Twisted Valentine - tutorial

My Twisted Valentine table topper. 

It was fun, easy and quick!

For those who have never made one of these fun quilts...

Here's how I made it. 

I raided my stash and found:

25 charm squares

1/3 yard border fabric

and of course the

'Lil' Twister" ruler 

 I laid out my charm squares in a 5 x 5 format. 

They are all sewn together and ready for the border to be put on.

I cut three 3" border strips

Side borders went on first,  then the top and bottom borders next.

Of course, I press my seams toward the border. 

Now comes the fun part of using this cool little ruler.

I start in the top left corner.

Line up the ruler with the seam lines as shown.

Carefully cut around the ruler on all sides, just going past the rulers edge.

Don't over cut.

Line up the ruler with the next intersection and cut around that piece again just going past the edge of the ruler.

Continue to cut out your Twister blocks as shown.  

Here's the first four Twister squares, laid out and ready to be sewn together.

Continue cutting across your quilt top.  Lay out the Twister blocks as you go.

It made it easier for me to do it this way.

I always work left to right, placing the cut squares next to each other as I go. 

 The last row also cuts into your border.

Everything is cut out.

I got the top row sewn together.

(I got excited and couldn't wait to sew things together)

Can see the Twister now?

The second row is sewn together in 3 block sections.

The bottom row is ready to be sewn.

You can see how it is put together here.

Now the (almost) finished project.  I still need to get it quilted.

This topper finishes 18" square.

 You can add more borders at this point if you choose.  

Now what to do with all the scraps left over????  Hmmmm...I hate to toss them,

 I mean how un-quilty of me.  So I took all those pieces and cut them down to a bunch of 2 1/4" squares and put them to good use.

  And what better to go with a table topper then a set of

Mug rugs!

I used some of the border fabric scraps and appliqued the 3 little hearts using Steam-A-Seam fusible webbing.  Then I quilted the large hearts in the center. 

Now for some chocolate!

Have a wonderful and Happy Valentines Day!!!

Fall Table Topper Tutorial

OK, here we go. For all of you that have never made a Tossed 9 Patch, this is for you. They are fast and easy. I thought it would be a fun project, (this is my first tossed 9 patch)



To make a Tossed 9 patch Table Topper you need to have one charm pack that has at least 36 - 5" squares. Your table topper will finish about 26 1/2" square. The fabric shown is Moda "Grande Finale" by Sandy Gervais.


Pick out 9 - 5" squares and lay them out as shown. The fabrics in the corners are going to be most prominent in your block once you cut it. Be sure to mix your lights, mediums and darks in the corners of your 9 patch. That way you won't have all the same color showing once you have cut your 9 patch. Note: If you have a fabric that is your least favorite, place that fabric square in the middle.

Sew your 9 patch together. Press your seams. Make 4 - 9 patch blocks.

Take your 9 patch block and cut it in half as shown.

Now, take the cut pieces and cut them in half again. Do this to all the 9 patch blocks. You now have a 16 Tossed block. Note: Now you can see that the fabric that was in the middle of your 9 patch is only a small square.

Take your 16 tossed blocks and lay them out turning them in different directions until you get the desired look. Your layout will be 4 blocks by 4 blocks.

Sew your blocks together in rows

Sew all your rows together. Press your seams as you go. Quilt as you desired. Bind. You now have a fast easy table topper for fall or any other season. (Because charm packs come in all seasons, colors and holidays, the choices are unlimited) Enjoy!!!

If you want to have a bigger quilt use more charm packs. I used two charm packs and used my favorite prints to make my table topper. I chose not to use the blues and purples that are in this fall line. So you see the quilt shown is 5 blocks X 5 blocks.

WARNING: This quilt is so easy that you may not stop at making one, or two or ten. Don't say that I didn't warn you. Smile!!!

Isn't it Lovely...

Wow! This is the Kaleidoscope pattern done in the fabric line "Lovely" by Moda. Karlene Riggs pieced it and Brandy Mascher quilted it. Great job ladies, it's just beautiful. How fun it is to see how the quilts look so different when using different fabrics and color ways. I love it. Thanks for sharing with us!!

Gone to Pieces..

Since I saw this fabric I had to do this quilt. I had the drawing in mind and I was waiting for the perfect fabric. Well, here it is, "Gone to Pieces". I tell you I couldn't sew fast enough to get it done. I love this quilt!!!! It's a great quilt for charm packs and layer cakes. I can't wait to make it again in some fun bright fabrics, or use my collection of Christmas fabrics. In fact I believe anything fabric you love would work. How fun would it be to make it all scrappy. Tell me what you think. Today I'm working on a snowman quilt...and can't wait to show you this too. Until next time, happy sewing and enjoy the fall.