Charm Party Baby Quilt + Bonus Pillow

Hi!  I’m Julie from 627handworks.com. Today I’m sharing a Charm Party baby quilt with matching bonus pillow.  I’m someone who likes to get as much as I can out of my fabric. The half square triangles leftover from the quilt top are perfect for creating a bonus project like a pillow or even a doll quilt.  I would love to see your version if you make one!

2 Charm Packs – Print (Chance of Flowers)
1 Charm Pack – Solid (Bella Solid Snow)
1 1/4 Yards for Backing (Chance of Flowers, Cloud Flower Garden)
1/2 Yard for Binding (Chance of Flowers, Cloud Flower Garden) 

To make the 16″ Pillow Cover you’ll need:
2 Yards of Trim
1 Fat Quarter (Chance of Flowers, Rose Sandy’s Solids)
18″ Zipper
Pillow Form

Gather up your fabrics.  How pretty are these?

Pull:

• 64 Prints for Quilt Blocks
• 17 Prints for Quilt Border
• 32 Solid Charms

Choose 4 different charms:

Take 2 of those charms and pair with a solid, right sides facing.  Mark a diagonal line.

Stitch along your mark and sew another line 1/2″ over.

Cut between those lines.  Set the smaller half aside.

 Press open and arrange your HST (half square triangle) with the other 2 charms.

Stitch together.

Make 16 ‘mini-blocks’.

Take 4 mini blocks and form a large block.

Make 4 large blocks.

Sew the 4 large blocks together.

Take the 17 Charms we set aside earlier.

CUT:
1 Charm into quarters (4) 2.5″ squares
16 Charms in half  (32) 2.5″ x 5″ rectangles

Take 8 rectangles and sew end to end creating a border.   Make 4 borders.

Choose 2 of the borders and sew a square onto each end.

Attach the 2 border strips that do not have the square end charms.

Attach the two border strips that have the squares on each end.

You have completed the quilt top!

BONUS PILLOW

(OR you can also use the leftover HST’s to make a matching doll quilt)

Pull 25 HST’s leftover from making the quilt top.

We will be trimming these into 3.75″ squares.
If you don’t have a special HST ruler, you can use this method for trimming your squares.

Using Washi or masking tape, mark a line from corner to corner on the 3.75″ line.
(Make sure you are using the squared end of the ruler and one side isn’t an extra 1/2″ wide)

Lay your HST (still folded in half) with the seam line (NOT the raw edge) along the 3.75″ mark.

Trim

Press open creating a perfect 3.75″ square.  Repeat for the rest of the HST’s.

Stitch together in 5 rows of 5 using any layout you like.  Quilt if desired.  Trim to 16.75″ square.
 

Sew decorative trim along the edge with the decorative part facing the center of the pillow.

Lay your zipper facing down, pillow front facing up, and stitch in place.

Cut your fat quarter into a 16.75″ square (or the exact size of your pillow front).

Lay your back piece facing up (edges aligned with the pillow front edges), zipper facing down, and stitch. 

Open your zipper half way.   Lay your pieces right sides facing.  Pin all around the edges and and stitch, being careful not to catch your trim along the way.  Zig-zag or overlock the raw edges to prevent fraying.

Pillow cover is done!

40″ Square Baby Quilt
16″ Pillow Cover

If you make a quilt I would love to see it!
Julie Hirt
627handworks.com

Window Box Flower Quilt

I hope you are having a great day.  My name is Kris from krisrunner.wordpress.com and I am pleased to share this quilt with you today.  At my house, the daffodils are blooming and the tulips are just around the corner.  I wanted to make a flower quilt using a hexi design – and that is how this quilt came to be.   I was surprised at how easy it was to use a half hexi template to make this quilt.  I loved the colors in Chance of Flowers by Sandy Gervais and hope the great colors brighten your day as you make this quilt.  This makes it easy to use with a charm pack or with jelly roll left overs or as a stash buster.

• 1 charm pack Chance of Flowers
• 1/8 yard of 4 browns for the window box. I used the Moda Marble collection: Coffee, Bark, Chestnut, and Dark Saddle
• 2/3 yard Bella Solids Snow Fabric
• 1/3 yard Cloud Rain Border Fabric
• 1/3 yard Rose Binding Fabric
• 1 1/2 yard Leaf Backing Fabric
• Go!Hexagon 4 1/2″ sides ruler/template (item number 55437)

** All sewing will be done with a 1/4 inch seam.

1.  Sort your charm pack into a couple of different piles.

• Pick two green charms to be your stems of your flowers.

• Next, pick 3 solid or mostly solids to be the centers of your flowers

• Finally, create 3 sets of 6 charms to be the outsides of your flowers.

2.  Cut each of your charms (except for the green stem’s) in half giving you 2.5 x 5 inch rectangles.  (you will have a total of 42 rectangles)

3.  Use your half hexi template and cut the 42 rectangles into half hexis.  Make sure to cut the notches on the ends – this will help when you line them up to sew.

4.  Next you will want to cut 9 strips of 2.5″x WOF from the Bella Solid Snow material.  Using your half hexi template, cut 88 white half hexis.

5.  Take the green charms for your stems and cut 7 rectangles as 1.5″ x 2.5″ stem pieces.

6.  Next you are going to want to lay out your flowers.  To do this you will want to start with one of your center half hexis and pair it with the matching half hexi.  Then, add 6 additional pairs of hexis to complete the flower. Continue this with the remaining two flowers and connect them with white as shown in the picture below.  Place the middle flower a hexi lower that than ones on the two sides.  

7.  Once you have your flowers like you want, fill in with the rest of the white hexis. Place a row of white on the top and on the bottom and on each end of the flowers like in the picture below.  The ends will be jagged and that is correct.  We will trim them later.

