Thursday, January 21, 2010

Jargon of the Week - Kaleidoscope



This week, we'll look at the difference between dictionary.com's kaleidoscope and the quilting term, kaleidoscope.

Dictionary.com defines kaleidoscope as:
ka⋅lei⋅do⋅scope [kuh-lahy-duh-skohp]

–noun
1. an optical instrument in which bits of glass, held loosely at the end of a rotating tube, are shown in continually changing symmetrical forms by reflection in two or more mirrors set at angles to each other.
2. a continually changing pattern of shapes and colors.
3. a continually shifting pattern, scene, or the like: The 1920s were a kaleidoscope of fads and fashions.

Origin:
1817; <>

In quilting, kaleidoscope refers to a specific type of pattern.
A kaleidoscope quilt is made by identifying specific points in a repeating fabric pattern, layering them, and cutting them exactly the same way. It's a really fun process to do.

The image below is a quilt I made a year and a half ago for my nephew, Lucas. It is a kaleidoscope pattern from the book Learn to Be a Wacky-Pinwheel Quilting Wizard. This book was really easy to understand and I recommend it if you want to try a kaleidoscope quilt.

The image below is a close-up of a block from the quilt shown above.

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