Flying Geese and Flying Dutchman: Blogging from A to Z

Flying Geese is a popular quilt block that can be used in a variety of ways.  It is made from three triangles and can be a bit tricky to put together correctly.  There are several methods for making flying geese, some of which require special plastic templates and rulers. I learned to make flying geese in the quilting class that I took several years ago, but remembered it as being a bit   difficult and leaving leftover scraps that were not very usable.  One of my dear friends from work is a prolific quilter, and recently told me about the No Waste Method for Making Flying Geese, so I decided to try it out.  To  make four flying geese units, I used one large square and four smaller squares of a contrasting color.  I  made a total of eight flying geese units:  four with a red print, and four with a dark blue. My large squares measured 7 and 7/8 inches.  I also needed eight 4 inch squares of my white on white fabric.  Though the method is really quite simple, the instructions are a bit lengthy, so I will not include them in this post, but refer you to this link.

Here I sewed two white squares to each larger colored square 1/4 inch to each side of the diagonal,

then cut them on the diagonal and pressed the seams.   I then sewed another white square

onto each unit, and cut them on the diagonal again.

This gave me eight flying geese units.

Flying Geese are often used to make a nice border for a quilt.

They can also be pieced together in different arrangements as part of a quilt block.  This pinwheel type arrangement is called the Flying Dutchman.

Once again I'll refer you to the Benni Harper Mystery Series by Earlene Fowler.  There isn't a book called Flying Geese, but book number 4 in the series is called Goose In The Pond, and  features another interesting quilt block pattern using Flying Geese.

  Happy  Quilting and Happy Reading!

PS  Today and tomorrow I will be watching  LDS General Conference.  Every spring and every fall living prophets share divine counsel pertinent to the challenges we face in today's world.  I encourage you to check it out here, or to check your local TV listings for times when it may be broadcast in your area.  On Monday I will be posting my thoughts on what I hear.