Southern Star Finish

 Many thanks to my hive and friends that crashed. She is a beauty! 

Hive 1 September Economy Blocks for Abby

 

Hi Abby,

These were fun to make! I loved searching my stash for whimsy prints. Hope you like them and that your quilt ends up big enough to 'drown in it' 😃.

They are going on their way to you today.

Happy quilting,

Rita

Economy Blocks for Abby

Hi Abby!

Thanks for this fun request for your "extra long" quilt. I did my best to avoid introducing blue fabric, but I failed😂.

Happy Sewing!

Marie

Hive 5 - September Tutorial - Double Disappearing 9 Patch for Erin

Double Disappearing 9 Patch for Erin

Hive 5 Tutorial for September 2024

The number of times I have gone back to Christina Cameli’s tutorial on

the double disappearing 9 patch (dd9p) block is embarrassing.

Her Blog ‘A Few Scraps’ is a wealth of great stuff and here is her tutorial

https://www.afewscraps.com/2014/07/double-disappearing-nine-patch-improved.html

her original tutorial really inspired my thoughts on color/background and layout ideas:

https://www.afewscraps.com/2011/08/double-disappearing-nine-patch.html

In 2020, another stashbee participant, Em from @moonlightsewing, did another dd9p tutorial withdifferent dimensions. Hers uses charm squares and ends in a 19.5” finished block

https://stashbee.blogspot.com/search?q=double+disappearing+

This is going to be following The first tutorial for a 10” finished block.

The basics of this block are sewing a nine-patch block from your small squares,

cutting that nine-patch into quarters, adding the large squares to create a new 9 patch.

Then you'll repeat the process of cutting, rotating blocks and sewing.

This makes sense when you see it, I promise.

NOTES:

For the stashbee, I’m going to have you stop after creating just the first disappearing 9 patch block.

From here, I’m going to cut them into quarters to create final blocks. I want to play with mixing and matching

parts of the blocks that you have created!

I’m going to post a whole tutorial so you can have it if you want to make some dd9p in the future for a project of yours!

Fabric Choices-

I love a bright rainbow of colors. Think as ‘Neon’ as you can possibly get- like those packs of highlighters or

‘astrobrights’ paper. If you have solids, great! If not, please try to have the fabric read as color-true as possible:

tone on tone, small prints, blenders. Bonus points if you have really cute little prints that have wild/weird things like starry, tula pink, ruby star or other modern designers.

Background: Low volume brighter whites, light greys 

Bright Colors: 

Cool Colors- turquoise blue, lime green, purple

Warm Colors- Pink, Magenta, Orange, yellow

Fabric Restrictions:

Please Do NOT use brown/cream, batiks, patriotic, large prints

Cutting list:

Small Squares 3”x3”

(4) Background/White

(4) Bright Colors for corners 

(1)Contrasting Bright Center Color - this will remain paired with your corner colors 

Large Squares 4”x4”

(1) Center Color - this will remain paired with your corner and first center colors 

(4) Background/White

BLOCK INSTRUCTIONS:

Make a nine-patch block

Your corners and middle should be your brightly-colored fabric, while the middle pieces will be your white/background fabric

Here's an example with prints and a light grey background instead of white. Please keep your background the same print/color.

Square up your fabric after cutting. 

Prepare to cut your nine-patch down the middle both ways

Spread the blocks out, keeping the original middle block at the center.

Place the new large squares for a new nine-patch. Your center square should be a color fabric, your middle squares should be background fabric. Sew into your new nine-patch

*****STASHBEE- STOP HERE - DON’T TRIM - Send as is!*****

You’re going to stop here and send me your disappearing nine-patch.

I am going to trim and quarter these to mix and match them up for the final product!

I can't wait to see the fun things that you send out!

Otherwise:

If you are following along to make your own dd9p:

Cut your new nine-patch down the middle in both directions,

rearrange opposing corner blocks by rotating 180 degrees, so your corner blocks now are in the center. Sew this together and you now have your dd9p!

There are lots of other fun variations you can do with this by just rearranging your small blocks before the final sew

Finished Quilt -Disappearing 9-patch block

Dear Bees in Hive 1 and Hive 6, 

I am happy to report that I have completed my quilt, and it is thanks to you!

This quilt was inspired by the theme of Autumn. 

