PATIENCE CORNERS BLANKET OF HOPE

 

The first time I made this block pattern I was involved in a group I found on Facebook that contained thirty women who were to make thirty 12.5 inch quilt blocks, one for each member of the group. With the thirty blocks, each person could then make themselves a quilt with blocks from all over North America. You could make the same block if you wished or make different ones. 

Since then I have made a couple of Blankets of Hope for our church's quilt ministry using the pattern. It makes such a pretty quilt that several other members have used the pattern also. I just finished one that I especially liked because of the fabric prints I used and since I haven't had a tutorial in a while for a quilt pattern, I thought I would show how to make it.

It is such a versatile pattern because of its versatility with fabrics. If you are making a lap size quilt (about 42 X 48 inches), it makes up nicely using a charm pack or make it "scrappy by using scraps, or like how I made this one, use one "busy" print for all of the 4.5" squares.

The pattern consist of 42 (forty-two) 4.5 inch squares and 42 strips 4.5 X 2.5 inches and 42 strips 6.5 X 2.5 inches. To make the quilt 42 X 48 inches, I added a 3 inch border.

I used a solid for the strips that went well with the print I used for squares. I cut a strip the width of the fabric and 4.5 inches wide and a strip the width of the fabric and 6.5 inches wide. Then I cut the two strips into 2.5 inch wide pieces to make the rectangles.

From the busy print I chose, I cut strips 4.5 inch across the WOF. From each one I cut  9 (nine) 4.5 inch squares. Doing the math, that means I cut 5 (five) strips.

If you are using a charm pack, you will have to trim the squares down to 4.5 inches for this size quilt. *

Since my busy print was non-directional (didn't have a pattern that had prints going one-way), I could speed up the time to make the blocks by "chain-sewing". I took all of the squares in a pile and first sewed the shorter rectangle to one side of the square without stopping to cut the thread. I  pressed the seams first to seal the stitches and then pressed the seam on both sides to one direction.  Then I stitched the longer strip down the perpendicular side with the first seam. Repeated the pressing. AND the blocks were made. 

All I had to do was arrange them on my design wall so that I distributed the print out over the top.

Did you notice how I arranged them? I alternated the rows so that the squares were completely surrounded by the solid color. Now that meant sometimes corners were touching with the squares and sometimes they weren't. I'm not sure which were the "patient" corners - the ones meeting or the ones not. What do you think?

I sew the blocks together to make strips (rows or columns) depending on which would be the less. In this case, the top is 6 columns by 7 rows so I will sew the vertical blocks together to make 6 columns because that will be one less strips to sew to complete the panel. 

When I have the columns made, I seal the seam and then press the seams in each column going the same directions for the column. So that the seams will "nest" when I sew the columns together, I press the odd numbered columns going back toward the first block and the even numbered columns going away. Now you can do which ever way you prefer. It is easy for me to remember this way. You just want to be consistent so your seams will match up when you sew them.

Once you sew the columns together, you can press the seams any direction you wish, I just think it looks nicer if you do all of the columns the same direction.

Now I added the 3 (three) inch border by cutting 5 (five) strips 3.5 inches wide (remember the two quarter inch seams) across the width of the fabric. You need five because the "length" of the quilt will be 48 inches and your fabric is probably 42 inches at the most. The fifth strip will be pieced with two of the other strips for the sides. Sew the top and bottom strip on first and press it toward the border unless it is a white fabric. Cut off any access that you might have. Then sew two of the other strips together pressing the seam to one direction and sew it to one side of the top. Cut off the excess and then sew the excess to the last strip you cut and sew it down the last side.

To finish the quilt, I went back to the pink that I had used for the rectangles in the blocks to cut for my binding. I cut the strips 2.5 inches wide across the width of the fabric for the binding. I usually cut five strips but this pink fabric was wider and I only used three and part of a fourth one to make the binding. I sewed the binding on the back and then brought it over to the front and machine stitched a fancy decorative stitch to sew it back down. If you are sewing the binding down by hand, you will machine stitch it to the front of the quilt and bring it over to the back to slip stitch down. I have only started doing the fancy stitch because sometimes my arthritis in my hands does not want to corporate with me. 

I "turned in" the Blanket of Hope yesterday when our quilting group met.

Let me know if you have any questions. I would love to see your finished quilts in the comment section. Enjoy.

A NEW BLANKET FOR HENRY

 It has been a while since I shared a tutorial for a new quilt, but this one is surprising easy and looks awesome when it is finished. I liked it so much that I made one quickly for Henry, our ten year old grandson in CO. I can't wait to make another one for Blankets of Hope, the quilt ministry at church.

I just love when I see a picture of a finished quilt especially if it looks challenging but discovers it really isn't when I see what the pattern is. I so enjoy "patterns". When I taught math in middle school, I was always telling the students to look for the pattern.

Back this fall, I took a day trip with two quilting friends to Hamilton, MO to a quilt show. We didn't see as many quilts as we thought because I was helping one of them who is new to quilting to look at the quilt and find the pattern. By the end of the day, she was doing really well. 

Henry living in CO is a Denver Bronco fan so a few days before we left to go to have an early Christmas with them, I decided to make him a blanket using some scraps I had left over after I made a Blanket of Hope for a young man at church who was very ill. I asked his mother if he liked the Chiefs (we do live in Kansas City afterall) and she said, "No. Actually he likes the Denver Broncos." I had to order the fabric because our fabric stores sell Chiefs material. I did have to buy some more blue and orange flannel because I was out of it for Henry's quilt.

I didn't have enough time to completely finish it before we left, but I got the top made, sandwiched it with backing, machine quilted it, and sewed the binding on. After we got to CO, I handstitched the binding down in the hotel that night and gave it to him the next morning when we saw them. 

