Two Austen Family Album Tops

Jeanne's Austen Family Album

Jeanne at Spiral made blocks in three sizes and then pieced them into strips. She, of course, varied the sizes intentionally, but this is a good solution to the problem of many blocks in different sizes, e.g. 12" finished blocks that actually range from 11-1/4"  to 12-3/4". Piece them into strips of like sizes. A clever set for, as she calls them in a blog post, "swap blocks and orphans and sub-units"

See her blog here:

http://spiralj2.blogspot.com/2015/02/rsc15-pinkfebruary_20.html

Angie's set for 20 blocks

Angie at Quilting on the Crescent has divided her blocks into two colorways. 

"I decided to separate the blocks from this BOW and make two quilts. One quilt will feature the browns, greens and oranges. The other will have mainly yellow, pink and turquoise blocks."

She's set this one (the brown blocks) with a pale Color Weave fabric.

and bordered it with a pink damask-type floral.

Very evocative of Regency England.

http://quiltingcrescent.blogspot.com/

Label for the Austin Family Album Quilt

Here's a label for the back of your Austen Family Album quilt.

How to print:

• Create a word file or a new empty JPG file that is 8-1/2" x 11".
• Click on the image above.
• Right click on it and save it to your file.
• Print that file out 8-1/2" x 11". The label measures 5" square to give you room to write on it with a permanent pen.
• Adjust the printed page size if necessary.

Here's a snapshot of Terry's second top---

this one in primaries.

Georgann's Top

Austen Family Album quilt top by Georgann Eglinksi

92-1/2" x 92-1/2"

Georgann made the model blocks for last year's posts

in shades of red and yellow.

To set the blocks she found a floral with a rainbow

background that shaded from white to bright lemon yellow,

an accurate reproduction of early-19th-century taste.

This is a print from her stash, a repro from several years ago.

The sashing strips finish to 1-1/2" as do the square red cornerstone blocks.

EQ7 sketch of the layout

Here's her version of the simple Meryton set with 1-1/2" finished sashing that extends into the border. The 5" finished border makes the quilt top 92-1/2" square.

Perfect for a queen-size bed.

She framed it with a 5" finished border of the

large print from the Richmond Reds line (#8300-14)

This is a more acurate color of that print.

To use her set for your Austen Family Album blocks----

You need:

• 36 blocks finishing to 12"
• 53 cornerstones cut 2" square
• 84 sashing strips cut to 12-1/2" X 2".

EQ7 will figure out your yardage for you. It says:

• 1-5/8 yards of the yellow print for the sashing strip
• 1-3/4 yards of the red print for the cornerstones and border---if you piece the border strips.

The borders need to be cut 93" x 5-1/2" for the top and bottom

And 83" x 5-1/2" for the sides.

If you are using a big splashy print and don't want to piece the border strips buy 2-3/4 yards for the border and cornerstones.

I'm the official photographer here and I have had

a very hard time capturing the color in her lovely blocks

and top. My pictures make the yellow too pale.

This is probably a good reflection of the actual color in the blocks.

She mixed a variety of buttery yellows with a consistent

brick red from my Richmond Reds line plus several toiles

she had been saving.

It's on its way to the machine quilter.

Three Tops Set Together

Virginia M (Gin028) has finished her top with

an unusual set. 

She added strips to two sides of each block (say: top and right).

Then she offset the 36 blocks just a bit.

Austen Family Album by Virginia

Here's the result. The dark strips add a nice geometry

to her finished composition, uniting some individualistic blocks.

Below are two other sets that pull the blocks together (something

that's not always easy with scrappy fabrics and a sampler of blocks.)

Austen Family Album by Karen D 

Karen used the sash and cornerstones set for 25 blocks here.

 The "neat stripe" creates unity.  I can see she used a lot

of the serpentine stripes from In The Beginning's Circa 1825 reproduction

fabric line.

See a post on that fabric here:

http://barbarabrackman.blogspot.com/2014/11/aqsgs-past-present-quilt-challenge.html

Austen Family Album by Cathy S.

104" square

The photos don't capture the color well, but you

can see she's alternated all 36 of the 12" blocks with 12" plain squares.

Using two colors draws your eye to the lightest, uniting the blocks into a whole.

Here's what she says:

"My finished Austen Family Album top!! 104" square and I love every little inch of it."

Innovative Sets

Modern Sampler by Leisel Rautenbach

You have 12 blocks. You could arrange them in asymmetric fashion.

Split Personality pieced by Audrie Bidwell

Thomas Knauer's design is always inspirational.

Jen Kingwell's Gypsy Wife

Quilts found on the web:

An interesting use of the negative space in a design.

Or you could go back on the grid.