If you've been following along you may already know that I've been slowly sifting through the goodies of a quilters estate over the last couple of months. A person I met on facebook marketplace who was letting go of his wife's supplies (after four years) has been selling things off to me in piles bit by bit. Each 'haul' has brought something new and exciting. Beautiful quilt tops, patterns she made herself (and sold at fairs)... Going through estate collections is such a joy and this one is no exception. Each time I "meet" a crafter this way I learn so much about them. I discover crafts that I didn't fully understand before. After all, I'm not a quilter. But through this collection I've come to learn so much (and still am).
Yesterday a crafter sent a message to tell me the quilt pre-cuts I've been calling axe heads are actually apple cores.
I couldn't tell you what this pattern is called but there are dozens of blocks in this style. Each with a red center square.
One of my favorite recent findings, I made a video about, was a set of blocks that are made to look like fruit jars. Talk about whimsy, these just felt so fun I smiled while looking at every single piece.
A TikToker commented these are a “novelty block” so I had to look more into what that means. And of course, once you start pulling on a thread like that, you end up somewhere unexpected.
“Novelty” felt like the right word. These aren’t just geometric patterns or traditional repeats. They’re pictures. Little scenes. Shapes that are trying to be something recognizable. Fruit jars, baskets, animals, objects. Things that feel just a little more playful than your standard block.
Tucked into this collection, alongside all the precision and tradition and clearly very skilled work, are these moments of personality. These choices that feel…whimsical, delightful even. Like the maker wasn’t just practicing a craft, but enjoying it. Letting it wander a bit.
These blocks are a more graphic and playful. Each one slightly different depending on the fabric choices, but all clearly part of the same idea. And I found myself wondering when she made them. Were these part of something larger? A full quilt? Or were they experiments, made because they were fun? One might be a test. Dozens mean commitment.
And yet even with that repetition, none of them feel rigid. The fabrics shift. The combinations change. The muslin changes color on some blocks, but she let's it. That's ok.
That’s been one of the most surprising parts of going through this collection as someone who isn’t a quilter. I think I assumed quilting was more fixed. That patterns were followed exactly, that there was a “right” way to do things. But the more I look, the more I see how free and flowing these patterns are.
Even something like the apple cores. Now that I know what they are, I can see the intention more clearly, but I also see variation. Slight differences in curve, in color, in how each piece was handled. It’s structured, but it’s not rigid. And I like that.
I like that alongside all of the technical skill, there’s room for something a little more human. A little more spontaneous. A willingness to make something just because it brings a bit of delight. That’s what these novelty blocks feel like to me. Seriousness and play can exist in the same piece.
The more time I spend with this collection, the more I feel like I’m getting small glimpses into how this person worked. The fabrics she chose. The patterns she repeated. The moments where she leaned into something a little unexpected. It makes me look at quilting differently.
It's like a language you can speak in your own way. And I have to say, if speaking that language means occasionally making a quilt block that looks like a fruit jar, I’m fully on board.
I’m still learning as I go. Still misnaming things (apparently). Still figuring out what I’m looking at half the time. But that’s part of what makes this so fun. Each haul is a new introduction. And every once in a while, it comes with something that makes you stop, smile, and look a little closer.
