It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas!

Hello Quilting Buddies!

It seems like just yesterday we were celebrating Christmas and it is already Christmas in July season! Really hard to imagine when we, here in Houston, are simmering in 90+ degree weather and swimming season is keeping our pool quite busy!

This year Sharon and I decided that we were going to “think outside the block”, which for us is usually 7″ by 7″ square, and go bigger!  Our “Blue and More Blue” quilt, which was released last month, has the larger 15″ by 15″ square block sizes, and today we’re sharing our “Pieces of Christmas” quilt for your viewing pleasure. The pattern includes quick piecing techniques to help you get a quilt (or maybe two) finished in time for Christmas.  Here’s a peek at the entire quilt!

The first block is a variation of the Endless Chain block.

I love the way that the block looks like a poinsettia with it’s vivid red and green.  It just feels cozy, like Christmas!

This block is a variation of the Christmas Star block:

I decided that if I was making a Christmas quilt, I needed a block that’s name included the word “Christmas”!

This is my favorite block, it is called Christmas Wreath:

Wouldn’t this block be cute if you added little red buttons to make holly berries on your Christmas wreath?  Something about the symmetry of this block just pleases me.

This block is Ms. P’s variation of the Hidden Star block:

To find a hidden star is a special gift!  I rearranged the half square triangles and added some flying geese to make this our own.

The last block is another Endless Chain variation.

Because we gather with the people we love at Christmas and I wanted a block with hearts, I added hearts in the corners for this Endless Chain variation.

Of course, no traditional quilt would be complete without offset blocks!  I am still in love with the Wild Goose Chase block which is set on the square, not on the diagonal as you would normally see it!

But wait!  I have more to show you!  When I put together the plans for this quilt, I loved the blocks so much that I decided to use them to make a new quilt for our king-sized bed!  I love Moda’s Kansas Troubles colorways and have completed 5 of each of the blocks mentioned above, using the Kansas Troubles fabric line.  I have the quilt top finished and ready to take to the longarm quilter!  As you may recall, my goal was to have the entire quilt completed by the end of the year, so I am patting myself on the back and repeating “Who’s a good girl?  Who’s a good girl?”  Here is a picture of my first five blocks and four offset blocks for one of the corners of my quilt:

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I’ll share a picture of the completed quilt when it is, um, complete!

Thank you for visiting our blog today!  If you have any questions or comments, we LOVE hearing from you!

Happy quilting,

Susan

If you’d like to purchase the “Pieces of Christmas” quilt pattern, it is available right here!  You can also find the individual block patterns in Ms P’s Pattern Shop.  

• Pieces of Christmas Quilt
  • Finished size = 57″ by 57″ square
  • Pattern includes instructions for 6 blocks and borders
  • $16 USD