I have always loved the look of Drunkard’s Path quilt blocks and their infinitely varied layouts but over the years some of my attempts at making them have been frustrating. I have cheated and used interfacing or bondaweb appliqué blocks covered with embroidery stitches and thrown away many blocks where the two pieces just would not meet, even using a special designed-for-curved-piecing foot.
Long, long ago…
Thanks to lots of practice and a certain amount of time watching YouTube demos, I have now conquered most of my demons about curved piecing but freely admit that there are times when a certain amount of fudging goes on!
Celtic Connections – yurt panel pieced and quilted by Linzi Upton
Slinky – yurt panel (pieced by Corey Starkey, quilted by Linzi Upton)
Sam’s Quilt – pieced and quilted by Linzi Upton
When fellow Bernina longarm ambassador, John Kubiniec asked me to review his book, A NEW SPIN ON DRUNKARD’S PATH I was intrigued to see what his method would be to crack the devilishly difficult Drunkard’s Path blocks. The layout and explanations in the book are very clear and as an Instruction-Phobe like me that is high praise;) Most importantly, the templates are a SENSIBLE size. This means that the curve is not too sharp or short so you stand a far better chance of easing in that curve! John writes, “ If you detest curved piecing, I hope these patterns will entice you to give it a try and that my techniques will help you conquer your fears. If you already love curved piecing, the variations and patterns will help you explore new design possibilities.”
John very sensibly recommends using at least 3 pins but I chose to ignore that sage advice and still managed to make well behaved DP units.
I was only going to make one or two units to test the instructions but I very quickly found myself making 16 units to make a giant DP block and because my mental arithmetic failed me, I accidentally cut out enough for 2 giant blocks so I found myself making a trip to the fabric shop for more black in order to make an entire, impromptu quilt.
Giant DP block made in less than one hour!
If I had had enough black at home I reckon I could easily have run up a quilt top in a day. I seem to have become slightly addicted to making John’s quick and easy DP units as I have now have plans to add a “snake in the grass” style border!
A NEW SPIN ON DRUNKARD’S PATH by John Kubiniec is available from
www.amazon.co.uk or http://www.amazon.com
Enter the Giveaway
Win a free copy of John Kubiniec’s new book, “A New Spin on Drunkard’s Path” – just leave a comment and check back on October 9th for the randomly-drawn winner (UK blog readers will receive an Ebook)
The blog tour
September 26, 2016 Jenifer Dick www.42quilts.com
C&T Publishing http://www.ctpub.com/blog/
September 27, 2016 Sara Lawson www.sewsweetness.com/blog
Heather Kojan http://www.heatherkojan.com
September 28, 2016 Bill Volckening http://willywonkyquilts.blogspot.com
McCall’s Quilting http://www.mccallsquilting.com/blogs/
September 29, 2016 Teri Lucas https://terificreations.com
Bonnie Hunter http://quiltville.blogspot.com
September 30, 2016 made by ChrissieD http://madebychrissied.blogspot.com
LoveBug Studios https://lovebugstudios.com/blog/
October 1, 2016
Kathy Patterson http://hillstreetquilts.blogspot.com
Teresa Coates http://www.crinkledreams.com
October 2, 2016 Carl Hentsch http://3dogdesignco.blogspot.com
October 3, 2016 Generation Q Magazine http://generationqmagazine.com
Lisa Calle https://lisacalle.wordpress.com
October 4, 2016 Linzi Upton https://thequiltquine.wordpress.com
Nicole Daksiewicz www.modernhandcraft.com/blog
October 5, 2016 Marti Michell http://frommartimichell.blogspot.com
Debby Brown http://higheredhands.blogspot.com
October 6, 2016 Melody Crust http://melodycrust.blogspot.com/
Kim Niedzwiecki http://www.gogokim.com
October 7, 2016 Patrick Lose http://www.patricklose.com
John Kubiniec https://bigrigquilting.com/blog/
This book is wonderful and I would love to have it for my Guild library. So much fun in here.
I agree:)
Although I love the look of Drunkard’s Path, I’ve never tried it. Just simply afraid of curved seams 🙂 But looking att all the beautiful quilts in John’s book makes me want to try.
Give it a go – endless possibilities!
Love your pink and black block, it’s very me!
Not sure what to do with such a bold quilt – may have to give it to someone;)
Yeh, me, me!
