Just Plain Nuts, Part 1

Just Plain Nuts was published in May of this year, and it's taken me this long to get my copy--author Liz Lois leads a pretty busy life as a pattern and notions sales rep, fabric designer, and author. We live about 50 miles apart, and get-togethers are not as frequent as we'd like. So here comes the post that's been waiting since last May.

Two years ago I was amazed to hear myself offering to make a sample project for a good friend's upcoming book. Friendship makes us do incomprehensible things, doesn't it? The friend is Liz Lois, of Burlington, Wisconsin. Several years back she published Nearly Insane, documenting her reproduction of the Salinda Rupp quilt, a 19th century Pennsylvania quilt made up of more than one hundred maddening little blocks.

The new book was to be more of same--a collection of small, intricate blocks geared for detail-oriented quilters who don't want a lot of instruction. The blocks could be paper-pieced, hand-pieced, whatever. And color planning would be left entirely up to the maker. Liz herself works mostly in traditional quilting, and the two other friends she had recruited for sample making also are primarily traditional quilters. I decided I'd take a different tack and work for a more contemporary look. I decided black and white, with small jolts of bright colors, would work nicely.

Progress was slow. I could only work on a few blocks before my eyeballs would begin to throb and it was time to work on a project a bit less.....focused. I had a couple mini meltsowns. At one point I had to email Liz that things were just not coming together and I might have to bow out. But thanks to the happenstance of a couple snow days last winter, I finally was able to accumulate 16 blocks--enough to make into a small wall quilt.

When the blocks were finished and set up on the design wall, I said oh yes. The rest of the quilt went together very easily.

I've shared bits of this quilt, but never yet the whole thing. Here it is.

I have detailed photos of the other two sample quilts which I'll share in my next post. Wait till you see them. Wish I had photos of Liz's big quilt too, but alas I don't.

Just Plain Nuts by Liz Lois is available at quilt shops. If you want to play, pick up a copy and dive in!