Knot garden finale

This week has mostly been about wrapping up the August Quilt Block Swap, which was for anyone that missed it the knot garden block.  It has been a hugely popular swap & I guess I shouldn't be surprised.  As a rule, the garden-y themed blocks do better than others, although too many of them close together gets old fast.  If I were going to guess, I would have said the kids blocks would be the most popular, but they never are.  Oh don't get me wrong our largest swap to-date was a kids block but it was carried by one person who was really really really excited about it.  There were other swappers of course, but she really got into it; without her it would have been closer to average sized.

I am just as glad the garden blocks click with so many people.  I like making them, I like swapping them & I find it easy to use them...as a rule.  & this one was a particular favorite with me.  I like quilt blocks that make a second design when the blocks are all put together, which this one does.  I also like that I had virtually nothing to do with it.  S*** has stepped forward in the group (she nominated herself by competently answering questions when I was unexpectedly off-line for a bit earlier this year) & this block was all hers.  She had made the original iteration for an as-you-please 4 or 9-patch a few cycles ago & then put it forward for this go-round. 

The block is also beginner to make but advanced to use.  I am finding it useful for showing how to strip cut & chain piece 4-patches.

The second step of folding over the right angle triangle at the corner is a well received cheat for anyone intimidated by bias.

Another way this swap is easier than others is the 6th block person stepped forward early.  It is funny but while people are happy to make a 6th block even for organizations they don't necessarily agree with, people rarely send a 6th block if o one has volunteered to take them, eve when I say they will get them back if no one volunteers.  Since virtually everyone does this, I am guessing it must be a human nature thing.  As for myself, there are days I would pay someone to take my orphan quilt blocks off my hands.  Okay, not really.

Anyway.

This weekend I am wrapping up the knot garden block.  Thank you everyone who swapped & everyone who sent 6th blocks & thank you M******* who volunteered to take the 6th blocks & thank you S*** who came up with the idea for this block. 

I really enjoyed being a mostly-passenger this time.  It gave me enough time to make blocks of my own to for the first time in a long time, I can swap too!