Home Tweet Home Take Two

I've had some questions about how to make a larger version of Home Tweet Home, my latest Moda Bake Shop tutorial, using charm squares (5") rather than mini charm squares (2½").  If you're interested, here's some rough math to help you out.

For a 30½" square quilt made with a charm pack:

Birdhouse block size:  4¾" x 4¾" finished
Sashing strips:  1" x 4¾" finished (cut 1½" x 5¼")
Cornerstones:  1" x 1" finished (cut 1½" x 1½")
Inner border:  1" wide finished (cut 2 - 1½" x 22½" and 2 - 1½" x 24½")
HST border:  3" x 3" HSTs finished (make in the same manner described in the tutorial using 4" squares to start - you'll have to trim the charm squares first)
Outer border corner squares:  3" x 3" finished (cut 3½" x 3½")

I plugged this larger design into EQ7 and it's looks like you'd need roughly a yard of background fabric and ½ yard of fabric for the birdhouse roofs.

Here's a link to a foundation pattern that I drafted for the 4¾" birdhouse block.  And here, again, is the link to the original tutorial — the cutting measurements are different for the larger quilt, but the construction is the same.

I'd love to see what a bigger version of this quilt looks like and I may even try one myself!  One reader suggested appliquéing a black circle to the larger birdhouses rather than using buttons — great idea Cheryl!  Don't forget to tag me @JenDalyQuilts if you share your quilts on Instagram or Facebook!

Happy Quilting!

— Jen

Home Tweet Home

I know we still have two months of winter left, but somehow I can't help looking ahead to spring.  And in honor of the sweetest season, here's what I've been working on:

It's Home Tweet Home, my latest Moda Bake Shop tutorial.  This sweet quilt finishes at 15½" square.  You'll need a mini charm pack, a bit of yardage and 16 little buttons to make Home Tweet Home and you can find detailed instructions as well as plenty of how-to photos free at the Moda Bake Shop.

I made my little quilt with "Lilac Ridge" by Jan Patek Quilts.  Her shades of lavender, green, brown and cream are perfect for spring—soft, lovely and warm. 

But if you're wondering what Home Tweet Home would look like in a different color palette, here are a couple of ideas that I think are equally cute.  Each is inspired by a current or upcoming Moda fabric collection.

Mama's Cottage by April Rosenthal available now

Provencal by American Jane available in February

Whichever you choose, I hope you have fun making Home Tweet Home.  And if you share your little quilts on Instagram or Facebook, please tag me @JenDalyQuilts—I'd love to see what you're up to!

Halloween Candy - Free Mini Charm Pack Pattern

Happy Holidays, fellow quilters!  It's only July, but today I'm celebrating Christmas and Halloween with my latest Moda Bake Shop tutorial.

Christmas Candy is a 14" mini quilt that I made with a mini charm pack of gorgeous "Petites Maisons de Noël" fabric by French General for Moda.

This little project is fast and easy, but my favorite part is the simple backstitched poinsettias and vines and French Knot berries that wind their way around the red and green patchwork center.

Christmas Candy is also a great portable project—once you've assembled the quilt top, it's the perfect size to take along with you for some summer stitching.

Not quite ready to think about Christmas?  Here's Halloween Candy, a pillow version of the project made with "Hocus Pocus" by Sandy Gervais.

This spooky pillow is embellished with spiderwebs and spiders.  You can find the embroidery pattern here.

I made Halloween Candy the same way as Christmas Candy (find the tutorial here), with just a few adjustments:

• Before embroidering, I layered the pieced quilt top with both batting and a muslin lining panel.

• Instead of machine quilting this project, I simply stitched an "x" across each of the junctions (through all layers) in the center patchwork.

• And rather than binding the project, I used the following steps to turn it into a pillow:

Finishing the Pillow 

1. Cut two 10" x 14½" panels from your backing fabric. 
2. Fold one long (14½'') edge of a panel toward the wrong side ⅜'' twice and press.
3. Stitch the hem close to the fold.
4. Repeat with the second panel.
5. Layer one panel on the embroidered and trimmed quilt sandwich, with right sides together and raw edges aligned.
6. Layer the remaining panel on the opposite side of quilt sandwich, with right sides together and raw edges aligned.
7. Stitch through all layers using a 1/4'' seam.
8. Trim the corners to reduce bulk, turn the pillow sham right side out and insert a 14" x 14" pillow form.

Whether you choose Christmas or Halloween, mini quilt or pillow, if you'd like to make this fun mini charm pack project, you can find my free tutorial at the Moda Bake Shop.

Happy Stitching!

Candy Stars - Free Mini Charm Pack Pattern

Last week I was hard at work on my latest Moda Bake Shop tutorial, and this mini charm pack of gorgeous "Desert Bloom" fabric by Sherri and Chelsi of a Quilting Life...