8.  We are going to now sew the stems on to the white hexi’s.   

• Take the seven half hexis under the flowers for your stems. With each one, cut off 1″ from the top left edge. Cut 1/2 inch off the other side. 

• Insert the stem piece (2.5″ x1.5″ green) using 1/4 inch seams between each side of the half hexi, Press your seams as you go.  Do this for the remaining 6 stem pieces. When you have completed this place the stem half hexis back onto your flower layout.

9.  Now that you have your layout complete (congratulations!) Let’s talk about how to get ready to sew the rows. If you have a preferred approach, use that. I’m going to describe the approach that I’ve settled on for this type of quilt. 

• Moving from left to right, take the first hexi and place it on top of the next hexi.  Making sure that you always place the next hexi on the bottom of your pile.  You will end up with 10 rows of 13 hexis. The top hexi is the left most piece.

• I label each row with a sticky note so that I can keep the rows in the correct order.

• I chain piece 5 rows at a time.  I have found that keeping track of the row I am on and which is the left hand edge piece can be tough.  My trick is to put a straight pin in the left hexi of each row. The vertical placement of the pin indicates row # (the highest pin is row #1).   I have circled the pins in the photo below so you can see my trick.

10.  You are ready to start sewing your rows.  See the picture below to see how to line up your hexis.

• Make sure to press your seams after each hexi.  You will sew the hexis together until you have sewn all 13 hexis together.  This is a picture of that it will look like as you are sewing part way along the row.

11.  Once you have sewn all your rows together, lay it back out and admire your work!  You are amazing! Feel free to enjoy a cold or hot beverage of your choosing at this point.

Now you will sew all your rows together. Pressing your seams as you go. Don’t you love it!

12.  Now that the rows are all sewn together you will want to trim the edges.  Use a ruler and trim off the edge to form a straight edge.

13.  Next step is to create your window box.  I loved using different browns to make more of weathered look to the window box.  If you don’t want the same weathered look, feel free to just use one piece of brown material (8.5″x 44.5″).   

To create the weathered window box look you will want to cut from each of your brown colors so that in total you will have:  

• 10 rectangles of 2.5″x 8.5″  (3 each from 2 browns and 2 each from 2 browns)
• 24 rectangles of 2.5″ x 4.5″  (6 from each brown)

• Hold aside 4 of your 2.5″ x 4.5″ rectangles (one of each color) for later.  
• Select different color combinations from the smaller rectangles and sew them together giving you 10 rectangles of 2.5″ x 8.5″.
• Combine each 2.5″x 8.5″ mixed color rectangle with a solid 2.5″ x 8.5″ rectangle resulting in 10 larger 4.5″ x 8.5″ rectangles.

The final 4 rectangles which are 2.5″ x 4.5″ should be combined to make 2 blocks of 2.5″ x 4.5″ (see the right end blocks in the picture below)

Arrange the blocks as in the picture below. I flipped each alternating 8.5″ block to give it more contrast.  Feel free to customize. When you are happy with the look sew the blocks together into one large window box which will be 8.5″ x 44.5″

14.  Sew the flowers to the window block making sure that the window box is adjoining the flower stems.  

15.  To add the border or window frame to the flowers and window box you will need to:

• Cut 4 strips 3.5″ X WOF

• Cut 2 rectangles 30″ x 3.5″.  Using the extra from those WOF you will sew them on to your 2 strips of 3.5″ x WOF to create 2 rectangles which are 51″ x 3.5″.

• Sew the 30″ x 3.5″ strips to the ends of your flower and window box.  

• Sew the 51″x 3.5″ strips to the top and bottom of the your flower and window box.

16.  Add batting and backing to your quilt top and start adding texture.  Have fun!

• I chose to quilt pebbles in the centers of the flowers and swoops in the outside flowers.

• I tried to create wood grain on the window box.

17.  Bind your quilt and then wash it to get all the crinkly goodness of a quilt.

Hope your quilt helps to brighten your day!  It sure brings spring in from the outside…

…into my sewing room wall.

Happy sewing!   

Finished size: 48″x 32″ (once washed and shrinkage happens)

You could make a bed runner by adding a couple more flowers to each side if you wanted to expand it.

Kris Allen

{krisrunner.wordpress.com}

Candy Flowers Pillow

1 Mini Charm Pack – Print / Chance of Flowers
2 Mini Charm Packs – Solid / Bella Solid in Snow
3 Coordinating Fat Quarters
21″ Pillow Form

22″ Square of batting for quilting the pillow top
22″ Square of scrap fabric or muslin

Pull 40 printed charms and 64 solid charms.

Pair up 40 prints with 40 solids, right sides facing.  Finger press a a diagonal crease on one side.

Chain stitch the 40 pairs of prints and solids on the diagonal crease.

Optional: 
Without breaking the chain, run the the charms back through and stitch a 1/2″ over.  Rather than throwing the trimmed fabric away, this quick step will create 40 little HST’s for future projects.

Cut. The pictures below show both options.

Open and press.

You should have a stack of 40 Half Square Triangles (HST) and 24 Solids.

Layout:
Using 12 HST’s and 4 solids, create a star.

Add the next row around – double check to make sure your HST’s are going in the right direction.

Add the points on the top and bottom.

Fill in with the remaining solid charms.

Piece:
Feel free to use your preferred method, I’ll show mine.

Some people like to stitch from the inside out, others in rows or even quadrants. This is how I piece several small squares that I want to keep in a certain layout and direction.

Going in vertical rows:  Fold the squares on the right column onto the squares on the left.

Chain stitch – do not cut the thread between squares.

Feel free to press the seams, I don’t find it necessary and I will press later on.

Using the set of chained pairs, fold the first two pairs right sides together and stitch.  Open. Fold the next pair up onto the previous pair and stitch. Repeat until all 8 pairs are pieced together.

 

Leaving them chained is nice because they stay in the right order and direction.