Making something using the Drunkards path block is on my bucket list.
I’ve been studying medallion style quilts and see some great possibilities for the snake in the grass border
I never thought of using Snake in the Grass as a border. What a good idea!
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This book looks great but curves are intimidating….. happyness04431@yahoo.com
I have never thought to make a drunkard path quilt– it seemed a little boring until I saw these quilts
thanks for the giveaway
After following everyone’s ideas from Johns book, I’m hooked on trying curved piecing. Thanks for giveaway.
John & I have been friends since well before his most recent quilting success days. It doesn’t surprise me that he’s been able to find a way to teach such a difficult (often) technique!
Interesting block …. love the contrast achieved using the pink solid. lynnstck@yahoo.com
Would love to try some curbed piecing – I love the snake quilt! 🙂
I’ve always liked the DP block, but the snake in the grass variation is really interesting! Ann.
I came to the quilting world by-way-of clothing construction and had mastered set-in sleeves, necklines and other curved shapes but with a quarter inch seam Drunkard’s Path is a challenge even for me. I’m on my third project, having done a table runner and pillow from Angela Pignel’s book, A Quilter’s Mixology. For I love the challenge of new projects in this case with the DP block. Ordinarily I shy away from the typical quilt made from the same block over and over, but the DP lends itself to so many variations, that it’s still a challenge for me.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts and your quilt. This book seems like a must have!
I learned to sew garments before becoming a quilter so curves are not new to me. However, I am always interested to learn new techniques. Love your pink and black quilt! Such fun.
So glad you posted early as I am going out of town tomorrow-a break from sewing/quilting. I’m on my third DP project, having done a table runner and pillow from Angela Pignel’s book, A Quilter’s Mixology. Coming from garment clothing those curved seams on quilts are much harder than set-in-sleeves, necklines, etc. I’d love to have a copy of John’s book so as to continue to perfect my DP skills.
I, too, use that special foot for my sewing machine and it completely cured me of my fear of sewing curves. Mine aren’t yet perfect but at least I will sit in front of the machine, ready to give them a go.
I would love this book and get more tips to practice my curved piecing. The more I see these projects, the more I want to dig in! I especially want to try the Bowtie Quilt…a great scrappy project!
thanks you so much for a great giveaway
Thanks for the chance to win!
After seeing Johns ideas created by others, this Curved piecing has me ready for the challenge .
Thanks for giveaway.
I like the challenge of curves.
I am especially drawn to the Snake in the Grass design!
The quilts in this book look interesting and I’d love to win the book.
So many beautiful designs and quilts on on the hop! Would love to learn this method and make a quilt myself.
Thanks for a chance to win.
usairdoll(at)gmail(dot)com
The patterns in this book are all so cool-I especially love nightfall! John is coming to our guild for our May meeting!
This book looks so Amazing!! & the reviews being shared are Awesome!! I am afraid of curved piecing…but am definitely inspired now!! Thank you for chance to win your Give-a-way too! 🙂
WOW! So many choices-will certainly have to try curves one day-as a beginner, haven’t got there yet. Thank you, Susan
I’ve never done a Drunkards Path but this book makes it look like fun. Love the snake in the grass. Thanks for the chance. Rina
Love this book. Would really like to make the cover quilt!!
Love your take on curves!
i love your giant square and would love winning this book – have had my eyes on it since it came out for pre-order! thanks for the chance!
I love your variations on the theme! Thank you for the giveaway!
I want to try to make curves
This book looks fantastic. And, curved piecing has always intimidated me, so I think this would be a big help.
Looks like I might have to try a drunkards path quilt.
John has taken Drunkard’s path to another level. Would love to win a copy of the book
I definitely get intimidated by curved pieces and would love to find a template and pattern that isn’t as scary. Thanks for this awesome review!
this looks like a great book. the blog hop has been interesting. Thanks!
Love your Review…and I soooo NEEEED this book! giggle… I have loooong avoided curved seams! Thank you for chance to win your Give-a-way!! 🙂
Love that you were compelled to make more than you intended which is indeed a testament to the author. This book looks like a great source of inspiration.
I am so intrigued by this book! Thanks for the chance to win it!
I would love to give these quilts a try! Thanks for the chance to win!
Wow! What great new ideas for this block.
I would love to give this a try! I love the black and pink. So cool!
Always wanted to try drunkards path. Would love th try avonbi@gmail.com