Lovely Lattices Quilt

This is Sarah from Thrift Store Crafter here with my first project for Moda Bake Shop. My favorite block ever is the Broken Dishes block and it just dawned on me one day that it was perfect for charm packs. It wasn’t long before I had come up with the idea for this Lovely Lattices quilt.

4 Hubba Hubba Charm Packs
4 yards Essential Dots, one yard each in four different colors (I used Baby Pink, Spring Green, Teal and Tangerine)
Backing and Binding – 4.5 yards of Essential Dots (I used Spring Green)

From each of your four Essential Dots colors, cut 42 five inch squares. Keep the colors separated in four different stacks.

This is the basic block of this quilt, the Lattice block:

The Lattice block is comprised of four Broken Dishes blocks, each with a different Essential Dots background fabric and a different Hubba Hubba Charm Square. This is the Broken Dishes block:

The Broken Dishes block is made up of four half square triangles (HSTs). We are going to construct the HSTs using the charm squares and the squares we cut.

Step 1: Match up each stack of Essential Dots squares with one charm pack of Hubba Hubba.

Working from one of your sets, take one charm square and one of the Essential Dots squares you cut. Place the squares right sides together matching up all edges.

Sew around all four sides with a quarter inch seam. It should look like this:

Step 2: Cut the squares you just sewed together diagonally from the upper left to the lower right:

Then cut from the upper right to the lower left:

Essentially, you are cutting an “X” across the square. It should look like this after you cut:

Step 3: Press the seams to the dark side of the HSTs and trim the HSTs to 3 inches.

Step 4: Lay out your four HSTs like this and sew them together:

Step 5: Pinwheel the seams and press. What do I mean by that? Moving counterclockwise around the block, press the seam to the left. It should end up looking like this on the back:

If you do this with each Broken Dishes block, the seams will all nestle together when you sew the blocks together.

Step 6: Trim blocks to 5.5 inches.

Let’s stop and talk for a minute about the best way to tackle the 168 Broken Dishes blocks you need to make. I like to divide and conquer. I work with one set of charm squares/Essential Dots at a time. I divide that set into four smaller sets. I chain piece one smaller set through the HST phase then through the piecing of the Broken Dishes block. I then take the next set and do the same thing. Once all 168 of my Broken Dishes blocks are together, I move on to step 7. Keep the blocks separated by background color.

Step 7: You should now have four piles of Broken Dishes blocks, one of each of the four background colors. Lay your blocks out like this:

Make sure when you are sewing your Lattice blocks together that you are consistent in the placement of your background colors. Each block should have one Broken Dishes block with each background color.

Sew your blocks together.

Step 8: Pinwheel your seams and press. This is just like you did in Step 5 only the seam is longer this time.

Step 9: Trim your blocks to 10.5 inches.

Step 10: You are now ready to lay out your blocks and sew your quilt together! You should have seven rows of six blocks each. Sew the Lattice blocks together into rows, alternating which direction you press the seams from row to row.

Step 11: Sew the rows together.

This makes one 60 x 70 inch quilt. With it’s bright, happy colors, it would be perfect for any girl from a toddler to a teenager.

Sarah Meland
Thrift Store Crafter

Bedazzled Quilt

Jan16

As I am preparing this pattern for publication much of the United States of America is frozen. There are even rumors to the effect that Niagara Falls has frozen. That’s cold. The next couple of months is bound to be filled with stories of cold and more cold as we nestle in for winter. However, that doesn’t mean we have to be cold or gloomy in the wet and grey.

Where I live, in North Texas, it doesn’t usually get very cold for very long. Our winters last a week here and a week there, buffeting us with cold winds and overly bright sunshine. Even so there are often long stretches of gray wet days. This quilt will keep me smiling well into spring.

Me and My Sister’s latest line “Hubba Hubba” is the perfect remedy for a cold wet winter. Their cheerful pallet and designs are guaranteed to make me giggle and set me to dreaming about spring. Arranged in a happy rainbow and pieced into twinkling off set stars this quilt is perfect for an evening of silly movies and pop corn.

Focus Fabrics

25 fat quarters – 5 each of 5 colorways (Hubba Hubba by Me & My Sister)

Supporting Fabrics

2¾ yards background & inner border fabric (Bella White | 9900-97)
1 yard dominant solid (one sashing stripe and binding) (Bella Amelia Blue | 9900-167)
3 – ¼ yard cuts for sashing stripes (Bella Solids Kiwi | 9900-189, Bermuda | 9900-269, and Yellow | 9900-024)
4½ yards backing (Tiny Daises in Blue | 22216-16)
Miscellaneous fat quarters from bundle for pieced outer border

Supplies

25 large sandwich-sized zip lock baggies – will make it easier to keep your gazillion pieces organized
Sand paper – I used a 3 2/3″ x 9″ sheet of fine grade paper that I stole from my husband’s stash in the garage. Place your pieces on top of it when drawing sewing lines, the fabric will not move.