Open and press the seams all in one direction.  When you complete the next row, press those seams in the opposite direction. This will make it easier to piece the rows together.

Stitch the two completed rows together.

Stitch the other two rows using the same method, and sew the halves together.

If your edges are raggedy, feel free to trim a little and straighten them out. Just be careful not to cut off the HST points along the edge and leave a seam allowance.

Take a Fat Quarter and cut four 2.5″ strips down the length of the fabric.  You will have four strips approximately 21″ wide.

Attach one strip to the top and one to the bottom of your block.

Press open and trim.

Attach the other two strips to the sides.

Press open and trim.

Optional:  Using the batting and scrap fabric, quilt as desired. Trim.

Double fold:
Take your remaining 2 Fat Quarters and along the 21″ side,  fold over 1″ and press.  Fold over another 1″ and press.

Top stitch along the top and bottom of the fold.   Repeat with the other Fat Quarter.

The Math:

The two back pieces will create an envelope style enclosure and they need to overlap about 4″.  Since everyone sews 1/4″ seams a bit different, we may have slightly different sized pillow tops.

Take the width of your pillow top and divide by 2.  
Add 2″. 
You should be somewhere near 12″. 

Trim both Fat Quarters to that measurement. Trim the raw edge opposite your double edge fold, leaving the 21″ width intact.

Example:  My pillow top is 20″.  20 divided by 2 = 10. Add 2 = 12″.  I now have two fat quarters that measure 21″ x 12″ each. (21″ side has the double fold)

Part 2:

Trim both Fat Quarters so they don’t hang off pillow top. Instead of being 21″ they will probably around 20″.

Layer:  
Pillow Top right side up
Fat Quarter #1 right side down – lining up raw edges along the side
Fat Quarter #2 right side down – lining up raw edges along the opposite side

Pin or clip edges in place. Stitch along the edge all the way around.

Zip Zag or Serge the seam you created. This will help prevent fraying in the future.

Turn right side out and you are done!

I’m using a 21″ pillow form.

One pillow cover.  If you make a Candy Flowers pillow cover, I would love to see it.

Julie Hirt
{627handworks.com}

Big Hearted Quilt

Hello again from Robin at Craft Sisters. It’s great to be back sharing a quick and easy project. This one could be fun for your February table or wall. And… adorable tucked around your littlest Valentines in the car or the stroller. I’ve made two so far in two different Moda lines but both in luscious pinks and reds. One from Sandy Gervais’, Table for Two and the other using Deb Strain’s, Surrounded By Love. The idea for this was to make a big, modern, Log Cabin-ish looking block. One Moda Candy or Charm Pack makes the heart and two half-yard pieces are used for the backgrounds.

1            Moda Candy or Charm Pack – Table For Two – heart
½ yd.     Diamond 1775611 – Table For Two – background 1
½ yd.     Rose 1775513 – Table For Two – background 2
⅜ yd.     Rose 1775613 – Table For Two – binding
1 yd.      Backing fabric
1 yd.      Low loft batting

Layout the heart
Place the 42 – 2.5″ squares from the Moda Candy or Charm Pack on a design wall or floor. 

If you are using a Charm Pack, cut 42, 2.5″ squares (obviously more color choice with charm pack). 

Audition color placement of squares until you get the color arrangement that you like. It’s fun to play with it. I ended up using darker squares to outline the heart so it would stand out in the photograph. Make the heart more subtle and pixelated looking, by mixing up the colors more.

Cut background squares, strips and complete quilt layout

Cut the squares and strips from background fabrics 1 and 2 as shown on the quilt layout map (it’s at the end of this post). 

Following quilt layout map, add background squares and strips to design wall around the heart. It always looks completely wrong to me when laid out like this, but feels great when it all comes together after sewing.

Sew squares and strips to form horizontal rows
Use a ¼” seam allowance throughout this project. It really helps in matching up squares if you sew a consistent seam width, ¼” or scant… 

Press seams in opposite direction. This avoids bulk and makes it easy to nest seams when sewing everything together.

Sew the rows together
Start sewing the rows together in the order you like, top to bottom, from center out, bottom to top. Whatever makes sense to you.

Press seams in one direction.

Make a quilt sandwich
Layer backing, batting and quilt top. Baste using pins, spray, or use fusible batting. Quilt simply or more dense, whichever you prefer. This is a good one to try your free motion quilting on because of the size.





One small but Big Hearted quilt for February or anytime. Mine finished at approx. 28.5″ x 29.5″. Hope you try this one and have fun doing it. And please stop by my blog over the weekend. www.craftsisters.com/robins-blog.html There’s a giveaway for some Table for Two background fabrics to use in this project. – Robin

Robin Nelson
{www.craftsisters.com}

Moda Candy Alphabet

Hi everyone, it’s Chris “frecklemama” Warnick, and I am delighted to bring you this easy and fun alphabet project using Moda’s adorable mini-charm packs.

This alphabet is based on using squares and half-square triangles (HSTs) so you can adapt it easily to use any size square.  The project would work using jelly roll strips cut into squares or scaled up to use charm squares or even layer cake squares.  Want to add a message to a table runner or a monogram to a quilt backing?  This project provides a quick road map for making each letter without needing any fancy supplies or advanced skills.

For this tutorial I made a banner for an upcoming sewing retreat.  Other ideas for this project might include your business name as a banner for a craft fair table, your blog name for a photography background or header photograph, or a funny saying for your BFF’s craft room.

Because your use of the alphabet will differ from mine, you will need to sketch out your own project to get an idea of proportion and fabric requirements.  I use graph paper and have each square on the grid equal one 2.5″ mini-charm square.

– Mini-charm packs, jelly roll strips, regular charm packs cut into four squares or yardage cut into 2.5″ squares*. 

