“Modern Quilts – Block by Block” Book Review

My latest book review is for the book “Modern Quilts – Block by Block” by Emily Dennis of Quilty Love. I have always loved Emily’s quilt patterns for their modern elements and relative simplicity to make. I love that you can make one of her quilts in a weekend if you’re super motivated. But even if you don’t have that kind of time, you can still make them in a week or so. The patterns in this book are no different. Although there are a few that may require a bit more time, there are definitely a couple you could make (at least the top) in a weekend.

The book contains 12 modern quilt projects and all but one (a wall hanging) are for actual quilts that range from baby size to large throw size. The wall hanging block can be repeated to create a larger quilt as well. Although Emily only gives you the fabric requirements and instructions for one size per project, many of them are simple enough to alter by adding or eliminating rows or blocks.

Emily’s Version

My favorite quilt project and the one I chose to create for the blog was the Hopscotch Quilt. I also love the Hourglass, Ombre Squares, and Kriss Cross. I was tempted to make the Block by Block Sampler but I knew that one would be a bit more time-consuming. These are all definitely on my list for future makes.

My Version

For my Hopscotch Quilt I decided to make it in a 5 block by 5 block size (25 blocks) instead of the 4 block by 4 block size (16 blocks) in the book. I added a few more fat quarters and some additional fabric. I used a curvy line stitch to quilt it which is one of my favorites. It quilts up quick and looks great especially after washing and drying. My quilt ended up being approximately 49″ X 49″ which is perfect for me. I don’t really feel too comfortable quilting anything much larger than 60″ wide on my domestic machine.

Fabrics

I decided that I was going to try to only use fabric that I already had in my stash for my book review projects. For my Hopscotch Quilt I used the Forage Collection by Sarah Gordon for Figo Fabrics. I chose not to use the “bug” prints from the collection since I am not very fond of the creepy crawlies. I do love the colors and the other prints from the collection which include wildflowers, fruit, and butterflies in plum, teal, pink and yellow.

For my accent fabric I used a bluish gray that looks somewhat like a light denim. This is the same gray fabric I used on a quilt I made for my husband which I still have to quilt! And for my backing I used a Northcott Shimmer fabric I had in my stash as well. I wasn’t sure of what fabric I was going to use for the binding. Then I realized I still had fabric from the fat quarters left (since the pattern called for fat eighths) so I decided to use that and make a scrappy binding. I love the result!

I really enjoyed this book. Originally, I took the book out of the library to see if I would like it. After only a couple of days I decided it is definitely one I will be adding to my sewing library. The instructions and techniques used were very easy to understand and follow, which for me is a definite thumbs up! The book is very easy to follow, though I wouldn’t categorize it as a beginner book. It does assume some prior sewing and quilting knowledge. That being said, a confident or adventurous beginner could certainly create something lovely with the information in this book!

I hope you enjoyed this review and I hope it inspired you to “make something beautiful today”!

You can purchase this book and most others that I have reviewed (or plan to) here.

If you liked this review, you might be interested in this one too…

You can get your own copy of Modern Quilts – Block by Block here.

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