I used the blocks from Hive 1 and a few from Hive 6.

I appreciate your help, you Bees are great!💕

Thank you!

Marie

 

Hive 7 - September Tutorial - Quilts of Valor

September has arrived too quickly. I had a million ideas flirting in my head. Since the traditional guild in my town is celebrating its 50th anniversary, they have decided to create 50 Quilts of Valor this year. I have committed to making two. One is now at the long armer. I would love you to help me build a second one with a modern feel. 

I would like STARS. Since our hive has been having so much fun with the "choose your own adventure" approach, you may choose the pattern and size. 

There are many interesting patterns that are not too traditional (see examples in final picture). Please choose whatever pattern you prefer, in whatever size you wish, as long as they read as stars. They may be pieced or paper pieced, but please no appliqué. 

If you'd like some ideas, Moda has directions for 40 different stars at their blockheads5 website. To see the directions, click on the view button under each one.

I will lay out the all the blocks randomly and will fill the blanks to give the quilt a modern look. 

Colours are WHITE, RED and BLUE: in solid, in geometric, in stripes, in modern prints. Please no flowers, no civil war, no calico, no patriotic pattern either. 

    Reds: clear or rich (no pinkish or orange tones) 

    Blues: from medium blue to dark navy 

    White, white on white (avoid the off white, beige, cream) 

Here are some print style examples:

Here are 3 examples of star blocks:

These 3 patterns were picked from quilterscache.com. There are tones of block ideas of every style on that site. You can choose by name or by size or go through all the pages. 

Thanks for warming the heart of a deserving veteran❣️  

Here's an unusual request. Please mail your block(s) after September 10th. My mail is being held at the post office until September 12th. Of course, you may post them on IG as soon as they are done as I would love to see them earlier. I will notify you about their arrival after September 12th.

 Diane

Hive 2- September Tutorial- Interlocking Pipelines Square

 

Hive 2- September: Interlocking Pipelines Square

12” finished square- 12.5”with seam allowance

 

This is based on an image of a block I saw once and have no idea where and cannot find again since I don’t know what it’s actually called. This isn’t an original idea, and I would happily give attribution to whomever did think it up if anyone knows who that is.

Color choices:  colors 1 and 2 should contrast though they don’t have to be straight color opposite. Color 3, where colors 1 and 2 intersect, should also be quite different from 1 and 2. Try not to use directional prints or patterns with words as I will be turning these different directions when assembling the quilt top.

For colors- think “Obnoxious” and go BRIGHT (does not have to be light- see examples below) and BOLD and BUSY. Please- Not pastels & not muted.  Prints are ok- but please no children’s patterns or thematic- they should be generic images not specific ones. Batiks are ok. Neon is ok, but not exactly what I mean by bright. There are some examples at the bottom of the instructions.

Fabric needs and cutting:

1.       Color 1-

a.       1 of 6.5” square

b.       4 of 2.5” squares

2.       Color 2-

a.       1 of 6.5” square

b.       4 of 2.5” squares

3.       Color 3-

a.       2 of 2.5” squares

4.       Background- plain black or something that reads very dark black (I used Kona black, but I’m ok with black on black or dark grey on black)

a.       16 of 2.5” squares

Sewing:

First the snowball blocks

1.       Need to make a 6.5” snowball for each of color 1 and 2 using black in the corners-

a.       start with the 6.5” color square and 4 of the 2.5” black squares for each of color 1 and color 2.

                                                               i.      Draw a diagonal line across the wrong-side of the black fabric from corner to corner.

                                                             ii.      Line up the small black square right sides together on top of the 6.5” color square in a corner. The diagonal line you drew should look like it cuts off the corner.

2.       Sew along the diagonal and then trim the comer off ¼” above/outside the seam you just sewed- actually cut off the corner!

3.       Repeat for all 4 black squares putting one on top of each corner of the colored square.

4.       Open the black triangles so the center becomes an octagon with black triangles in the 4 corners- press seams out towards the black.

(instructions and based on https://scissortailquilting.com/quilt-block-library/snowball-quilt-block/) 

Second the pipe blocks- this is just two 9 patch blocks.

