I got another Christmas at Granny’s block done. It is the little candy cane one on the lower right. These blocks are fun, but they have a lot of pieces, and many of them are practically microscopic.
The block ends up at 14 1/2″ unfinished, but those little center motifs are itty bitty.
I had to use fabric glue to stick these 3/4″ squares in place. That’s right, 3/4″ squares. That is just crazy. The square in a square unit you end up with is the bow on the candy cane.
The product I used is Acorn Seam Align Fabric Glue. It looks wet in the photo because I had just applied it. It dries fast and holds long enough for you to stitch your piece. A pin would distort that tiny scrap of fabric, so glue is a good option. I also turned my stitch length way down to 1.5, which I always do when sewing teensy pieces.
This sew-along was designed by Heather Briggs of My Sew Quilty Life. The block patterns are available on her website. Heather is known for her pastel, floral fabric collections. She is also widely recognized for designing intricate blocks that achieve an elaborate appliqué or detailed look while relying entirely on traditional, accessible machine piecing methods rather than complex handwork. So keep that in mind if you do one of her patterns. Expect tiny pieces and lots of them. Her 4th of July at Granny’s project that I did this past summer was a far simpler project than this one!
Have a fantastic weekend, everyone, and happy sewing!
12 Responses
I think i need to set my current project aside and make a Christmas table runner. A friend’s daughter is moving into first home soon. There might be a Christmas themed quilt book arriving soon.
Lori Holt loves ¾ in squares. I never thought of glue. Thanks for the hint!
I just made an assessment of the quilts I have piled up for binding, plus counted the quilts stored on the high shelves in my closet (85 on the shelves), and have decided NO MORE FULL SIZED QUILTS. Table runners for me going forward! I probably won’t stick to that promise, but seriously, what am I going to do with all these quilts?
I would definitely need the glue! I know you starch your fabric so that would help too (I don;t). Very pretty quilt..
The glue is handy for those super tiny pieces.
I do love the little inner blocks with the different motifs. So different and so cute! I enjoy sewing the small fiddly bits – because when you go back to normal sizes it they a breeze to piece!
Well, you make a good point Kerry(
Glue is a great solution for those tiny pieces! I especially like that little bitty star! Cheers to a good weekend!
I think that block is my favorite.
Oh, those are really nice Christmas blocks! Cheers to you for doing those itty bitty centers so well. You have talked about the dot of fabric glue before, and it appears to work well for you. Thanks for the reminder of such a great tip.
I don’t use it a lot, but when I do I am happy that I’ve got it handy.
Heather just came out with her first Christmas collection today! never thought I’d be into her pastels but its all lovely. Happy weekend!
I saw that! It is a really lovely collection, in keeping with her aesthetic, but a bit different too. Imagine her using red! Mind blown.