Let’s twist!
This is one of my favorite grid patterns out there. I have called it TWIST. I have seen it many times on people’s quilts and I am always struck by the energy it brings to the patchwork.
Even though it looks difficult, it is relatively easy to do.
The pattern is stitched out row by row.
You can go in a second time to echo the twist shape.
When you are using a larger grid you can of course add more echoes. (In the samples with the black fabric, I used a 2 inch grid instead of a 1 inch grid.)
When you want more decoration it is important to think about the stitch path. For instance in this sample I could stitch out all the extra lines that are positioned along the horizontal lines (row by row). Then I could go back in to follow the vertical lines (column by column).
Technically you could stitch out the extra lines while you are also stitching the pattern itself. If you want to do this, you will want to create an uneven number of lines so you can progress to the next part of the pattern. If this doesn’t make sense to you yet, please stick to stitching out the TWIST pattern first and go back in to add the flourishes. The next drawing shows just that!
In the drawing above I stayed within each grid with the echoed lines. You don’t have to of course. How about this next idea? I will have to stitch it out one day.
I had some fun with this next idea. After stitching out the TWIST pattern I went back in to add some curls.
It is a really busy pattern and will not suits every quilt. It reminds me of a dance; twisting and twirling!
My next blog post will be on the same TWIST pattern, but with more complicated flourishes.
Bye bye
Esther
ipatchandquilt 
Thank you for these ideas – this looks like a really effective and fun design!
Hello Raewyn!
Nice to hear from you! I am glad that you like the patterns and the tutorials. All of your comments cheer me on!
Thank you!
Esther
I love that first black sample, it reminds me of flow diagrams in wind tunnels, showing how shapes affect air flow. There’s also a tiny bit of M.C. Escher bird repeat pattern in the negative shapes. Great design!
Funny that you would say that… I have been playing with Escher-like shapes. (tessellations). Quilting is full of them! More about this in a future blogpost.
Hugs
ESther
Wonderful ideas! I need to get some quilting sandwiches ready so I can try out! Thank you for sharing.
You are so welcome, June. I try to stitch out a pattern each day, or at least prepare one for stitching another day. So far, I have been able to keep this up for almost a month. I hope to keep going at least two more months. So, more patterns are on the way!
Bye bye
Esther
I like them all and wonder about making them on larger square bases – if that makes it less busy-looking.
Thank you for the inspiration. I am trying to learn free motion quilting while stuck in the house in France and I am trying to learn 2 new patterns a day. Thank god for the internet !
Kind regards
Yes Nicola, the internet is a blessing for sure!!! I don’t know how we would have been able to stay in touch with each other and also find a little bit distraction by other things… like quilting!
I am happy to be able to provide this distraction for you now.
Stay healthy!
Esther