MODA BLOCKHEADS 4 IS ALMOST HERE

For those of you who have participated with us before, you know the weekly fun of MODA BLOCKHEADS. Last year when we participated, we made a red and cream masterpiece that will go down in the books… that quilt was a lot of work and we loved every minute of it but we are ready for something a bit more straightforward this year [feel free to scroll back to some of last year’s posts if you want to see more about that quilt].

This year the program is a bit more subdued and a bit shorter [previous years have lasted the full year and included 50+ blocks] with 28 MODA designers participating, each contributing a single block and MODA adding in a few bonus blocks to round out the group for those of you who want to keep going for a bigger quilt. We are very excited to work on something that will finish up at the end of summer!

HOW THE PROGRAM WORKS IN GENERAL

Each Wednesday morning a new block will be posted by the designer for that week and a post will go up here on the BLOG as well as in our MODA BLOCKHEADS FACEBOOK GROUP with info and a link. The designer will offer the directions for the block on their blog or social media first and then the following Friday that block will become a part of the official archives in the MODA Blockheads group.

Each block will be offered in a 9″ size and a 4 ½” size for those out there who love their little tiny pieces and intricate piecing [can you tell that is not me :-)].

MODA will offer some settings as the program gets rolling, some of the other designers will offer their own settings and info and in general it is a fun way to sew a block a week and have a lot of options on how to put it all together at the end.

HOW WE WILL DO IT AT FIG TREE

We will post to our FIG TREE QUILTS FRIENDS FACEBOOK GROUP and INSTAGRAM every Wednesday morning as well, giving you the info and the links here on the blog as well as any changes or hints and tips we have done with our block for that week. While we only designed one block, we will be doing all of them here each week. The program will give you 28 designer blocks plus additional bonus blocks from MODA.

We have decided to just use 25 blocks which gives us a bit more flexibility in case we need to skip a week or a particular block doesn’t work with our setting. Our finished quilt will be app. 69″ square.

We will be making the entire program in a red, green, cream color scheme… with a twist. As of right now we have STARTER BUNDLES available to get you started or to augment your own scraps. I highly recommend using your stash or previous bundles for the bulk of your project. Each week the block will be different and it will be an opportunity to use a new group of coordinating prints and colors each week.

Whether or not you are going to follow our color scheme, I HIGHLY recommend that you chose a limited palette of some kind to work with. When you have a project like this, with 28 different designers, blocks and styles, a unifying color scheme will go a long way in helping all of the blocks feel cohesive and like they belong in the same quilt.

MATERIALS LIST [25 blocks, 69″ x 69″]

• 3-4 yds. of ivory solid [depending on which blocks you use this might differ a bit]
• 2 ½ yds alternate setting fabric [this will include a binding of the same fabric]
• a good collection of cream, ivory and low volume prints for the sashing and the blocks themselves
• a good collection of red fabrics in a variety of print, tone and scale [this will be the predominant color in our blocks and the greens will be more of accents
• a good collection of green fabrics in a variety of print, tone and scale

The ivory solid we are using is HERE.

The blue chambray we are using for the setting is HERE.

The starter bundles are HERE. When we run out, we will try to add some similar feeling ones back up on Monday or Tuesday next week so please check back. If you do not see this bundle in the shop page, that means it has run out.

Cream bundles ARE something we offer on a regular basis so keep your eye out for those if you don’t already have some. Collecting a good grouping of soft, light low volume prints is something that would be so fun to shop for at your LQS or search for in your stash as well.

OUR TWIST

Even though we have decided to use a green and red and cream color scheme, we decided to mix it up a bit with our setting. Depending on which direction you want to go, you will want to make this determination for the setting color. If you are very sure in what you want to do, then go ahead and choose your setting color now. But if you are not in any hurry… I might recommend waiting to see how you want your red and green blocks to play.

COUPLE OF TIPS

• If you want to stay Christmas feeling, then red setting is for sure of you, you will want to get a good green that you love for the hour glass fillers to compliment the red setting.
• If you love the feel but would like to go more spring/summer you can simply add in some lighter/brighter greens into the mix and set it with coral or even pink.
• If you would like to have a distinctly more summer quilt, then I might recommend a medium blue for your setting. I do believe that is WHAT WE ARE GOING TO DO and we will be using our favorite MODA blue chambray and have it available in the shop if you are interested
• If you would like to go more classy and not necessarily seasonal at all, a taupe setting might be the answer.
• And in all honesty, I think a yellow, pink, light blue or light green setting would also work.
• The only tip I would give is that I would most definitely choose a solid, texture or small print like a pindot or tiny geometric print on a solid background. If you use something busy here for the setting, it will totally overwhelm the blocks in my opinion.

We will see you guys next Wednesday to get this all started!

For now, be sure to follow us on INSTAGRAM and join us in our FACEBOOK GROUP for all kinds of Fig Tree fun!

See you soon, Joanna

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