Finishing the Pinwheel Quilt

*Originally, I had not planned to put a border on this quilt.  But when it was all pieced together, it seemed to be floating and needed an anchor.  This is why, in my original instructions, the border fabric was not included.  Luckily, I had enough backing fabric to use for the border. *

Finishing Instructions

Trim all the blocks to 12 1/2 inches. 

Using the picture above as a layout guide, sew your blocks together row by row.  Press the seams for each row in opposite directions so they lock when sewing together. Pin well and sew the rows together.  Press.

Fabric Requirements

Borders

For borders you will need 3/4 yard of fabric. 

Cut fabric into 7 strips 3 1/2 in.  x WOF.  Piece these strips into:

2 – 61 in. x 3 1/2 in. strips for the sides and

2 – 66 1/2 in. x 3 1/2 in. strips for the top and bottom.

Binding

For binding you will need 1/2 to 2/3 yard of fabric.  (1/2 yard will only give you 1/2 inch to spare, so if you are worried about making a mistake, get 2/3 yard.)

Cut 7 strips 2 1/2 in. x WOF. 

Step 1

Take one 61 in. border strip and pin to quilt right sides together.  (I recommend finding the middle point of both the quilt and border and pin first.  Then, pin the two ends.  That way when pinning the rest of the border, you can ease the fabric, if needed, for a proper fit.)

Sew border onto quilt.  (*hint – When sewing on borders, always sew with the quilt back facing up.  That way, you can check to make sure you are not cutting of any points of your quilt blocks.)

Sew the next 61 in. border strip onto the opposite side.  Press both strips towards the border.

Step 2

With the  66 1/2 in. strips.  Sew the top and bottom border pieces on using the same method.  Press towards the borders.

Your are finished!! Hooray!

Quilt as desired and be sure to send me a picture of your quilt.  I would really love to see what you have done!

Stormy

Block of the Month–Month 7–Spinning 9 patch

This is the last block that finishes up our quilt! I don’t know if it has a name, so I’m calling it the Spinning 9 patch.  You will be making 13 of these blocks. 

Fabric Requirements

(Requirements for 13 blocks)

Background solid – Cut 52 – 4 1/2 in. squares

Pinwheel - Misc. Dark Fabrics- Cut 13 – 4 1/2 in. squares

Pinwheel - Misc. Light Fabrics– Cut 13 – 4 1/2 in. squares

Four Patch - Misc. Dark Fabrics– Cut 26 – 5 in. squares

Four Patch - Misc. Light Fabrics – Cut 26 – 5 in. squares

Step 1

Using one light 4 1/2 in. pinwheel square and one dark 4 1/2 in. pinwheel square, layer rights sides together.   Sew 1/4 in. around the four sides.

Step 2

Cut sewn squares diagonally both directions to form 4 half square triangles.

Step 3

Press open and lay out pinwheel block.

Step 4

Sew together into rows making sure to lock in seams, before pinning. Sew top row and bottom row together. Press.

Step 5

Trim pinwheel to 4 1/2 inches.  Make 13 pinwheel blocks.

Step 6

Using one light 5 in. square and one dark 5 in. square layer right sides together.  Sew 1/4 in. along two sides opposite of each other.

Step 7

Cut square in half forming two rectangles.

Step 8

Cut rectangles in half forming four, 2 1/2 in. square units.

Step 9

Press open. Sew together top row and bottom row to make a 4 patch square.

Step 10

Press and trim square to 4 1/2 in.  Make 52 four patch blocks.

Step 11

Lay out blocks into 9 patch unit using blocks from different fabrics, making sure to keep the dark corner squares of the 4 patch blocks  in the corners by the pinwheel.  This creates the chain throughout the quilt.

Step 12

Sew 9 patch together into rows.  Then sew rows together.  Again, be sure to nest seams together before pinning.  (Be careful not to turn one of the rows upside down like I did to the bottom row in this picture!)

Make 13 of these blocks.

You have now finished making all the quilt blocks! I will post the finishing details on putting the blocks together and adding a border in another day or so. 

Stormy

Moda Love Baby Quilt

My newest niece was born in July, so I had to make her a quilt. Baby quilts are the most fun to make because they are quick to finish and its fun to think about who will be using them.

I used the free “Moda Love Quilt Pattern” again to make this quilt, but added a 5 inch border to enlarge the size.  Finished it measures 42x42.

It’s made with one charm pack, so it’s super easy to piece.  I’ve been saving this fabric for years waiting for just the right project.  The fabric line is “Sunwashed” by “Sweetwater”. 

The combination of dots stripes and daises are my favorite!  Pink and grey have always been a favorite color combo of mine.

Too bad the quilt gets to cuddle with the baby before I do…

Stormy