For each nine patch you need: 

2 of 2.5” squares of color 1; 

2 of 2.5” squares of color 2; 

1 of 2.5” square of color 3; and 

4 of 2.5” squares of black; 

Arrange with the 1 of the color 3 square in the center, the 4 black squares in the outer corners. The squares from colors 1 and 2 should be on opposite sides of the center block, one going across and one going up and down. You should have 2 of these nine patches at 6.5” square when you have finished

Sew: Row 1- Black, Color 1, Black; Row 2- Color 2, Color 3, Color 2; Row 3- Black, Color 1, Black

For rows 1 and 3 press seams out towards the black, for row 2- press seams in towards middle color 3

Sew the 3 rows together and press seams outwards towards rows 1 & 3.

Assembling the block

Now lay out your snowballs on the top left and bottom right corners. Put the nine-patches in the other corners- top right and bottom left. The colors at the edges of the the nine patches should meet the same colors at the edges of the snowball- if not rotate them until they do. Ideally- it’ll look like the color is flowing from the pool out through the pipes- see examples at the end. 

Sew them together for final square of 12” finished, 12.5” with seam allowance

 Viola! Complete! 

Final note- I will be making a border with “caps” for the open pipe ends- if you have at least 6.5” x 4.5” of any of your 3 colors leftover that you would be willing to send so I can incorporate it into the border- that would be awesome. I’d rather use what’s in the quilt over introducing new fabric in the border.

 

Here is an image of some of the blocks I made in trying to create these instructions, for inspiration:

Hive 1 September Tutorial - Economy Blocks for Abby

Hiya Hive 1! I can't believe it's already September. This year is flying by! You've all pushed us to make such unique and interesting blocks this year, and I've really enjoyed branching out and learning new skills!

I do have a confession to make to y'all. I participated in... another block swap this year. (*cue scandalized gasps*) Please forgive me. I just have a need to swap!

The block I made for the other swap was a 6" (finished) economy block. Between my main swap group, a few side swaps, and all the blocks I made that I couldn't bear to part with, I ended up with about 90 economy blocks.

This is how they're arranged on my design wall at the moment.
I haven't started sewing them together yet.

Fortunately, I love each and every block I received. Unfortunately, I and my family are very tall people, and if I sewed all my blocks together right now, the size of the quilt simply would not cut it. If I'm laying under a quilt I need to be drowning in it, you know?

But luckily, that's where all of you come in! I'm hoping you'll all enjoy sewing a few extra economy blocks for me. These blocks are small and come together really quickly once the cutting is done, so I'm hoping you'll be willing to send me four unique 6½" economy blocks.

Fabric Requirements

Each block will need three separate fabrics. One for the center, one for the inner square, and one for the outer square.

• For the center, try to pick a fun motif to fussy cut, or a bold, unique, or eye-catching print

• For the outer square, in order to make the placement of the block in the color wash/gradient easier, try to pick a fabric that "reads" as a single color. It doesn't necessarily have to be a solid, or even a monotone print, but just make sure if you look at it from a distance, you immediately think "oh that's clearly the color __." Just generally try to avoid fabrics that are too multicolored.

• For all fabrics in the block please avoid any prints with religious or political themes or affiliations. I am happy to accept any other novelty, branded, or themed fabric. (e.g. Super Mario themed fabric = Yes, Christmas themed fabric = No)

• I already have, like, so many blocks with blue outer squares, so if you could avoid sending me too many more of those that would be great.

Beyond that, go crazy! Try to have fun picking and matching up fabrics. I found these blocks to be a great way to use up a lot of medium-sized scraps. 

Block Tutorial

For my previous block swap, we all followed the tutorial here for the 6" x 6" block. I've attempted to recreate it below, so if you're a fan of bad lighting and poor camera quality, read on.

Cutting Instructions

For each of your four economy blocks, you will need:

• Center:  one square - 3 ½" x 3 ½" square 
• Inner Square: two squares 3 ½" x 3 ½" - cut both squares on the diagonal to get a total of 4 triangles 
• Outer Square: two squares 4 ½" x 4 ½" - cut both squares on the diagonal to get a total of 4 triangles

A Note About Seam Allowance

For these blocks, you want to aim for a true ¼" seam allowance, and if necessary, err on the side of a bigger seam allowance rather than a smaller one. The inner and outer squares are cut with some wiggle room that you'll be trimming down.