– Background fabric.  In this project I used white jelly roll strips to create background squares and skinny sashing strips.

* IMPORTANT:  In order for your letters to be legible, you really need to choose fabric that contrasts strongly with your background fabric.  I needed several mini-charm packs in order to pick out the charms that had the highest contrast to my white background.

– In this tutorial I used 7 mini-charm packs of Snap Pop by Sandy Gervais.  I also used some strips of a Bella white jelly roll as the background fabric and sashing.

– Backing

– Batting

– Binding

 

First determine what words you will be making.  Use the alphabet sketch to map out which blocks you are making and which squares are needed for each block. 

For example, if you are going to make an “A” you will lay out your squares like this:

Sew them together like this:

Once you have your letters made, you will separate them with skinny strips of your background fabric.  In the case of my project, I used skinny sashing strips cut into 1 1/4″ strips.  That is equivalent to a jelly roll strip sliced in half, long ways.  Once each word was completed, I finished it by framing it with additional skinny strips. 

Determine the layout of your words by auditioning them in different ways.  In the case of my sample, I stacked my words in a vertical stack and determined that I wanted about 2″ additional framing of background fabric along the sides. 

Once I was happy with my layout, I sewed the top together, quilted it with backing and batting, and machine bound it (Note: the binding is a yellow print from Kate Spain’s upcoming line Daydream).

Because my banner’s shape is irregular, I chose to use bias binding.  For such a small project, I determined that I could cut my binding at only 2″ to maximize my fabric.  I was able to bind this banner with only a Fat Quarter of fabric!  The banner measures approximately 38″ x 35″ at its largest width and height.

Curious what “The Stash Bash” is all about?  Visit www.TheStashBash.com to learn about a weekend of pajamas, friends, sewing machines, laughter, great food, and plenty of our two favorites: chocolate and fabric!

We hope you enjoy using the Moda Candy Alphabet to create a project of your own imagination:  Sew the word JOY along a holiday stocking, create a quilt with your family’s favorite inspirational message, or make a pillow that says YES! on one side and NO! on the other.  Whatever you make with your Moda Bakeshop tutorials, please don’t forget to share it with us on the Flickr page.

Happy sewing!

Chris Warnick

Frecklemama

www.Frecklemama.com

www.TheStashBash.com

Urban Vestiges Quilt

My name is Judy Gauthier.  I have been a critical care nurse for 30 years and a couple of years ago I decided to open a quilting and yarn shop.  I have been sewing since I was 9 years old.  My first love was garment sewing, and then the quilting bug hit me.  I have always loved fiber arts and fabric.  My shop, Bungalow Quilting and Yarn, is located in Ripon Wisconsin.  It is a contemporary quilt shop with yarn and knitting supplies.  It has done very well.  We are entering our second year of business.  Fabric, especially bright and contemporary, just speaks to me.  I can’t seem to get enough!

One Jelly Roll, Posh Pumpkin by Sandy Gervais

Three Mini Charm Packs, Posh Pumpkin by Sandy Gervais

One Yard of Moda Bella Solid, Sienna

One Yard of Moda Bella Solid, Cheddar

From the Sienna Moda Solid, cut 42 bricks.  Bricks are 5 1/2 inches x 2 1/2 inches.
From the Cheddar Moda Solid, cut 3 fat quarters.  These must measure 18 inches x 22 inches.

Find 2 of the darkest strips from the jelly roll and cut 3 – 18″ pieces from them. Set aside.

Taking one of the strips from the jelly roll, add a brick to the end of it by stitching the 2 1/2 inch end of the brick to the 2 1/2 inch end of the jelly roll.  Press the seam down toward the brick.  Take another strip from the jelly roll and add it to the brick and jelly roll unit that you just created by sewing the 2 1/2 inch end of the jelly roll to the 2 1/2 inch end of the brick.  To that unit, add another brick to the jelly roll strip in the same manner as previous.  Continue in this manner until all the jelly roll strips and bricks have been used.

You will have a very long strip that measures approximately 1700 inches long.
Subcut this long strip into 34, 36 inch strips and 34 12 1/2 inch strips.  Set aside.

Using the 3 mini charm square packs make 3 units.  The three units will be 6 squares x 7 squares.  You will sew  7 columns of 6 squares and sew these together to make a rectangle. Press the seams flat.

 Fold these in half lengthwise and press with the iron.  Fold them in half again, widthwise, and press.  These will be cut into circles.  Each unit will make one circle for the trees.

From each of  these folded units, you will cut one 11 1/2 inch diameter circle.  You may use a circle cutter to assist you, but remember that these must be one inch larger than the circle that they are to be set in to.  These will be set into the Bella Solid fat quarters.  The folded point will be the center of your circle.  Cut these into 11 1/2 inch circles.  

Now, take the 3 fat quarters that you have cut from the Moda Bella Solid Cheddar fabric.   You are going to cut circles out of these so that you can set in the patchwork trees.
Fold the entire fat quarter in half lengthwise and press.

Then, fold it again but not in half.  This time you are going to fold it down but leave 4 inches of it unfolded on the bottom, as shown:

Press again.  You will be cutting a circle out from the folded edge of the fat quarter through all 4 thicknesses. The circle must measure 10 1/2 inches in diameter, no larger.  You can use any of the circle cutters on the market to assist you, but it must measure 10 1/2 inches in diameter.  If you are using a circle cutter to assist you, then make certain to follow “The Inch Rule”.  This rule says that for set in circles, you must always cut the background frame one inch smaller than the circle you want to set in.  

Cut out a 10 1/2 inch circle.  

Now you are going to set the patchwork circle made from the Moda Mini Charms into the Bella Solid fat quarter.  Where you have pressed there will be 4 creases.  You will match the creases on the patchwork circle to the creases on the Bella Solid Circle, and right sides together, sew the patchwork circle in to the solid circle.  

