looking for.
So this brings me back to the blocks at the top of this post. What do you see first? Do you see hourglasses or pinwheels or something else?
In the back of my mind, sometime in October or November last year, the idea of an hourglass quilt surfaced, no particular colors or fabrics in mind. It seems Januarys begin with my deciding I have too much of one kind of fabric and that I need to make a quilt with it. This year it's the plaid shirts, below, all so similar in color, with similar plaids. (Have you ever noticed that the lines in most plaids are stronger in one direction than the other?)
Last week I cut some triangles to make 5" blocks and decided they were too small. I cut some more to make 6" blocks -- just four to begin with. Who can tell whether to continue with only four blocks? Not me. So I made some more. And now I don't know whether this quilt's a go or not. I'm imagining the possibilities -- same pattern all over (think cabin-in-the-woods kind of quilt), or colors/plaids grouped to form a center medallion with color changes for each successive border, or groups of blocks with a border around them. Or maybe even a narrow border between each block. Who knows where this will go, or if it will go at all.
I hope you'll please leave a comment and tell me what you saw first in the photo of these blocks. I'm trying to have one pattern stand out more strongly than the other.
In other quilting news, I've been diligently hand quilting the maple leaves. I should have taken it a little more slowly to help my fingers adapt after not quilting for two months. I'm taking a few days' break just now. I've also been trying to imagine a quilt for a baby girl and haven't settled on a pattern or colors yet. I need to do that soon if I want to have it finished by the beginning of May!
I'm linking this post to
> Finished or Not Friday at Alycia Quilts
> Peacock Party at Wendy's Quilts and More
Thanks for hosting, ladies.
I hope all is well in your world!
--Nancy.
Hourglass blocks
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for leaving a comment, Happy Quilter. I'm thrilled that you saw hourglass blocks!
DeleteHourglass blocks.
ReplyDeleteThank you for leaving a comment, Sarah. I'm so glad you see hourglass blocks!
DeleteHourglass.Love them.This is going to make a great quilt. Can't wait to see the finish. Violet
ReplyDeleteThank you, Violet. I'm thrilled to know you saw hourglasses first. These blocks have only three seams but for some reason, they don't seem to be quick to make, so it may be a little while before they become a quilt/quilt top.
DeleteHourglasses come to my eyes first, definitely--I have to look for the pinwheels...it is really pretty with that checkered fabric...
ReplyDeletehugs, Julierose
Thank you for telling me what you saw first, Julierose. I was hoping for pinwheels and that's what I saw but sometimes I don't see things the way others do. I thought the black and light plaid shirts would look darker so I'm surprised they look more grey.
DeleteHourglass
ReplyDeleteThank you for leaving a comment, Nana. I'm so pleased you saw hourglasses!
DeleteI could only see hourglass blocks, the reds are definitely dominant.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for leaving a comment, Pat. I love that you saw hourglasses. The reds are dominant to my eyes, too, but I was surprised that the black and light plaids became grey, especially when viewed from a distance.
DeleteI only see hourglass blocks--no pinwheels at all. That video is freaky!
ReplyDeleteThanks, Karen. I'm so glad you saw hourglass blocks! Yes, that video is strange.
DeleteI see hourglass blocks too. The plaids comfortable blend in together and I see the the solid hourglass. Interesting that you have so many similar plaids. I might be tempted to use them as sashing around another set of blocks. Glad your making progress on the maple leaves. My fingers are doing pretty good right now but I woke up yesterday with a numb right hand. It happens when I quilt a lot.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Robin. I'm so glad the hourglasses are dominant.
DeleteI don't know how I happened to buy all those plaids from different stores at different times. But there they were and seemed to want to be used. Whenever I make a quilt that takes a lot of one color or one kind of fabric I always wonder if it's the best choice for the fabric, or whether it could be used better somewhere else. I actually thought about a border but didn't have any quilt at hand that needed one or one in mind to make. But that's always in the back of my mind when I choose fabric.
So glad your fingers are doing well and I hope the numbness in your hand has gone and doesn't return. That would make it hard to quilt!
Hourglass blocks... I tried to see the Pinwheels and I could when I squinted - but the hourglass always came back,. and yes - you should keep going - any time you start something in plaid... it must be finished ;-) Right?? haha
ReplyDeleteThank you, Alycia. I'm thrilled that the hourglasses held their own.
DeleteAh, yes, you're right. Plaid quilts must be finished. I love them!
I see only hourglass blocks with your color arrangement. I can see where there could be pinwheels, but they are not obvious with the colors as you have them. I love plaids...and this would be an awesome quilt!
ReplyDeleteThank you, kimt. I'm thrilled the hourglass blocks were the ones you saw first. I love plaids, too, and I hope this will be an awesome quilt!
DeleteBeautiful hourglass blocks. Have a great day! 🌻
ReplyDeleteThank you, Angie. I'm so glad that's what you saw!
DeleteDefinitely hour glass. I had a pattern for doing this (I know, who needs one, but it was free, and I thought it might save me some math figuring), and I looked at it again this morning and moved it to the trash. I hadn't thought about my tote of plaids, though.
ReplyDeleteI'm so glad you saw hourglasses, Susan! Thanks so much for letting me know.
DeleteYeh, I know, an hourglass block and a whole quilt with hourglass blocks -- can become ho-hum (though I hope this one doesn't). And who needs the pattern, anyway.
I see hour glass blocks and love the different plaids.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Kleine Vingers. I'm so glad you saw hourglass blocks.
DeleteI see hour glass first. Then pinwheels by looking at the center of those. And last, I see stars with hour glass centers, but only if the red is top/bottom of the center hourglass.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing so much detail about what you see, Gail. I've been trying to see the stars but can't quite, but that's okay, because I really want the hourglasses to be dominant. I'm so glad that's what you saw first.
DeleteI saw hourglasses for sure. Cute video;).
ReplyDeleteThanks, Cynthia. I'm so glad hourglasses were what you saw.
DeleteCaught up on your posts now, Nancy. I keep a bin for donations in my spare bedroom. Since having one there designated for give away, I've found it much easier to move things along. Admire your January challenge. I see hourglasses here. Pretty ones too.
ReplyDeleteHi, Jocelyn. We keep a box for donations in a closet and just add to it when we're reading to pass something along, but this minimalist game was a little more assertive because I was searching for things to pass on -- 10 or 18, or 29 in a day. I dove deep into boxes stored in our basement, in our closets, all over the house, to find the number of items I needed. It was a good thing to do because I started small and didn't feel overwhelmed. If I had too many for one day, I counted them toward the next day's number.
DeleteI'm so glad you see hourglasses. I'm trying to figure out exactly what it is that lets us see them instead of pinwheels.