Monday, November 03, 2008

The Disappearing Nine Patch


This is the quilt block that became an obsession for me for the month of October! I first saw it at our Guild meeting in September. I loved it and wanted to try it, but no one could tell me how it was done. So I 'Googled' it. (Just an aside: Did you know that the word 'google' is being added to our dictionaries because it has become a real word? I love new words!) There were many sites which showed finished Disappearing Nine Patch quilts.

I decided to practice the block with fabric from my stash. I think this would be a fantastic way to use up charm squares or stash fabrics. Here is a quick tutorial of the technique.
First start with a simple 9-patch block. I used dark colours for the corner squares, light colours for the in between squares and assorted reds for the centre squares.
Press the block and cut it in half and then in half again. You now have a 4-patch.

Then rearrange the four sections by turning the two opposite quarters 180 degrees. Like this.

Finally, resew the blocks and arrange them on your design wall - or in my case - my design floor. Place them so that the colours are balanced. I really didn't even bother to do that. I just sewed them as I made them. Since I can't get around very well and things that are on the floor are difficult to reach, I decided to just let the colours happen. I used many different fabrics, so I knew the result would be very scrappy.

The result is a simple quilt, that looks intricate. The fabrics line up nicely without too much fuss. I have finished the top of this quilt, but I have not quilted it yet. I think that I want to put a couple of borders on it too, but I want to think about that for awhile. Tomorrow I will show you a couple of quilts which I finished using the Disappearing Nine Patch. The sun is coming out, so I think the colours will look great!

7 comments:

Opal said...

What a neat little tutorial! Thanks for sharing. :)

Unknown said...

Oh it is going to be so pretty!!! Thank you for the instructions too.

Anonymous said...

The disappearing nine patch is just
what I need because I've found a lot of squares to use up in my drawer. Thank you for the tutorial. The nine patch looks easy to make and I think I'll try
some time soon.

Cathi said...

I wondered how they were done! Thanks for the tutorial. Love the colours you're using - very cheerful.

dutchcomfort said...

Thanks Hetty! Great tutorial. Great quilt!

Eileen said...

I think I am going to have to try this pattern sometime too.. I keep seeing it and it's so intereting!

Thank you for the tip about paper-piecing the flying geese. Seems like there are others suggesting it too, and I think it will work.

My first time here. I'll be back. :-)

Anonymous said...

Only one word says it all:
Ingenious