Mango, I got my inspiration from the website I am linking to. Instead of starting with a rectangle, I started with a square 7 stitches wide, making 6 garter ridges and binding off on the right side. Then I picked up 7 stitches with the next color and knit 6 more garter ridges, bound off, but didn't cut the yarn. I turned the work clockwise and picked up 14 stitches along the side edge, knitted 6 more ridges, then bound off and cut the yarn. Turned the work clockwise, with the next color, picked up 14 stitches, knit 6 ridges, bind off (not cutting the yarn), turned the work clockwise, picked up 21 stitches. You get the idea. When the squares were done I arranged them the way I wanted (there are lots of possibilities), picked up one of the squares and picked up (in this case, 35) stitches along the edge that would meet the next square, knitted 6 ridges, placed the next square with the right side to the right side of the square I was knitting and bound off, going through a stitch on the extra square right along with the stitches on my needle. After I had 4 squares put together this way, I made 4 more strips like it. Then I picked up stitches along a long edge of one strip, knit 6 ridges, then bound off, going through the stitches of another strip along with the stitches on my needle. Then I knit a garter stitch border all around, increasing at the corners and adding a simple crochet shell. Here is a link that might be useful: log cabin directions

Thank you for the nice comments. VanisleGirl: I'm afraid I don't have pics showing how the back looks when the blocks are joined. I just put them face to face and stitch, making as nearly as possible the same width seam as I did when stitching the strips within the block. Sometimes I trimmed the batting to make it easier. The beauty of this type of quilting is that, although of course we would like to have everything perfect, when it isn't, the overall pattern draws people's eyes so they usually don't notice! lol When I have made a strip as long as the quilt is going to be (minus the border), then I make the next one, checking carefully to make sure that neighboring blocks in the two strips will have the necessary places matched up. You don't "join the backs" at all. Oh, now I see what you were getting at. Well, after joining the blocks and strips as just described and ironing the seams flat, I overcast along them to hold them down, only taking up the seam itself and the batting. And then I put a big back on that covers the backs of all these blocks and hides the ugliness of their joins. I do not put backing (apart from the thin backing used under the batting just to keep it from catching while I sew the strips on) on individual blocks for these log cabin quilts. I usually pin the border strips, one at a time, facing the quilt top, while facing the quilt back, I have the backing for each border strip (That is, the piano keys border, stitched directly onto its batting, and the final backing for the border sandwich the main part of the quilt to be stitched on to it. I stitch all the borders on and then bind the edges of the whole thing with bias. Beverly: Thanks for telling me the proper name for this sort of border. It is really a good name for it!

Sue, Really cute!!! I always make baby quilts a good size so they can be used longer. I was told today that the 13 year old twin girls I made baby quilts for are still using them! The mom said that one of them just likes to hold it and run her hands over it.

thank you SOOOO much. i just got the scrappy quilt one, and sure enough, it's not n it. i'll order her first log cabin book. appreciate the help.