...became this sweet little mini quilt!

I named it "Candy Stars" not only because it's made with a Moda Candy, but also because the colorful, sparkly half square triangles in the star blocks make me think of candy.

Candy Stars is fast, fun and easy, and it finishes at 16" square, the perfect size for a pillow!

Here's Candy Stars finished as a Christmas pillow and made with Kate Spain's beautiful "North Woods" fabric:

I made this little pillow exactly like the mini quilt, but substituted a white center square for the navy blue that I used in the "Desert Bloom" version.  I also used red perle cotton to embroider an oversized running stitch down the center of the sashing strips and the inner border.  This fun pillow has a totally different vibe than the original mini quilt, but it's just as sweet!

If you'd like to make your own version of Candy Stars, grab a mini charm pack and head over to the Moda Bake Shop for my free tutorial—you'll find complete instructions and lots of picture to help you on your way.

Happy Quilting!

Happy!! - Free Mini Charm Pack Pattern

I can't believe it's already July!  To celebrate summer, I've got a new project to share with you—it's my Happy!! table runner, and it's a featured recipe today at the Moda Bake Shop.

This little quilt is so easy and so much fun to make.  I made the square in a square blocks in the center of the quilt with a bit of white background fabric and two mini charm packs of "Brighten Up!" fabric by Me and My Sister Designs—gorgeous fabrics that remind me, for some reason, of rainbow sherbet!

But what really makes this quilt sing, and what made me happy enough to name the quilt Happy!!, is the cheerful embroidered flowers.

I used two strands of floss and a backstitch to embroider the flowers and I loved watching each one emerge.  In fact, I enjoyed making Happy!! so much, that I made it twice.  Here's my second version made with April Rosenthal's "Meadowbloom" fabric—this one makes me think of sunshine.

Happy!! is a great take along project—perfect for summer.  I've been carrying my quilt and floss around with me and embroidering whenever I have a few minutes of downtime.  I stitched the "Meadowbloom" version of the quilt while sitting on a grassy patch overlooking the Connecticut River during my son's crew practices.  Bliss!

The free tutorial for Happy!! is available at the Moda Bake Shop.  My tutorial includes instructions for making the square in a square blocks two ways—paper pieced and traditionally pieced.  I've also included a quick how-to for the backstitch, so you should find everything you need all in one place.

Happy!! Quilting!

Boxes and Bows - Free Charm Pack Pattern

It's another gorgeous summer weekend here in New Hampshire—sunny and warm—and wouldn't you know it, I'm thinking about Christmas!

That's because today, my new quilt Boxes and Bows is a featured recipe at the Moda Bake Shop.

Boxes and Bows is a fast and fun 15" x 42" holiday table runner that's made with only one charm pack, a bit of background fabric, and 1⅓ yard of backing/binding fabric.  

And speaking of fabric, I made my quilt with Kate Spain's colorful North Woods collection and it really is beautiful!  (the fabric, that is, although my quilt's not bad either!)

North Woods features cranberry reds, warm linen, and three shades of green that range from citron to turquoise—yum!  In fact, I loved Kate's fabric so much that I couldn't bear to discard even the 1½" scraps from the project.  Here's a sweet mini quilt that I made with the leftovers:

The center of this little quilt is comprised of 25—1½" squares, surrounded by a ½" (finished) white border.  The outer border is made of 8—1½" x 3½" rectangles and another 4—1½" squares.  I stitched down the middle of the white border with perle cotton for fun, but at 8" square, this quilt really doesn't require any quilting.  And check out the heart in the center of the quilt...

Looks like fussy cutting, right?  Nope, the heart ending up smack dab in the center of this little square was a coincidence, a happy accident as it turns out, because I built the little quilt around it!

If you'd like to make your own version of Boxes and Bows, my free tutorial is available at the Moda Bake Shop.  You'll find complete instructions for the project and lots of photos to help you along the way.  Have fun!

Apron Strings - Free Charm Pack Pattern

Don't you just love charm packs?!  A tidy little package of perfectly trimmed 5" squares and a guilt-free way to own an entire fabric collection -- what could be better?  If you're like me, though, eventually your charm pack collection will start to pile up and you'll realize it's time to cut one from the herd.  When that time comes, you're going to need a charm pack pattern!

Today my quilt, Apron Strings, is a featured recipe at the Moda Bake Shop.

Apron Strings is a sweet little 12" x 32" table runner made with, you guessed it, a charm pack and ⅔ yard of a coordinating fabric -- perfect for when your charm pack collection becomes a bit unwieldy. 

And Apron Strings couldn't be easier!  It features simple piecing and machine quilting -- great for a beginner or a weekend project.