Assembly

1. Take your center square and two of your smaller triangles. Center the long sides of the triangle on opposite sides of the center block (to center, I folded the triangles and the square in half, and then lined up and pinned on the fold). Sew both triangles to the square.

2. Trim off the overhanging triangles on each side, and press. I'm not picky about the seams, but I tended to press all of them away from the center block.

3. Take your remaining two small triangles and follow the same steps of centering, pinning, and sewing. Press your square flat.

 

4. Trim your square down to 4 ¾" x 4 ¾". You don't have to be perfect about centering your center square, but make sure you leave at least ¼" past each point of the center square so you don't lose any points when we sew the outer square on.

5. Repeat the whole process again with your bigger triangles. Center the first pair of triangles on the square, sew, trim, press. Then center the second pair of triangles, sew, press.

6. Finally, trim your block down to 6½" square. Again, It doesn't need to be perfectly centered, just make sure that you have at least ¼" around every point.

And then you're all done!

Please do NOT sew your 4 economy blocks together. I'll be mixing them into the ones I already have to get the color gradient effect, so feel free to make blocks in whatever color you like!

Thank you for helping me finish up this project! I've had a great time sewing all of your blocks this year, so I hope you all enjoy making some economy blocks for me!

❤ Abby

Hive 6 September Tutorial: Poet’s Star Sampler

Hello all! This is my first year participating in the Stash Bee and so this is my first time writing a guide. I’ve had so much fun making all of Hive 6’s blocks (and a few hive crashes for good measure!) so hopefully you’ll enjoy this month’s quilt and hopefully my guidance makes sense. 

I called this post the “poet’s star sampler” because this quilt is going to be a gift for a good friend of mine who makes his living as a poet. He does a lot of work in the community bringing people together in creative workshops and so I thought he would get such a kick out of being given a quilt made by our community! 

The idea behind this is that I’m setting a colour palette, but you can make whatever star shape your heart desires ✨⭐️🌟💫

Fabrics: 

Here’s my fabric pull: 

As you can see I’ve got lots of patterns. Geometrics, batiks, florals, solids, blenders. Ultimately anything goes so long as it reads the right sort of colour. 

• If you have any fabrics with text or words on them that fit the colour scheme, I’d love it if you would include those! That includes fun selveges. 

Background	Warm, darker purples
Main star colour	Warm-toned yellows
Accent colours	Pink, orange, red

• I think my purples skew a little lighter than I’d like, so if you have some darker purples that would be great to see. 
• Scrappy backgrounds and stars are more than welcome. 
• I won’t be too prescriptive about colours though! So long as it all reads warm-toned that’s the important thing. 

Star patterns: 

I’ve collated a collection of free star shape patterns. Feel free to pick one of these or find your own!

A range of sizes would be great: smaller blocks will help fill in the spaces between bigger blocks (and I struggle a bit with sewing little blocks). But any and all blocks will be gratefully received. 

• Moda Blockheads 5 is a collection of star shapes in 6” and 12”: https://modafabrics.com/blockheads5
• This website has 45 different star shapes: https://www.favequilts.com/Miscellaneous-Quilt-Projects/Star-Quilt-Patterns-Free-Block-Designs-and-Quilt-Ideas/amp 
• This website has lots of good patterns with tutorials: https://fabric406.com/blogs/fabric406-blog/30-of-the-best-star-quilt-block-patterns 
• This blog post has cutting instructions for a range of sawtooth star sizes: http://www.gigisthimble.com/2022/06/sawtooth-star-cutting-chart-tutorial.html?m=1 

General notes before you get started: 

• Press seams open or to the side, whichever you prefer. 
• Don’t worry about squaring blocks up, I’ll be happy to do that when I start putting things together. 

And with that, I think that’s the important bits! 

If you don’t want to make a decision yourself about what block to make (I hear you!), I’ve attached a tutorial below for how to make sawtooth stars using the 4 at a time flying geese method. They’re quick and easy and low-waste. They’ve included directions on how to make different sizes. So, if you want to put something together quickly, a couple of sawtooth stars would be great. 

https://www.diaryofaquilter.com/fast-flying-geese-sawtooth-star/ 

Conclusion 

Thanks so much for sticking with me all the way to the bottom. I’m super excited to see what you come up with and put this quilt together! Feel free to message me on Instagram @lighthouse.crafts if you have any questions. 

Thanks, Kieren ✨