Press the seams toward the center of the circle.  Do this for all three trees.  

Now, take the 3 dark strips that you originally cut to 18 inches from the jelly roll and sew one to the bottom of each of two of the tree units.  The ones that have the strip sewn to the bottom will be the top tree and the middle tree.    Press the seam allowance toward the strip.

Now you need to create the tree trunks.  This is where you will use the remainder of  the Sienna Bella Solid. Draw a tree trunk and transfer to the Sienna Bella Solid.  Mine was drawn free form.  You can make all three the same or change them on each tree.  

Using your favorite applique technique, applique a tree trunk to each tree.  When you’ve finished with the applique, sew the 3 tree units together so they appear in a column as below:  

Now, you are going to take the 34 strips that you have cut to 36 inches and sew them together along the long edges of the strips, stacking them and pressing the seams as you go, until you have used all 34.  Sew the entire unit of strips to the right side of the tree column.  Press the seam.  

Then you are going to take the 34 12 inch strips and sew them  together along the long edges, stacking them until all 34 have been used up.  Sew the entire unit to the left side of the tree unit. Press the seam.  

Layer with batting, quilt, and bind.  

One Quilt the is 66″ x 66 to remind you of fall all year long!

Judy Gauthier
{www.bungalowquilting.com}

Charming Wonky Diamonds Quilt

I’m thrilled to be making my first appearance as a chef here at Moda Bake Shop! This project has been in the works for some time, but a new baby and a cross country move totally messed with my sewjo and time for blogging. We’re in our new place now, and I get to set up a new sewing space. I want you join me for a Sewing Room Clean-up Along as I get my space in order, so please come visit me at Sewing by Moonlight.

Because this design repeats the same shape, it would be easy to add in another charm pack and some more background fabric to make this larger, or leave off a couple rows to make it smaller. Because of the scrappy look, you could use charm packs from two different, coordinating fabric lines for the diamonds. Or you could make the background scrappy with white diamonds.

2 charm packs for the diamonds and border – Snap Pop by Sandy Gervais
3 charm packs + 4 additional charms for the background

2.5 yards for the quilt back
1/2 yard for the binding

*set aside 22 colorful charms for the outer border*
*set aside 6 background charms for the inner border*

Cut the remaining charms from your fabric collection into 8 sections. Using your rotary cutter, first cut the charm twice corner-to-corner to make four triangles. Subcut those triangles through the middle to make 8 pieces.

Cut the remaining background charms into quarter from edge to edge, resulting in 2.5 inch squares.

You will have 496 squares of background fabric and 496 triangles of colorful fabric.

Pair up each colorful triangle with a square of background fabric.

Place the triangle right side down on the square of background fabric so that the long edge of the triangle is off-set to the right side of the background square (see first photo below). The triangle must be at least 1/4 inch to the right of center so that when you sew the pieces together, your triangle will complete a 2.5 inch square. note: you do not have to place each piece exactly the same. Variable placement will make your diamonds wonky. Tilt some triangles slightly to the left or to the right. Place them farther to the right side of the the square. 

This is a great time to chain piece. Now trim off the extra bit of background fabric, and cut your triangles apart. Iron the seam open.

Now comes the tedious task of trimming 496 squares back to 2.5 inches. I lined up several rows on my cutting mat and trimmed several at a time with my rotary cutter. Just be careful that your squares don’t slip.

Match the squares into pairs so that the colorful corner triangles are touching. Sew them together using a 1/4 inch seam allowance. 

*set aside 14 pairs to use in the inner border*

Sew the remaining pairs into units of 6 pairs, as shown in the photo below. Two pairs will form a diamond and the third will have a half diamond facing the edge. 

Use these 6-pair unit to make three block types, as shown below. You will need six of Block A, six of Block B, and three of Block C. Trim Blocks A and B to 12.5 inches square and Block C to 12.5 x 4.5 inches.

Sew each block type into rows of three, matching up the 1/2 diamonds on the edges to form complete diamonds.

Create the inner borders. This border will complete the half diamonds along the long edges. Cut the six background charms you set aside in half, then trim 1/2 inch off one end. You will have 12 rectangles 2.5 x 4.5 inches. 

Use 6 of these for an inner border on each long edge of your quilt. Alternate a half diamond pair with a rectangle of background fabric. Sew the borders along the edges, matching the half diamonds in the border with the half diamonds on the edges of the quilt top. 

Create the outer borders. Cut the 22 colorful charms you set aside in half. Sew 9 of the 2.5 x 5 inch rectangles together using 1/4 inch seam allowance at the short sides. Sew this border along one of the short sides of your quilt. Repeat with another 9 rectangles and sew that border along the opposite side. Now sew 2 border pieces made of 13 triangles each and attach them to the two remaining sides of the quilt. You will have an overhang of 2.5 inches along each long side. 

I used those two overhanging squares with a strip of the binding fabric to piece the back.

I knew I wanted to quilt this with the dogwood free motion pattern found at Oh Fransson! The grid pattern of the quilt top lends itself perfectly to this technique. But when it came to what thread to use, I was at a loss. I visited my friend and quilting mentor and she asked me one very simple question: “Do you want to emphasize your quilting or your piecing?”

Since this is a project for Moda Bakeshop, I wanted to highlight precuts and let the quilting be secondary. The solution was Aurifil 50 wt thread in a color numbered 2021, which is white, but not bright white (you might call it winter white) so it fades into the background without standing out against the bright colors of Snap Pop.

Try this quilting pattern, or let your creativity guide you in another direction. Trim, bind (I tried machine binding for this one), and you’re finished. 

One quilt, 44 x 56 inches, perfect as a large baby quilt or a small throw.

