• The large square was cut 4 ½" and the smaller squares 2 ½", thus yielding a 6" finished block. Now all by itself, this block doesn't look very exciting, does it? It might be a block you'd just pass by if you were considering designing a quilt. But a simple block like this one can work magic if you just play with it a bit.

• Let's start our block play just using rotation. Take four blocks and rotate them so that each large square is on the "outside". Voila! You've just created a new block.

• Let's now play a bit more and create another version by simply changing some of the fabrics.

• Next, let's see how these blocks work together in a quilt. Set them alternately, add a couple of inner borders using fabrics from the line, and top it all off with a wide outer border of the large floral.
  
  Ready to try another rotation? Let's go back to our first block. Take four of them, and this time rotate them so that the large floral squares are oriented toward the center. Now your block that looked light and airy now looks dark and dramatic. Let's substitute it for its cousin and see how it looks in our quilt. The new quilt has a lot more contrast between the blocks and takes on a completely different look.

• Want to play some more? Take this block again, but this time orient the four large squares toward the center as you did with the previous block. Here it is alternated with the very first block you created.

To see two versions of some of these blocks in an on-point setting, just click on Nancy's REDWOOD project in the "Make It With Marcus" section.