This is the best picture of the quilt top for you to see how pretty the pattern is. It looks like a Bronco square is resting on top of blue and orange squares/blocks.

 Here it is hanging over the railing which is where quilt tops usually "live" after I get the top made but before it is finished as a quilt. It does usually end up back here after it is finished until the group meets.

Here it is as it went with me to CO with the binding sewed on with the machine. Many of my friends sew the binding down also with the machine, but I like to finish the binding by slipstitching it down by hand. It is so relaxing for me and gives me a chance to enjoy the quilt.

This binding was a piece in my stash that I have had a long time. It worked perfectly though with its navy background and small orange flower with a little added green leaf. 

And finally a picture of the finished quilt showing the backing. If you look closely, you can see how I machine quilted it. Since I made the blanket a little bigger than my usual lap-sized quilts, I purchased an oversized throw and it worked perfectly. I didn't use any batting since the blanket was thick and the top was mostly flannel.

     

My quilt/blanket consisted of sixteen 12-inch finished blocks and a top and bottom 3-inch finished row that is a partial block. I hope that is easy to see. The secret to the pattern though is that it is sewed together in 6-1/2 inch rows and not this 12-inch finished block.

Let start at the beginning with the cutting...just two ways of cutting.

The focal square is a cut 6-1/2 inch square from the print that I wanted to "showcase". I cut sixteen of those. I did this by cutting three 6-1/2 inch wide strips across the width of the fabric (wof) and then cutting six 6-1/2 inch squares from each strip. I had enough of the fabric, that I could "fussy cut" (chose where I was going to cut) where I cut the strips to feature either the word Bronco or the horse's head. (I initially cut twenty squares but settled on just using sixteen of them.)

I arranged the squares on my design wall to make sure I didn't have two similar blocks next to each other.

With the blue and orange flannel fabrics, I cut 3-1/2 inch wide strips across the wof from each color. I sewed two strips together, one of each color and made a bunch of these. They will form what looks like the blue and orange squares that the Bronco squares rests on. This technique is called "strip piecing".

I pressed them open and

then cut across in either 3-1/2 inch pieces (called a twozie*) that will be used with the 6-1/2 inch focal print square 

or

6-1/2 inch square pieces also a twozie* that will be used in rows with other 6-1/2 inch square twozies*.

That's it. After I have all of my pieces cut,  I go back to my design wall and lay the pieces out in the pattern. Look at the picture on the right at the top row above the blue line. This row consists of the 3-1/2 inch twozies* and the 6-1/2 inch focal print squares. (There is a twozie* before and after each focal print alternating for a checkered board effect. As you look at the picture you can see the fourzie** that forms with the twozies* since they come before and after the focal print. The row consists of four focal prints squares and eight twozies*.) 

or

eight of the 6-1/2 inch square twozies*  cut from the orange and blue wide sewed strips. (just below the blue line) Every other square is inverted to give a checkered board effect.

To further show making the row with the focal print, first sew two of the twozies* together alternating the colors to make a fourzie**. (four squares sewed together) (I know you can't see this in the picture.) Press the seam to one direction.

Then sew the fourzies** between the focal print starting and ending each row with a twozie*.

I did the same for the other row of just 6-1/2 inch twozies alternating across for the checkered board look. The top three rows are sewed in the picture, but not sewed together even thought it looks like it in the picture. I usually wait until I have all of the rows made, but you don't have to.

When you are ready to sew the rows together, the only seams that you have to match are the ones between what is the 12-1/2 inch block. To make this easier, I resort to my normal way of pressing seams...the odd numbered rows, I press back toward the beginning of the row and the even numbered rows, I press toward the end of the row. This allows me to "nest" the seams. 

I finished the top by repeating a  row of the 6-1/2 inch square twozies* and sewed one on the top and the other one on the bottom. 

To machine quilt the blanket, I first sewed an asterisk in the center of each focal square. This was a fancy stitch on my machine that made a line of these. I just stopped it when it finished the asterisk. Look closely - it is below the big C in Broncos and the ER in Denver.

I made sure I had the layers flat and pinned it in each corner and then pinned the center where I would stitch the asterisk. 

After that I machine stitched along the seams of the 12-1/2 inch block horizontally and vertically with a wavy pattern my machine will make.

Depending on the look you want for your quilt, if you want it to look 3 dimensional, if you want to use prints instead of solid colors for the background, choose small prints  so that the seams won't stand out. You also should not chose a directional print since you are alternating/inverting the background pieces. 

As I said earlier, I know I will be making another quilt by this pattern for Blankets of Hope.*** I would love to see pictures of your finished quilt, if you decide to give the pattern a try. If you have any questions just ask in the comments. 

My finished quilt/blanket for Henry was 48 x 54 inches.

 

It consisted of five rows of the 6-1/2 inch square orange and blue fourzies** (eight 6-1/2 inch twozies* sewed together) 

and four rows of the 3-1/2 inch twozies* before and after each focal print. (eight 3-1/2 inch twozies* on each row and four 6-1/2 inch focal print squares.) 

If you do the math, from the 3-1/2 inch x wof strips, I started with each color and cut thirty-two 3-1/2 inch twozies* and forty 6-1/2 inch twozies*. So I cut about 10 strips of each color, orange and blue - 3-1/2 inches x wof from approximately 1 yard of fabric of each color. I had a yard of the Bronco focal print.

* a twozie or two squares sewed together

** a fourzie or two sets of twozies sewed together. The four smaller squares can be four different colors or two different colors arranged with the same colors/prints sewed* diagonally from each other.

*** I picked out three pieces for the Blanket of Hope. What do you think?

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.