Em Komiskey
{www.sewingbymoonlight.com}

Kissing Stars Quilt

Hello! It’s Crystal Hendrix again! I want to thank you all for your support and love that you have had for my previous tutorials! Thank you all for having patience with me when you discover that I am human! The main point is that quilting is fun and if you don’t make a mistake you don’t learn anything!

Today I bring you Kissing Stars made from the line, Flirt by Sandy Gervais. I fell in love with this line as soon as I saw it! I just love the greys, pinks,reds and teals that it showcases! This is a very popular block and there are tons of great tutorials that you can find out there, but I hope you like mine and that it teaches you how to make a good star block!

This is a LARGE quilt but the great thing about it is you can leave off rows or columns to fit any size bed or quilt size you want! Love that about this pattern! Now I am happy to present the tutorial, Kissing Stars!

For the Blocks:
1 Layer Cake + 2 Charm Packs  OR  6 Charm Packs  : Flirt by Sandy Gervais
1 Layer Cake + 2 Charm Packs  OR  6 Charm Packs : Moda Solid White (another good color that would go great with this is the Bella Solids : Gray, Zen Gray or Feather)

For the Border:
1 1/2 yards 17701-14 (or any other color combo you would like)

For the Binding & Backing:
 3/4 yards 17705-22 (or any other color combo you would like)
8 1/4 yards 7521-552 (or any other color combo you would like)

*Notes*     – Use a 1/4″ seam allowance through out the whole quilt
                      – When I refer to the term “solid color” this is my Bella White solid color.
                      – To make 30 blocks you will need 240 Flirt charm pieces and 240 solid color charm pieces. Each charm pack has a total of 42 pieces in each. This comes out to 5.7 charm packs needed. If you use a layer cake, you can cut it down to 4 charm packs. This is what I have done with my layer cake. So if you are using a layer cake, cut it all into 4 – 5″ squares and this will give you your charm pieces. Then you can either use 2 more charm packs or 1/2 of another layer cake.
                      – WOF = Width of Fabric. This is usually 45″ but after trimming off the selvedge edges you end up with either 42″ to 40″ left. This is still the WOF.

For this pattern we are working with a 5 x 6 layout design for a total of 30 blocks.

For each block you will need:
4 – 5″ charm pieces of your solid color
8 – 5″ charm pieces of Flirt ( This is 8 DIFFERENT charm pieces)
4 – 4.5″ x 4.5″ of your solid color

For the entire quilt you will need:
120 – 5″ charm pieces of your solid color
240 – 5″ charm pieces of Flirt (You only need 8 different pieces for each block, so for all of the blocks you can mix up the different charm pieces)
120 – 4.5″ x 4.5″ of your solid color

For your border cut your fabric into 10 – 5” strips. With these strips make 2 – 80.5″ x 5″ and 2 – 105.5″ x 5″ pieces. 

For the binding cut your fabric into 10 – 2.5″ strips. Sew these all together to make your binding. I use a fold-over binding method. 

For the backing cut all of your yardage into 3 – 97″ x WOF or 3 – 2 3/4 yards pieces. Then with your 3 different panels, cut the WOF down to 38“. Then sew the 3 panels together to give you approximately a backing of 97″ x 113″.

Now lets put together one block. You will do this same thing for a total of 30 blocks.

1. Take your 4 – Solid color charm pieces and your 8 – Flirt charm pieces and cut each of them on the diagonal. (There are MANY other ways that you can make a half square triangle, but this is how I prefer to make them. Simple and to the point. You can make the half square triangles using a different method but you will need to figure out the fabric required for it.)

2. Now I am a very visual person so at this point I lay out my block (see picture below –Yes I did this for all 30 blocks.) I think laying out your block helps reduce mistakes and having to use the dreaded seam ripper!

Once you know which piece you are going to sew together, I work on all of the half square triangles. Just place the right sides together and sew a 1/4″ seam down the diagonal of the pieces. Then press (always towards the darker side) and trim down your piece to 4 1/2″ x 4 1/2″. There may not be a lot of discard but if you combine all of the discard for the entire quilt, you will see that it makes a difference when assembling your quilt top.

You can see above all of my half square triangles sorted and piled all together. See my trimmings pile? If you were to keep all of that it would have made assembling the blocks and eventually the quilt top a lot harder. This also helps give you your nice points! 

3. Once you have all of your half square triangles assembled, sew together two of your smaller blocks (your finished block will have a total of 16 smaller blocks – but you will now have a total of 8 sets of blocks, refer to the picture above if you are confused). Then press each block pieces.

4. Sew 2 sets to make 1 block (you will have a total of 4 sets now) and press. Then sew together 2 sets to make 1 block (you will now have a total of 2 sets) and press. Then sew your last two sets together to make your finished block!

Now at this point you have finished one block. Continue making 29 more blocks using the 4 steps above. I did not take a picture of this, but at this point I trim all my blocks to measure 16.5″ x 16.5″. Once again I might not get much trimmings, but it makes sure that when I assemble my quilt top, that it is easier. (I guess you could say that this is optional)

5. Now we will need to assemble 6 rows of 5 blocks. I used a random order and pulled one block after another to make my rows. Always press your seams when finished.

6. Then we will take our 6 rows and sew them together to give us our quilt top. Don’t forget to press your seams!

At this point your quilt should measure approximately 80.5″ x 96.5″. I say approximately because even though I trim and make sure that I use only a 1/4″ seam allowance I am sometimes off. But this gives you a good idea of where you should be.

7. Now we are to our last step! Attach your borders to your quilt top, but doing adding the top and bottom strips (80.5″ x 5″) and then adding strips to each side ( 105.5″ x 5″). Make sure you press all of your seams when you are done.

There you have it, your quilt top is done! Now you can baste, quilt and bind any way you like. I did add fabric and cutting information that you may use for your binding and backing if you like.

