Maple Leaf Block Instructions

To make the 9 1/2 inch maple leaf blocks:  

Some basic instructions

HSTs cut each, background and color 3 7/8” squares (cut diagonally once) to make two OR cut a 5 1/2” square and cut diagonally twice) to make 4.
The stem: cut 3/4” X 5 1/4” and use two background triangles.
Plus you’ll need one 3 1/2” background square and one 3 1/2” color square 

If you have this Easy Angle ruler, you can cut the shorter leaf section as shown (3 1/2 x 6 1/2").  I always like to have as few seams as possible.  To make the longer leaf piece make one that is 3" longer. If you don't have this ruler, you can make four 3 1/2" HSTs using the cutting instructions.

Proceed to sew the pieces as shown.

Continue sewing together until your block is complete and square up to be 9 1/2"

Quilting for a Good Cause

I helped out to quilt some pretty quilt tops that people have made to donate to good causes.  
  

Quilted with a looping heart design.  

This quilt is made with 8 inch finished blocks, set on point 

Star center is 4 1/2 inches. 

The star legs are triangles which are made with 3 1/2 inches cut diagonally twice 

The geese portion are 4 1/2 inches cut diagonally twice.  When sewn together it will be a flying geese block and should be trimmed to be 4 1/2 x 2 1/2 inches

The alternating block is a 4 1/2 inch center Square with 2 1/2” x 4 1/2” on two sides and two 8 1/2 x 2 1/2” on the other two sides. The outer border is a 2 1/2 inch yellow and then a 5 inch purple.

Make one block first to test if the measurements are accurate.  The blocks should be 8 1/2" unfinished

Quilted with phoenix feathers design

Possible cutting instructions for this block.  Do a test block to make sure.  These are 12 1/2” inches unfinished blocks

Center black square 3 1/2” 

Color square 4” cut diagonally twice and sew to black center square to make a 4 1/2" unfinished square in a square. 

Cut two more 4” color blocks cut diagonally as they will also be used for the flying geese blocks.  

For the goose, it’s a 4 7/8” square cut diagonally twice.  

The flying geese blocks will be trimmed to be 4 1/2 x 2 1/2".  

Sew a 4 1/2 x 2 1/2" yellow rectangles on each side of the 4 1/2" square in a square block.  

Sew a flying geese block to each of the yellow rectangles you just sewed.  

That column will now be 12 1/2 x 4 1/2"  Sew 12 1/2 x 2 1/2" strips to each side of the column and trim to 8 1/2 x 12 1/2".  

Sew 2 1/2" backgound squares to the sides of the other two flying geese blocks and trim to 2 1/2 x 12 1/2"

Sew to the the column side to make a 12 1/2" block.

The cornerstones are 2 1/2" squares and the sashing is 2 1/2 x 12 1/2"

Sunflower Topper

Beautiful Fall Morning

I completed this topper back in August about the same time I began making maple leaf blocks.

 

Cutting instructions
Petals:  2 1/4”. Snowball opposite corners of the plaid one with one black and one yellow. For the plain yellow one snowball top two corners with black 
Center:  3”. Snowball the corners with 4 yellow ones
Snowball corners: 1 1/4” cut diagonally once or 1 3/4” cut diag twice. 12 pieces black and 12 pieces yellow 
Corner pieces: 1 1/4 X 2 1/4” black (4)

Center:  2 5/8” square 
Orange: 3 5/8” square cut diagonally twice and 2 3/4” cut diagonally twice 
Gold: 2 3/4” squares
Yellow orange color: four 2” squares
Yellow triangles:  2 7/8” square cut diagonal twice 
Light yellow: 4” square cut twice and four 2” squares 2 

The trip around the world type design is made with 3 1/2" unfinished blocks and 3 1/2 x 6 1/2" rectangles.  You can find cutting instructions for lots of 3 1/2" blocks in this post

Quilted with bumble bees and flowers

Loving to see lots of Sunflowers blooming on my favorite hiking trail.

Another Fabulous Fall

In October 2010, I took a quilting class and we made maple leaf blocks using the triangle papers you sew on, and after that I was hooked on quilting!!  Thank you Nancy!!!

All crinkly autumn goodness!  It's not easy to tell here, but it is bound with a soft red polka bot binding

I made a label with permanent marker and then outlined with free motion quilting

This went together much quicker than my usual project.  I made 9 1/2" maple leaf blocks and alternated with low volume squares and completed the project in a little over a month.

My quilts are not usually big enough for a queen size bed but I made sure to make it big enough this time

This time with the 9" finished size squares, 9 squares across and 10 squares down, it came out to be 81 x 90" before quilting

I quilted it with big swirls and after quilting, washing and drying it is about 78 x 88"

My inspiration came from Helene Phillips, click her name for link to her Etsy shop and it's on page 2.  Here is a link to her lovely blog.  I adore her designs.  My plan was to make mine with no oranges since hers didn't have any (she has pink reds and coral reds) but for some reason as I was making my blocks and laying them out, they seemed to want some orang-y siblings, lol, so I complied.  I think I still adore hers more!  Hers is Hand quilted, which is pretty hard to beat.

Here's a picture before I added the oranges.  I see now it's probably because I added the yellows that the look changed.

Back to working on this Rainbow Nine Patch UFO

I started this project back in 2015 when I saw that my friend, Nancy, who taught me to quilt, had made one.  Hers were made with 1 1/2" strips so the squares finished at 1" but I'm using 2" strips so mine finish at 1 1/2".  This makes a 5" unfinished 9 patch and then I'm alternating with a 5 inch black square.

Although I had not packed up all the fabrics that I'd started making these blocks with, luckily I still had enough of most of them on hand to finish making the blocks (I hope).  In this picture I have the blocks laid out on the floor of my old house, on the back of a quilt, which left me very little room to walk around.

When I pulled them out recently, I put the ones I had made onto my design wall which is so much easier to maneuver around.

I just love the colors, almost better, in more of a monochromatic configuration than rainbow

But the rainbow is super pretty too

My design wall is about 72" square, which really isn't quite big enough for this so I'm pinning and taping some of the squares onto the wall

In this one I added the rest of the coral and then some orangy and the last orangy/yellow

I have a sunflower topper I started last year which would be nice to get finished for my pub table so we'll see how far I get on this, before I feel obligated to take out the sunflower project.  There's just not enough time in each season or I'm a very slow sewer

 

Double Irish Chain ready to Quilt

After a Few Years, I finally have this ready to Quilt, EXCEPT I will have to fix the mistake.  Can you see it?  That will be next February.

I guess I will need to think about making some matching Shams

 

Patriotic UFO and to remain a UFO for now

Back in June, I pulled out some old blocks thinking I might sew a row quilt, but will get back to it next year.

I snapped a few pictures and typed in some notes with some cutting instructions

2 inch squares. Big triangles are 5 1/2 inch squares cut once diagonally and little triangles are 3 inch squares cut once diagonally

A Couple Easter Items; Two Baby Quilts completed; and Neighborhood UFO

I had these house blocks back from a Fat Quarter Shop Quilt Along so decided to make a Spring Pillow Cover

Here's a Topper Also put together from some of the Fat quarter shop blocks QA and some Granny Square Blocks I'd made about 7 or 8 years ago.  It'll be quilted next year for Easter.

My Daughter asked me to make quilts for the kids of her childhood friend who grew up next door to us.  She requested Pink and Navy.

I've been working on these houses and trees for a few years so was working on them in the spring until I wanted to sew Patriotic things.

It's once again all packed up to be finished later!