PATTERN with a FOCAL PRINT

 You know when you have one print that you want to focus on in a quilt pattern? Well, this pattern is a good one for a focal print and it goes together fairly easily. You just have a square and a HST (half square triangle). The pattern develops by the placement of the HST.

Now don't let HSTs scare you. Just stay with me and I will show you an easy way to make them. Here is a picture of two of the squares and two of the HSTs in their placement. Pretty, right? You just keep reproducing them and add a narrow "ribbon" border from another color (I'm going to use gold) and a bigger border using the focal print. 

My center portion will be 36 x 36 inches. The borders will increase the finished size to 44 x 48 inches.

The center design contains 36 blocks - half (18) of those will be cut 6.5" squares from the focal print and then half (18) HSTs. The HSTs will be made from nine (9) squares cut 7 inches from each of the two solid colors.

Don't count the squares...I changed my mind after I cut them.

Since the squares are done, you only have to make the HSTs and then you are ready to sew them together in your pattern.

I cut the solid colors 7 inches instead of 6.5 inches like the squares. This is a 1/8" bigger than really needed but I will trim off any excess after I make the HSTs. (I also do this because it is much easier to add 1 inch to the finished size than adding 7/8ths to the finished size and then measure it.) You know your finished size will be 6 inches because you cut the squares 6.5 inches and a 1/4" seam all the way around reduces the square to 6 inches  when finished. Since you will be making two (2) HSTs from one (1) square you only need half as many larger squares cut , thus nine (9). I guess I should say from two(2) squares because you will be sewing two (2) squares together - one of each color, but that is a total of nine (9) of each color to make eighteen (18) HSTs.

Making a HST...

4) Line up two of the squares one of each color to fit perfectly over each other as shown in 1). Then draw a diagonal line from two opposite corners. 3) Yes I used a pencil to draw my line on the light colored square. 2) You will be cutting on the line. 9)

5) I set the machine for 1/4" seam measurement and lengthened the stitch to 2.2. First stitch 1/4 " from the drawn line from corner to corner. 6) Then rotate the square around and stitch 1/4" from the drawn line on the side of the line. 8) May be hard to see. Then using the ruler as you guide, cut on the drawn line 9) making two triangles and press the seam open pressing away from the right side 10).

Once you have all of the HSTs made, you can trim off the excess making the HSTs 6.5 inches square.

Having a 6.5" square template helps to do this. You can use a larger square. It just means you will have to move the template as you work around the HST. Line the diagonal seam with the 45 degree line on the template 11) and trim off the excess. 12)

Here are the squares and HSTs on my design wall...

 Even though I showed you the pattern at the beginning of this post as a 12.5" block, that isn't how I sewed it. I wanted you to see what the pattern looks like with four (4) of the thirty-six (36) blocks.

Instead it is faster to make six (6) rows and then sew them together.

To make the rows, start with the first block on the left side and sew it to the second block (HST). Continue across with the other four blocks.

After I had each row made, I pressed the seams toward the focal print. 

You can sew two rows together as you finish the second one or wait until you have all six rows made; it doesn't matter.

Remember when sewing two rows together to "nest" the seams together and secure the left side with a pin. If you pressed correctly, this will be easier to do.

Ease the space between the seams together and secure them with several pins. 

All six rows sewed together...

I pressed the seams for the rows toward the top. It doesn't really matter.

To complete my quilt top, I cut  four (4) strips 1.5 inches wide across the WOF (width of the fabric). 

I am measuring the strip with the "yellow" ruler. The "black" ruler is placed next to it before removing the yellow one to cut the strip. That way I will be cutting on the right side of the ruler.

I sew the side strips/borders first and then add the top and bottom strips/borders last. When I have a narrow "ribbon-like" border, I press the seams toward the strip. When I do the machine quilting, I will stitch close to the inside of the seams so that it looks like a ribbon sewed on top of the quilt.

Trim off the excess...

The first border is added...

Then I cut the outer border. Because my quilt top right now is square, but I want my finished quilt to be a rectangle, I will sew a narrower border (Cut 2.5" x wof) on the sides and a wider border (Cut 5" x wof) on the top and bottom.

Once again I will sew the side borders first, trim the excess on the ends and then sew the top and bottom borders and trimming off the excess. Before sewing the top and bottom borders, I pressed the side borders toward the ribbon border. After sewing the top and bottom borders, I pressed again toward the ribbon borders.

It is ready to take to Blankets of Hope Tuesday when we meet and be pinned with backing and batting for me to machine quilt.

This was really a fun quilt top to make. I hope you will give it a try.