Congratulations! You have yourself one large quilt measuring approximately 89″ x 105″. I find this to be a perfect size for my bed! You can make a few extra blocks and attach them to pillow cases (or actually make pillow cases using your blocks – as you can tell I did not) and even make a few throw pillows! You will have some left over scraps, not a lot, but enough to be able to make a few things.  

I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to see your version of this quilt pattern or any quilt pattern tutorial that you used to make a quilt for either yourself or someone else. You will never know how much seeing your work brightens my day! 

If you have any questions or have found where I have made an “oops” please send me an email! I will help you the best I can!

Thank you all! 

Crystal Hendrix

{hendrixville.blogspot.com}

nmommy02(at)gmail(dot)com

Flirtatious Hearts Table Topper & Pincushions

Hey, there!  I’m so glad you’ve popped in to see what’s cookin’ at the Moda Bake Shop today!  This is my first time here, so let me introduce myself.  My name is Julie Cefalu and I share my quilting and crafting ideas at my blog, The Crafty Quilter.  I have been quilting for 14 years, plus I get to work and teach at my favorite local quilt shop, The Granary, in Northern California.

I love working with Moda pre-cuts and today I am going to share a tutorial for an adorable table topper and pincushions that will be perfect for the month of February!  You might decide that you want to hang your quilt on the wall instead, but it’s small enough to place on a table (with a vase of flowers on top)!  And the pincushions are actually what started this project for me.  They were so cute, I thought why not make a table topper to go with them? And so it goes…

One Charm Pack of Flirt by Sandy Gervais for Moda
1/2 yard of Flirt 17705-23 White Tonal Lacy Hearts
1/8 yard of Flirt 17705-14 Blue Bird Lacy Hearts
1/4 yard of Flirt 17707-12 Red Wavy Plaid
1 yard backing fabric
34″ x 34″ batting

Paper backed fusible web (I used Heat ‘n Bond Lite)
Lightweight fusible interfacing
Craft felt in pink and/or red (for pincushions)
Polyester stuffing and/or crushed walnut shells (for pincushions)
Buttons (for pincushions)

Table Topper Instructions:
First, you will want to separate the charm pack into color families.  Set aside four of each color family for the four-patch blocks used in the table topper.

Next, pick out 4 squares of white and 4 squares of red to use for the heart appliques.

The rest of the charm squares can be used for the pincushions.

Cutting Instructions for the Table Topper:
White Tonal:
Cut (4) 2″ strips and sub cut into:

• (4) 2″ x 9 1/2″ rectangles for sashing
• (2) 2″ x 20″ rectangles for first inner border
• (2) 2″ x 23″ rectangles for first inner border

Cut (4) 3″ strips for outside border.  I prefer to measure my quilt top first before sub-cutting these into the correct length.  But here is what they should measure for your reference:

• (2) 3″ x 24 1/2″
• (2) 3″ x 29 1/2″

Blue Bird:
Cut (4) 1 1/4″ strips and subcut into:

• (2) 1 1/4″ x 23″ rectangles for middle border
• (2) 1 1/4″ x 24 1/2″ rectangles for middle border

Contrasting charm square:
Cut (1) 2″ square for sashing corner stone

Red Plaid:
Cut (3) 2 1/4″ strips for binding

Assembly Instructions for Table Topper:  (All seams are 1/4″ wide)

A.  Make 4-patch blocks:  Sew together the four charm squares of each color family into a 4-patch unit as shown.  The block should measure 9 1/2″ square (unfinished).  Press seams so that they oppose and the final row seam can be pressed as shown:

Make a total of (four) 4-patch blocks.

B.  Prepare Appliques

1.  Fuse a 4 3/4″ square of lightweight interfacing to each of the white 5″ charm squares to prevent the background fabric of the four-patches from shadowing through.

2.  Print out the heart shape (available in the printer friendly version at the end of this post) and trace 16 of the large hearts onto the paper side of the fusible webbing.  Cut out shapes roughly about 1/4″ around each heart. 

3.  Press fusible heart shapes onto wrong side of each white and red charm square.  You will be able to fit 2 hearts per square if you’re careful.

4.  Cut out hearts on drawn line carefully.  Remove paper layer from fused hearts. I use a pin to score the paper and then it’s easier to tear away.

5.  Arrange four hearts on each 4-patch block with center of hearts on the 4-patch seams as shown.  Fuse into place following manufacturer’s instructions.

6.  Stitch around raw edges of hearts using a blanket stitch or zig zag stitch. I used a small zig zag stitch and a red/coral variegated thread.

C.  Assembly:

1.  Lay out the 4-patch applique blocks, sashing strips and 2″ square as shown below.  Sew together into rows, pressing toward the sashing strip.

2.  Sew rows together.  Press toward sashing row.  This should now measure 20″ square.

3.  Add first border.  Sew a 2″ x 20″ rectangle to top and bottom of quilt top.  Press towards border.  Sew a 2″ x 23″ rectangle to both sides.  Press towards border.

4.  Add middle border.  Sew a 1 1/4″ x 23″ rectangle of blue bird fabric to the top and bottom of the quilt top as described above, pressing towards the blue bird border strips.  Repeat for both sides using the 1 1/4″ x 24 1/2″ strips.

5.  Add outside borders.  I have given cutting dimensions for the last four borders, but it’s a good idea to measure your quilt top first before cutting your 3″ strips to the correct length.  If you live in a perfect world, your first two outside border strips would be 3″ x 24 1/2″.  Stitch those to the top and bottom of your quilt, pressing towards the outside borders.

Repeat for both sides borders using 3″ x 29 1/2″ (if perfect) strips.

You’re almost done!  You get to baste, quilt and bind your table topper next.  I stitched in the ditch along the main seam lines (blocks and borders) and then had some fun with free motion quilting.

 One table topper measuring 29” x 29″.

Pincushion Instructions:

Use the left over charm squares from the table topper and the “garnishes” listed at the beginning of this post.