Bedazzled is made from a total of 25 10″ finished blocks (they actually measure 10½” x 10½” before you sew them into your quilt), set in a 5 x 5 grid with sashing on two sides. The sashing is offset from row to row to create a twinkling effect. For added twinkle I’ve sorted the focus fabric line by colors and highlighted them with random negative blocks. What can be better than candy colored rainbows of stars?!

NOTE: WOF = width of fabric

CUTTING
From background fabric, cut:

9 strips measuring 3″ x WOF; subcut into 116 – 3″ x 3″ squares
2 strips measuring 10½” x WOF

From 1 strip cut 14 – 3″ x 10½” rectangles
From the 2nd strip, cut an additional 11 – 3″ x 10½” rectangles
From the remnant of the 2nd strip, cut 4 – 5½” x 5½” squares

6 strips measuring 5½” x WOF

From 5 strips, cut into 14 – 3″ x 5½” rectangles (total of 70 rectangles)
From the 6th strip, cut an additional 6 – 3″ x 5½” rectangles (for a total of 76 rectangles)
From the remnant of the 6th strip, cut 1 – 5½” x 5½” square

Set aside remaining background fabric for the inner border. You will need 8 WOF strips but you will need to have the blocks pieced and assembled so you can calculate the dimensions. I will walk you through this step below.

From 25 fat quarters (FQs):

Select one FQ from each of the 5 colorways to be a negative block. These fabrics will become backgrounds instead of stars. From each of these negative FQs, cut:

4 – 3″ x 3″ squares
4 – 3″ x 5½” rectangles

From each of the remaining 20 FQs, cut:

1 – 5½” x 5½” square
8 – 3″ x 3″ squares

Select a 26th FQ that is more more like your initial background fabric, but not solid. From this FQ, cut:

4 – 3″ x 3″ squares
4 – 3″ x 5½”” rectangles
1 – 3″ x 10½” rectangle (for 1/4 sashing on one block)

From remaining (and randomly chosen) FQs, cut:

60 – 5½” x 5½” squares for the pieced outer border

From each of the sashing solids, cut:

2 strips measuring 3″ x WOF (a total of 8 strips)

From binding fabric, cut:

8 strips measuring 2½” x WOF

Break time. Really, if you have just cut all of those pieces out it is time to take a break. Pour yourself a glass of something cool and sparkling, take a walk in the fresh air, clear your mind. That is where I am headed right now….and I haven’t even cut out the fabric yet, I just wrote about it.

PIECING

Block kits

The directions are written as if you were making one block at a time. When I want my projects to be more unified (less scrappy) I make them this way. It is easier to keep all of the same colors together. If you want a more scrappy project make all of the flying goose units at the same time, randomly selecting squares and rectangles.
It might be helpful to sort your stacks of fabric into block kits containing the following pieces

1, 5 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ square for star center
4, 3″ x 5 1/2″ rectangles background for edges
4, 3″ x 3″ squares background for corners
8, 3″ x 3″ squares for star points
1, 3″ x 10 1/2″ rectangles for 1/4 sashing

Not all of the backgrounds are the same color. Your sets should break down as follows

5 kits

stars pieces cut from regular background fabric
backgrounds are cut from fqs
1/4 sashing cut from regular background fabric

19 kits

stars cut from fqs
background pieces are cut from the regular background
1/4 sashing cut from regular background fabric

1 kit

star pieces are cut from a fq
background pieces are cut from a fq
1/4 sashing cut from fq

Block construction

The blocks in this quilt finish at 10″ square. (10 1/2″ x 10 1/2″ actual before sewn into the top)
Each block is made from 4 flying goose units, 4 small square patches, and 1 large square patch.
Before you call the block done you will also add sashing to 1/4 of it.
For each of the 25 kits you need to complete the following steps (Yes, I have recycled the pictures from another bakeshop project that I did. The blocks are constructed the same way as the blocks in Midwinter Cozy. They are however, larger. The fabrics pictured in the diagrams are from Midwinter Reds by Minick and Simpson)

Flying Goose Units

Gather from kit

8, 3″ x 3″ squares
4, 3″ x 5 1/2″ rectangles

Draw a diagonal line on the wrong side of each 3″ square (Get out the sand paper. Place your fabric wrong side up on top of the paper. The sandy grit will keep your piece from moving as you draw on it.)
With right sides together align one square atop one rectangle.
Sew along the line but just to the outside. (on the side toward the smallest part of the rectangle

Iron flap open – pushing the triangle lying over the larger part of the rectangle up and over the seam.
Trim the excess fabric from the back of the patch, or leave it there to help your patch keep it’s shape. The choice is yours.

