I Wish You a Merry Quilt-A-Long: Block 9
Yay, today is release day for Block 9 in the I Wish You a Merry Quilt-A-Long. If you are new to the QAL visit the Facebook Group for the details and join the community of quilters who are getting in the spirit.
I loved making Block 9 designed by Bobbi Bridgeman of Snowy Days Quilting where you can find a tutorial for her Reindeer Games Block. I loved making this block! The tutorial is awesome and I was singing Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer while I sewed. It made me think of the classic stop motion animated TV show with narration and singing by Burl Ives. I must have been about five years old when I first saw that show, and that was a long time ago!
To be entered in the prize drawing just post a picture of your finished Block 7 in one of three places:
Fabric Choice
I'm still sticking with my scrappy palette of blues and greens so my Rudolph is stylishly teal. I like the way the face has texture with the print fabric and the antlers are smooth with the solid fabric. His nose definitely had to be red though. Couldn't mess with that tradition! I think he will go very well with my other blocks.My Tips for the Block
Bobbi's tutorial is easy to follow and very thorough with helpful photos. I love this kind of piecing so I thoroughly enjoyed making Rudolf. It will give you practice with several basic piecing techniques including flipped corners, strip piecing, and half square triangles. I do have a few tips for you. Bobbi recommends checking the accuracy of your 1/4" seam allowance before you start stitching. I definitely agree with this recommendation, especially since you will be lining up pieces that have different numbers of seams. If your seam allowance is too big the pieces with more seams will be short and if your seam allowance is too small the pieces with more seams will be too long. Use an accurate 1/4" seam allowance and the pieces will be just right. I have a tutorial on this in a previous post on my blog. Accurate cutting is another key to easy piecing. The more accurate you can be when you cut out the pieces the easier it will be to get all the pieces to match up nicely. For this pattern you will be working with small pieces and thin strips so be careful in handling the fabric. Don't pull or stretch the fabric when you are sewing or when you are pressing or you might distort the piecing. I used different colors than were written in the pattern so I found it helpful to make a note that, in my case, said "blue=white", "tan=teal", etc. so I could quickly translate the colors mentioned in the instructions to my fabrics. I hope you have as much fun with this pattern as I did!Enter the Block Prize Giveaway
As always there is a great prize drawing for Block . If you are the lucky winner you will receive a pdf pattern of your choice from Beth Sellers of Cooking Up Quilts and a fat quarter bundle featuring the Hopscotch collection from RJR Fabrics.
To be entered in the prize drawing just post a picture of your finished Block 7 in one of three places:
- Facebook Group
- Instagram with hashtag #iwishyouamerryqal
- Or link up your blog post of your finished block with the linky party on the designer's post.
Grand Prize Drawing in January
Remember, there will be a drawing for an amazing grand prize in January. To be eligible for the grand prize drawing you must post a completed quilt top using all twelve of the QAL blocks by January 16. Even if you miss deadlines for some of the individual block giveaways you can still post for the grand prize. Look at these amazing sponsors for the grand prize!