I made Apron Strings with the beautiful "Hyde Park" collection by Blackbird Designs for Moda and I love the fabrics!  Somehow they manage to be both colorful and muted at the same time.  They give my quilt the soft, nostalgic feel that I was going for.

But if you're wondering how Apron Strings would look in a different color palette, here's another, brighter version made with "California Girl" by Fig Tree Quilts for Moda:

Love this one too!  It's got a summery, kitchen-y, retro vibe that I really like -- also nostalgic, but in a totally different way.

If you'd like to make your own Apron Strings table runner, head over to Moda Bake Shop for my free tutorial.  It's the perfect opportunity to pare down your charm pack stash, or the perfect excuse to invest in a new charm pack.  Your decision -- this is a judgement-free zone!!

Happy Quilting!

Christmas Baubles Quilt

What a gorgeous day here in New Hampshire!  It's so sunny and blissfully warm that Christmas seems a long way off, but I suppose it's never too early to at least start thinking about your Christmas quilting projects.

If you're looking for a fun and easy project (or an excuse to buy some Christmas fabrics!), try my Christmas Baubles quilt!  It's my latest recipe for the Moda Bake Shop and the free tutorial is featured at the Bake Shop today.

I have to say, I really love this sweet little project!  The combination of miniature Christmas ornament blocks and Kate Spain's colorful and cheerful "Jingle" fabrics just makes me happy.

Christmas Baubles is a very easy project.  It's perfect for a beginner and definitely doable in a weekend.  To make the quilt, you'll only need a single mini charm pack of Christmas fabric -- and Moda has some really gorgeous Christmas fabrics coming out this summer -- 2/3 yard of a background fabric, a scrap of gray fabric, and a yard of backing/binding fabric.  Once you have all of your ornament blocks made, the quilt comes together very quickly.  

I wanted this project to be fast and something that any quilter could finish at home, from soup to nuts, so I decided to try to quilt it on my regular old sewing machine.  I used a ruler and a vanishing marking pen to mark a tree shape that outlines the ornament blocks.  After stitching the tree, I then marked and stitched vertical lines in the background of the quilt.  The quilting went pretty quickly and I couldn't be happier with the results!  Just don't forget to be sure that the marking pen you choose comes out of your background fabric before you mark your quilt!!

So there you have it, a little taste of Christmas in June.  I hope Christmas Baubles fills you with inspiration, not anxiety.  And just in case you're wondering, there are 196 days until Christmas.  Plenty of time!!

Just Keep Swimming

April 10th and I woke up this morning to another half inch of ice on my car.  Now normally this would really set me off, especially on the heels of the three inches of snow that we got the day before.  I mean really, April 10th?!

But not today.  Today I'm flying high and even the prospect of spending 20 minutes scraping off my windshield can't diminish my good mood.  32°, whatever.  Freezing rain, bring it on.  I just don't care because as of today I'm officially a Moda Bake Shop Chef!!

My first recipe, Just Keep Swimming, is featured today at the Moda Bake Shop.  After our annual trip to Maine last summer (remember summer??) I was inspired to try my hand at incorporating fish into my quilt designs.  This happy little project is one of the results.

Twelve tropical fish swim around colorful patchwork on this fun 16" x 16" little quilt.  Just Keep Swimming is a fast and easy project that basically requires only one mini charm pack and 2/3 yard of a background fabric.  I chose to make this version with a "Paradiso" mini charm pack by Kate Spain for Moda.  I love her bright colors and bold patterns and I think they look great against the Bella Solid Royal Blue -- perfect for summer.

Here's a slightly quieter version of Just Keep Swimming, also made with Kate Spain fabric -- "Horizons" this time -- clearly I love Kate Spain's fabric.

Not sure if you noticed, but the fish are swimming in opposite directions in the two quilts.  Just a little construction issue that I hammered out for my tutorial -- never fear!

Just Keep Swimming is definitely doable in a weekend.  And if you'd like to turn it into a pillow, I give suggestions about how to do so in my Moda Bake Shop recipe.

The only problem I had making Just Keep Swimming was trying to find some sand for my cover shot!  New Hampshire has been inundated with snow this winter and it's hard to even find exposed ground, much less sand.  But last week I visited a nearby lake and after trudging 200 yards along a beach through knee deep snow, I managed to find a 2 foot strip of sand.  I then proceeded to make a sand castle while wearing boots and a ski coat.  Which was surreal in and of itself, but to top it off, the sand was water-logged and heavy and the wind blowing down the lake was arctic and by the time I finished, I could barely see through the tears in my eyes and the mascara running down my face -- hence the less than desirable sand castle.  I'm sure I looked like a fool making a sand castle while bundled up for winter and sporting raccoon eyes, but I got my cover shot.  And hey, it almost looks like summer, right?

Have fun making your own little quilt!  And if the weather is getting you down, just keep swimming...