Blooming Nine Patch: A Perennial Favorite

Did you ever construct a quilt which looked really challenging, but was incredibly fun to make? The blooming nine patch is one of those intriguing patterns. Each fabric square alternates with a nine-patch that uses the two adjacent fabrics, creating a subtle "color wash" transition from one fabric to the next. (For more blooming nine patch quilts, see our original post from 2011!)

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Kaffe Blooming Nine Patch by Pat Morris, quilted by Athena Taylor

The Blooming Nine Patch design was first published in 1996 by Blanche Young with her daughter, Dalene Young Stone, in their classic book Tradition With a Twist.   Another daughter, Helen Young Frost, arranged the design in concentric diamonds, much like the Amish Trip Around the World pattern.

Pat Morris says, "It's a fun quilt to make using alternating nine patches and plain squares. I used Kaffe Fassett Collective fabrics assembled in a kit by All About Color Quilting.  It was machine quilted using edge-to-edge computerized quilting by Athena Taylor." (Can you see the nine patch blocks in this closeup photo?)

 The Blackhole, made and quilted by Debra Kaweske 

 Debra Kaweske says that this stunning quilt, made in beautiful batiks, was inspired by the photo of a black hole.  The photo made her want to create an original quilt which would transition from a bright inviting center to a vast outer space. The lovely details and quilting can be seen in the closeup below.

 

Note:  For those who love batiks, Robert Kaufman Fabrics has a free "Luminous Nine Patch" pattern for the Kasuri collection, shown below. To download the free PDF, CLICK HERE! 

Image credits: The original quilt photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2025 Tucson Quilters Guild show.