2021 Pieced BOM: Hands All Around: Alcotts at War

It recently occurred to me that there is a new year coming up in a week or two and we need a new pieced block of the month. How about: 

Twelve stellar blocks celebrating the Alcott Family of Concord, Massachusetts, their friends and associates during the Civil War. 

Hands All Around will feature a variety of simple sawtooth stars, good for kids, beginning piecers—-or anyone who loves the geometry of traditional patchwork. 

A dance at the Marches, Little Women.

"Hands All Around" is a dance figure.

Our stories go back to Louisa May Alcott's Civil War experiences. She's remembered for Little Women, which may be the great American Civil War novel with its tale of the March family but Little Women is fiction. 

Collection of Orchard House

Abigail May and Bronson Alcott & two daughters, 

Louisa on the ground (naturally) & Anna Pratt between

them with her son at the end of the Civil War.

We’ll look at the March family’s counterparts, real-life Alcotts, and how they fought the war against slavery. 

Free patterns on the second Wednesday of every month in 2021 at this Civil War Quilts blog. 

Patterns can be made up in 8”, 12” or 16” blocks. The sampler blocks will be set with alternate blocks (pieced or plain) to make quilts 40", 60" or 80" square (without any borders.) I did these digital sketches in EQ8 thinking of a chocolate and strawberry color scheme.

 Becky Brown is using a brown & blue palette

from one of my collections from a few years ago, Baltimore Blues

Denniele has plans---Can't wait to see what happens!

We'll look at several set ideas, the most basic alternating the 12 pieced sampler blocks with 13 plain blocks.  Another alternates the various star blocks with a smaller sawtooth star design.

And then there is a square in a square.

And if you are in the mood to make 13 curved blocks.... 

Now I see what Denniele is up to!

Rough estimate of yardage for a 60" quilt top of 12" blocks if you are using a basic two-shade color scheme:

3 yards of the lighter color

2 yards of the darker

But most of us will be using scraps---reproductions or up-to-date prints.

Look for the first block on Wednesday January 13, 2021.

And join our Facebook Group:

HandsAllAround:Alcotts

https://www.facebook.com/groups/732398834135535

You might want to buy the complete pattern at my Etsy shop. There are two options.

Download a PDF of the 15 page pattern now at this link for $12:

https://www.etsy.com/listing/946819399/hands-all-around-alcotts-at-war-12

Or for U.S. customers I will print a black & white copy of all 12 blocks for $15 (includes postage.)

https://www.etsy.com/listing/932869752/hands-all-around-alcotts-at-war-12