When Is A Block Done?

I was asked "how do I know when a block is done?". And it's funny that this question came up because I was thinking of posting about it.

When is a block done? Well, it's kind of a "feeling". After working on a block for so long, I'm sort of "connected" to it. I've noticed that after awhile, a block usually tells me what it needs. I'll be stitching along and suddenly I'll think of something in my stash that would look good on it. Something that I forgot I had. So I pull it out and try it and yes, it usually works great!

And as with stitching on it, it seems to tell me when it's done as well. I'll look at it and it'll appear to be balanced perfectly or there won't be room for anything else without it looking overdone.

The challenge for me is to balance it without completely covering up my fancy fabrics. That's not to say that I'm not attracted to extremely encrusted CQ blocks. I've seen some absolutely breathtaking blocks, almost completely covered with embroidery, SRE and beads and buttons and I love them! For me, the brocades that I use are just so beautiful, I don't want to cover them up with embellishments so I do try to use some plainer fabrics along with the fancy ones on the blocks. Things that I don't mind covering with embellishments.

It's really a "knowing". You get a "feel" for it. You'll just know when enough is enough.