won't you be my neighbor?

There's a new Block of the Month starting at Quilt in Joy soon, and it's all about the neighborhood! Lorrie and I are making the sample, and we'll be taking turns teaching the monthly demos as well. We spent several hours yesterday cutting and piecing these 12" house blocks. The top row shows my blocks, and Lorrie's are in the bottom row.

Here is what the quilt will look like when it's completed. Lots of paper-pieced trees, log cabin flowers, grass, picket fence, and perfect blue skies to accent all the cute houses!

This pink house and yellow house use the same pattern, but some of the pieces are reversed to give you a mirror image. The little square over the door had some conflicting directions in the pattern, so the yellow house has some extra "trim". How do you like the zigzag shutters and door? We are using lots of polka dots and "dot-like" fabrics since our shop carries a big variety, but I just had to sneak in those stripes!

Lorrie's teal and red houses are also mirror images.

The finished size will be around 60" square, so you can imagine how small some of those pieces are! I've really been drawn to house blocks lately, so this project is a perfect fit for me right now. I love the precision required to make these blocks, but I'm also drawn to appliqued and wonky houses. Today I discovered this pattern by Piece O' Cake designs - I've never seen it before - and now I'm pretty sure I need it :) LOVE those trees and the red background!

Have you made any house quilts or blocks? Traditional or wonky?