You now have a rectangle with one corner different.
Repeat the process on the opposite side of triangle.

Be careful to get the seam going in the right direction. It should be perpendicular to the seam you already made.

Trim unit back to 3″ x 5 1/2″ rectangle
Again, you choose to trim the seam allowances or not.
Repeat 3 times for a total of 4 units.

Block

Gather

4 flying goose units
4, 3″ x 3″ background squares
1,5 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ star square

Sew Rows

Top and bottom

Sew patches together as shown

Iron seam allowances towards the background squares

Center

Sew patches together as shown

Iron seam allowances towards the center

Sew rows together to form square.
Iron seam allowances away from the center block

NOTE: If you chose to not to trim the extra fabric from your goose units you will need to clip the seams to make them lie flat. Clip the seam allowance ONLY, at the 4 intersections. This will allow you to iron the bulky seam allowances to remain flat. They will fall away from the goose units.)

Trim final block to 10 1/2″ x 10 1/2″

Add the 1/4 sashing piece, 3″ x 10 1/2″ to one side of the block
Iron seam allowance towards the sashing
Repeat process 24 more times for 25 blocks.

The top

Rows

Gather

25, 10 1/2″ x 12 1/2″ blocks (5 in each color way)

Arrange blocks.

This is where a design wall comes in handy. If you don’t have one, no worries, I don’t have one either (no walls in my studio…really). You can use the floor, or your bed, or even the curtain on your shower. You just need a place where you can lay out your pieces.
Once you are satisfied with the layout take a quick picture with your phone. This will do two things for you

It will help you remember where the pieces go. AND
It will give you a different perspective – one last peak at the arrangment to make sure you like it.

The blocks should be arranged in 5 rows of 5 with all of the same colorway in the same row.

Alternate rows should have alternate the side of the block where the 1/4 sashing is.

If your rows differ in length – they shouldn’t, but sometimes things happen – you can trim them to equal lengths. Do this on the 1/4 sashing end of the row. (The stars are supposed to be offset, no one is going to notice if an end 1/4 sashing is slightly smaller.)
Sew blocks together to make rows
Iron seam allowances towards the 1/4 sashing.

Sashing

Gather

5 rows with 5 blocks each
8 – 3″ x WOF strips from solids (2 of each color)

Sew solid strips together in matching sets.
Iron seam allowances open

Sew solids rows between pieced rows.
Irons seam allowances towards the solid rows.

Inner Border

The purpose of this inner border is to make the pieced outer border fit the pieced center.
The exact dimensions of the border will vary a little bit from one sewist to another.
Record the length and width of your top below.

Length = ___________ (mine was 60″) b
Width = ___________ (mine was 61 1/2″) a

Outer Border

Gather 60, 5 1/2″ x 5 1/2″ squares
Randomly sew 4 sets of blocks

2 rows of 14
2 rows of 16

Irons seam allowances open.
Record the length of each row

14 block row = _____________ (mine was 64) A
16 block row = _____________ (mine was 72 1/2″) B

Inner Border

The finished width of the inner border needs to be the difference between the length one side of the top and the corresponding length of the outer border, divided by 2 (because we want it evenly spaced on two sides of the quilt). Add 1/2″ to this number to get the width you need to cut your strips.

Please don’t be turned off …. this is easy math… you can do it.
For the short side (labeled A and a in the picture) you need to figure out x.

NOTE: A does NOT include the corner squares. This is the short side of the quilt.
A – a = x = the finished width of this strip

mine was 64 – 61.5 = 2.5

(x/2)+ .5″ = the width to cut your inner border

mine was 2.5 / 2 + .5 = 1.25 +.5 = 1.75″

Cut 4 strips this wide x WOF

For the long side (labeled B and b in the picture) you need to figure out y.

B does include the corner squares. They are already attached to your strip, but they do not effect the width needed for your inner border. Subtract 9.5″ from B.
(B – 9.5″) – b = y = the finished width of this strip

mine was (72.5 – 9.5) – 60 = 3

(y/2) + .5″= the width to cut your inner border

mine was 3/2 + .5 = 1.5 + .5 = 2″

Cut 4 strips this wide x WOF

If you have any trouble figuring this out for your quilt please contact me. I would be glad to help you.

Attach inner borders

Short sides first.
Iron seam allowances towards the inner border

Attach outer borders

Short sides first
Iron seam allowances towards the inner borders.

Layer and quilt as desired.

Mine was long arm quilted from edge to edge using “Cortney b2b” by Anne Bright.

One super fun quilted throw measuring approximately 71″ x 73″.

It is the perfect place to sit and gather giggles with your favorite girl. I’d love to see your finished quilt. Please send me a picture, or add it to the Tops to Treasures flickr group.

Cindy Sharp
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