Cutting Instructions for two pincushions:

• Using two charm squares for the top, cut them in half to make 4 rectangles, 2 1/2″ x 5″.
• Using two charm squares for the bottom, cut them into 4 1/2″ squares.
• Cut fusible interfacing into (4) 4 1/4″ squares.

 Make 4-patch units.

1.  Sew together (2) 2 1/2″ x 5″ rectangles, and press towards the darker piece.  Repeat to make two sets.

 

2.  Cut each set into 2 1/2″ x 4 1/2″ units.

3.  Sew the units together to form a 4-patch.  Press.  Unit should measure 4 1/2″ square.

Fuse Interfacing:

I like to add a lightweight interfacing to my pincushion at this point. Using the 4 1/4″ squares of interfacing, fuse one to the wrong side of each of the 4-patch units and to each of the 4 1/2″ square bottoms.

Prepare hearts from craft felt:

Print out the pdf file (available in the printer friendly version) for the heart templates.  Using the small hearts, you can create a template out of freezer paper or template plastic and trace shape onto felt.  Cut out 4 hearts for each pincushion.

Place hearts on the four-patch units so that they are centered on the seam lines.  Stitch in place.  I used “Sliver” thread which is an iridescent thread by Sulky and stitched down the center only of each heart.

Sew together the four-patch top and the 4 1/2″ square bottom using a shorter stitch length (1.5 – 2.0) and leaving a  1 1/2″ opening on one side for turning.  Trim corners.  Turn right side out.

Stuff the pincushion with either walnut shells, polyester stuffing or a combination of both.

Hand or machine stitch opening closed.

Add button to the center of the hearts by using two strands of embroidery floss and starting at the bottom of the pincushion, bring your needle up to the center top and through the button.  Bring back down to the bottom and repeat.  Cinch it down on the bottom and knot thread.  Finished!

Two pincushions measuring 4 1/2″ square.

And if you have left over fabric, make a bow for your favorite vase!

Thanks for joining me today and I hope you visit my blog, The Crafty Quilter, for more tips, techniques and inspiration for your creative side!

Julie Cefalu
{thecraftyquilter.com}

Easy as Pie Layer Cake Quilt

Hi! My name is Sherri, and I blog over at A Quilting Life! I’m happy to be here today to share a fast and fun Layer Cake Quilt! What I love about this quilt is that there is absolutely no fabric waste, the quilt goes together quickly, and it’s the perfect classic pattern to showcase the fabrics you love!

1 Moda Layer Cake, you’ll need 42 squares
Extra Background Fabric, if desired*
1 1/4 yard Border Fabric
1/2 yard Binding Fabric
4 yards Backing Fabric
*If your Layer Cake has a lot more dark fabrics than light and medium, you might want to get a little extra yardage and cut a few 10″ light squares. For this quilt, I used 1/3 yard of one of the light prints and cut 4 squares 10″ x 10″ to add into the mix. I took out 4 of the darker squares, so that I still had 42 squares for my quilt.

Choose a Layer Cake…

Pick out some coordinating fabrics. Shown below, from top to bottom, are my binding, border, a little extra background fabric, and my quilt backing.

Start out by dividing your 42 Layer Cake squares into groups of two. Be sure there is good contrast between each set of two squares.

Next, draw a diagonal line from corner to corner on each of the lighter squares in each pair. Next you will sew 1/4″ from either side of the drawn line. I’ve drawn the stitching lines on either side of the diagonal line, shown above.

It saves a lot of time if you do the stitching by “chain piecing”…just stack up your fabrics and start sewing!

Next you will cut each pair of fabrics on the diagonal line.

Press seams toward the dark fabric. Each pair of squares will give you two matching half-square triangles.

Next, put your half-square triangles into sets of two. Again, go for contrast and variety…each pair of half-square triangles will make two quarter-square triangles for your quilt.

Now, put each pair of half-square triangles right sides together. be sure the dark fabrics of each pair are on opposite sides so the seams “nest” together.

Now, draw lines as you did when making the half-square triangles. Draw a diagonal line that goes across your stitching line. Sew 1/4″ away from either side of the diagonal line. Again, I’ve again drawn the stitching lines to the right and left to make it easier to see.

Once again, cut on the diagonal line…

Then press each block to one side. You will now have 42 quarter square triangle blocks! At this point you will want to trim your blocks to measure 9″ by 9″. The easiest way to do this is to use a 9″ or larger square ruler and line up the 4 1/2″ marks with the centers.

Lay out your blocks, mixing up the fabrics. Make 7 rows of 6 blocks each, and turn the blocks so that the darks from one block are next to the lights in the surrounding blocks.

Sew the blocks in each row together, and then sew the rows together. Since there are so many seams coming together, I pressed the block and row seams open to reduce bulk where 4 blocks come together. This helped the points to meet evenly.

Now it’s time to attach your borders. Cut 8 border strips 5″ by width of fabric. Piece together for length. Measure the sides of your quilt and cut two strips to equal that measurement. Your strips for your left and right borders should measure close to 5″ x 60″. Sew these borders to your quilt, pressing towards the border fabric.

Next, measure your quilt at the top and bottom and cut two border strips equal to that measurement. Your top and bottom border strips should measure close to 5″ x 60 1/2″. Again, sew these borders to your quilt and then press towards the border fabric.

Your quilt should now measure about 60 1/2″ x 69 1/2″. Piece your backing fabric to make a backing at least 68″ x 78″. Layer Backing, Batting, and Quilt Top…then quilt as desired.

Cut 7 strips 2 1/2″ x width of fabric and piece for length, to make your binding. Bind…

1 Fast and Fun Quilt, 60″ x 69″

And be sure to enjoy your quilt!
Thanks so much…I hope you’ll enjoy making this!

Sherri McConnell
{www.aquiltinglife.com}