Tsunagi Masumon (Linked Square)

This year Quilts Etc. in Sandy is offering two blocks in their block-of-the-month class. One is meant to be simple to assemble, and the other is for the more adventurous patchwork piecer. This one wasn’t very difficult, at least not compared with some of the previous months. In Susan Briscoe’s book Japanese Quilt Blocks to Mix and Match, it’s called Linked Square Pattern. But the directions from Quilts Etc. referred to it as Melon Bread. I found the name puzzling, so I did a little research. Melon bread is a popular sweet treat in Japan. Melon isn’t typically an ingredient in the bread. Instead, it is so named because it resembles half a cantaloupe. Melon bread is made by encasing roll dough with a thin layer of cookie dough. When baked, the cookie dough crinkles a little like a cantaloupe rind. Why rename the quilt block after a Japanese sweet? I guess there are some mysteries I’ll never solve.