Tag: Scrappy Swoon Quilt Along

Welcome back!    I hope your center star is taking shape and that you’re excited to see the quilt top grow.   Let’s get started on sections 3 and 4!

Section 3 In this section we introduce your secondary color.  For section three you’ll need 6 – 3 7/8 inch squares of both your secondary color AND your background color, and 12 – 3.5 inch squares of both your secondary color and your background color.


Take the 3 7/8 inch squares and pair each background square with a secondary color square.  Make 12 half square triangle blocks using these squares.


For each section 3 block you’ll use 3 half square triangle squares, three background squares, and three secondary color squares.  Lay them out in three rows of three as shown below:


Sew the squares into three rows:


Finally, sew the three rows together to make a square.  The block should measure 9.5 inches square.


Make 4 of these blocks.


These blocks will form the corner squares in the center of the quilt, like so:


It’s so pretty!  Don’t you love all those scraps?  Now for the next section…

Section 4 In this block you’ll be using both your primary and secondary colors.  Choose 12 – 3 7/8 inch squares of both colors, and 24 – 3.5 inch squares of both primary and secondary colors.


Again, pair up the 3 7/8 inch squares to make 24 half square triangles.


To make one block, you’ll use 3 half square triangles, 3 – 3.5 inch squares of primary color and 3 – 3.5 inch squares of your secondary color.  Lay them out like so:


Sew the squares into rows:


and the rows into a 9.5 inch square block:


Make eight of these blocks.


Now, making eight of these can be a bit tedious even though the block itself is incredibly simple.   I adopted a little method that allows me to quickly lay out all my blocks at once, keep the squares organized, and be able to walk away easily without a mess to return to.  In my house full of children, that’s important!  Here’s how I make them:


Get 9 pieces of paper.  On one sheet of paper, lay out the squares for a single block.  Then place a sheet of paper on top of that and lay out another block.  Do this eight times.


Because sewing is often something I come back to for ten minutes here and there, I keep a 9th piece of paper on top to make sure the squares will stay put (and to deter my three year old from scattering them).


When it’s time to sew the rows together, I put the top paper next to my stack and start transferring the blocks, one row at a time, to the other paper.


Once I’ve pieced three rows, I have another piece of paper ready to put on top of my rows so I can begin the next block.  I continue to do this until I’ve worked my way through the stack, and then I carry the stack to the ironing board and do it again.  This method lets me sew all the rows at once, iron all at once, then sew the rows together and before I know it, I’m on the last block and it seemed to happen so fast!


When the blocks are all pieced together I iron them and, to save workspace in my sewing room, I use clothing hangers to store the blocks.


I do this with all the quilt along or block of the month blocks I’m working on.  It keeps them nice and flat and easy to get to. I have a different hanger for each quilt hanging in the closet, and I find that seeing them like that keeps me motivated to work on the project.  These are probably very simple tips that you already use, but I find them helpful, especially when I’m making eight of the same thing!

Now, with sections 3 and 4 pieced, this is what the quilt top looks like so far:


I love it!   Please share your progress in our flikr group , (I LOVE all the great colors and fabrics you’ve shared already in your first two sections!) and we’ll meet back here next Monday for sections 5 & 6.

Happy sewing, Jennifer To go directly to the next post in this quilt along, click here.

This quilt is made in ten different sections.  We’ll cover two sections each week for five weeks, and then you’ll be piecing them all together.

*Important note:  When I published the fabric/cutting post last week, there was an error in the number of 3 7/8 inch background squares you’ll need.   It was corrected within a few hours, but if you didn’t see that correction (the right number is 42, not 30) then please go back and re-read the cutting requirements for your background fabric.

Let’s get started!

Section 1 For the first section you’ll need 36 – 3.5 inch square blocks in your primary color (the color of the center star, which is green in the quilt pictured above) Lay your squares out in a grid that is six rows of six squares each, like below:


Now sew your squares into six rows of six squares.

I recommend pressing all seams open in this quilt to make the later joining of each section to the others easy, and to reduce bulk.

Note:  all seam allowances in this quilt are 1/4 inch.


Press each row and sew together to form a square.


Iron, and stand back to admire your center square!  This piece should measure 18 1/2 inches square.

Section 2 For section two you’ll need 12 – 3 7/8 inch squares of background fabric AND 12 – 3 7/8 inch squares of your primary color (the same color used in section 1).  You will also need 24 – 3.5 inch squares of background fabric and 24 – 3.5 inch squares of primary color fabric.


With the 3 7/8 inch squares, pair each background square with a primary colored square to make half square triangles.  If you are unfamiliar with making a half square triangle, you can find an excellent tutorial here.
You will end up with 24 half square triangles.


For this piece, you will need six background and six primary colored 3.5 inch squares as well as six of your half square triangles.  Lay out three rows of six squares as you see below, with the background squares forming the center of a large patchwork flying geese block and the primary colors forming points for your center star.


Sew together into three rows of six squares:


Then sew the three rows together to make a rectangle that measures 18 1/2 inches long by 9 1/2 inches tall.


Make four of these blocks.


That’s it! The first two sections are complete.  Now lay them all out together and admire the center star for your quilt, then snap a picture and share it in the flikr group.


Come back next Monday, January 21st, for sections three and four.

Happy sewing, Jennifer For the next post in this quilt along, click here.