Winterberries part 4 ( February 2021)

 Hello, hello, hello, 

I am back with the next part of our WINTERBERRIES sewalong! 

I hope that you all had an easy time with the appliqued blocks? You might not even have finished those yet if you are choosing to do needle turn applique and that is totally fine! But for those of you who are ready to move on, I am providing the instructions for the setting triangles today so you can move ahead ;).

Alright, we have to make 2 sizes of setting triangles, for the A and the B blocks on our diagram: 

For the A triangles you need to cut 2 squares at 14" from your light fabric. You will cut each square twice, on the diagonal, to end up with 4 triangles, like this:

Do this for both your squares so you end up with 8 A triangles all together.

For the B triangles you will cut 2 squares at 7 1/4 " from your light fabric. Cut each of these squares once on the diagonal, like this: 

You should now have 4 B triangles.

Before you lay out all the pieced and appliqued blocks to assemble your quilt top, press them all carefully and trim them to 9 1/2" ( if your blocks are all smaller than that, trim your blocks to all the same size, because this will make it much easier to assemble your quilt top).

Now lay out all your blocks and triangles according to the diagram:

 I had a hard time getting a photo of the entire quilt top all laid out, but the B triangles are at the 4 corners and the A's are on all 4 sides ( 2 per side).

Now it's time to sew the blocks together and this is easiest to do on the diagonal. Below I have shared the order of how I sewed my blocks together:

Start sewing your blocks and triangles together. Sewing triangles onto squares can get a little tricky so just make sure that your A triangles "tops" line up perfectly with your pieced blocks bottoms. Sound confusing? In the photo below I am about to sew triangle 1 to pieced block 2. Look at where they are matched perfectly. Start pinning there and work your way up and left.

When you get to the other edge you will notice that your triangle is longer. That is the way you want it!

 Now sew these two blocks, press them open and place them back in position so you can pin the next block ( number 3) to number 2. I highly recommend laying back your blocks every time so you can make sure that you don't accidentally sew a triangle the wrong way ( I speak from experience!).

When you have sewn together blocks 1,2, and 3, you can add triangle 4 to the top of block 2. Block 4 ( aka B triangle) is larger than block 2. In order to get that triangle sewn in the correct place, lightly fold it in half to find the center point. Do the same to block 2. Start pinning on this center mark and pin outwards. You should have an additional 1/4" or so on both sides. Perfect! ( Because I forgot to take photos of this, I recreated it with some paper "blocks". )

 Sew these blocks and press. Now move on to the next row and sew that on in a similar manner ( this next row is easier because there are no B triangles to worry about!)

Continue to sew blocks and triangles together row by row until all your rows are complete:

 And then sew your rows together one by one until the entire quilt top is put together. Press the entire top and now you are ready to add batting, backing, and quilting, but we will leave that until next time ;). If anything is not clear, please ask! I am happy to help.

For any of you who are interested in the tools I used in this segment of making the quilt, I am providing these links. The right tools do make a difference and having them just makes your quilting life easier  :).

 

• To square up my blocks I used this ruler( click).
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• To cut my large 14 inch blocks I used this ruler ( click here for similar).
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• I couldn't live without my large 60mm Olfa  rotary cutter(click). The handle is ergonomically designed and the blade automatically retracts when you let go of the handle, so no chance of accidentally cutting yourself. I have had mine for probably more than 12 years and, with a new blade once in a while, it works as well as the first day I got it.
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• And lastly, my rotary cutter works great together with my large, self healing cutting mat ( click). When I first started quilting I bought a cheaper brand because that is what I could afford, but a good one makes a world of difference. This one is nice and large ( 24 by 36), doesn't slide around, and is just great!

Remember that every purchase you make through one of my links doesn't cost you a penny extra, but it does provide me with a small commission, and for that I thank you!

Until next time~ happy creating!

Monique