One Patch At A Time

This evening, I will be announcing the County Line Quilters Guild's annual challenge theme.  It is "One Patch At A Time" - a challenge to make a One Patch Quilt.  So, I combed the internet and my stash of projects and pictures for examples  (and non-examples!) of one patch quilts for inspiration.

In 2000, Quilter's Newsletter Magazine came out with a very helpful article on One Patch quilt and they also published several one patch shapes!  It was so exciting to find this article for not only does it include the templates, it includes some pictures of what the one patch shapes look like in a quilt.  So, click on this link:

http://web.archive.org/web/20090124080514/http://qnm.com/articles/feat15.pdf

From Janet Wickell at Quilting.About.com

One Patch quilts are those that consist of one repeating shape.  The one that comes to mind right away is the Apple Core.

By Lynn Kough, 2013 AZQG show.

I also find this baby blocks quilt fascinating.  It's a tessellation quilt made with  half-hexagons.  And, it IS a One Patch Quilt.

By Terry Aske.

This next quilt is also a tessellation done with half-hexagons.  But, because some of the setting pieces are full hexagons, it cannot be called a One Patch Quilt.


As a rule, only some tessellation quilts may be considered one patch quilts.

Check out my "A Thimble Full" quilt.  While a One Patch Shape is used - the Tumbler, this quilt cannot be considered a One Patch Quilt.  The multi-color tumbler consists of fabric squares and the rows are separated by sashing.  Both of these fail to make this a One Patch Quilt.

Change it to one fabric per tumbler and eliminate the sashing and, voila!, it becomes a One Patch Quilt!

Pieced Cracker Block - NOT a One Patch

Most of us are familiar with the pieced Cracker block that is often used for signature quilts. 

Cracker - One Patch Quilt.

However, there is another Cracker block which is a One Patch Shape.  It looks like a rectangle with wavy sides.  
A great resource for One Patch Quilts is
Quilt Teacher/Author/Celebrity Pat Yamin.

This cracker quilt is her sample and she offers templates to make One Patch Quilts including the Cracker acrylic template.

By Debbie Moyes. 

A simply stunning One Patch Quilt is the Spinning Star. There is so much movement to this curvy shape.  Does it not look like an Apple Core that has been stretched on the bias?









Another resource to check out is Ardco Templates.  They offer metal templates for a variety of quilt shapes.  The links I have included are for their Charm Templates and their Single Shapes pages as these are where most of the One Patch Shapes are listed.

This brings us to Charm Quilts.  A Charm Quilt is one where no fabric is repeated except maybe for the background or setting.   It does not have to be a One Patch Quilt though a lot of Charm Quilts are.

One Patch Quilt -  Yoka's Thousand Pyramids CHARM Quilt

NOT A One Patch Quilt - Peggy's Snowball CHARM Quilt

So many other One Patch Quilts out there.  I may have to revisit this in the future!  

Have you made a One Patch Quilt?