This is my quarantine quilt top. Being a homebody gave me plenty of time to plan and stitch!
After stalking Pinterest posts looking for a scrappy heart quilt block pattern, I thought I had found the perfect one. It was so cute! All was well until the pieces did NOT fit when I sewed them together. It was a nightmare, an absolute math disaster. I'm convinced that the designer had never sewn a stitch in their lives! UGH. Instead of chucking the whole project (which I seriously considered more than once), I modified things (so far from the original idea you wouldn't even recognize it) and in the end trimmed the final block when I squared it up. Love how this turned out!
Here are the instructions for making my patchwork heart block.
The finished block size trimmed up is 11 1/4 inches square without the sashing. Seam allowance is SCANT 1/4 inch. All scrap pieces were cut to 2 1/2 inches wide. The white triangles on the heart corners were done with 2 1/2 inch white squares sewed at a diagonal to the ends of the long pieces.
*BEFORE YOU START:
Starch and press all of your fabrics. Do not skip this step.
If you are working with scraps, you will find that they each have a different amount of stretch to them. Starching will help each piece to fit the way it should.
Here is a visual of the block I came up with.
The pieces are all 2 1/2 inches wide and the numbers shown on each piece indicate the length. The one shown has 1 1/2 inch white sashing on the right and bottom of the block.
Here is the sewing order.
Just follow the alphabet and it will come together nicely. Before you attach "H", "L" and"N", put the white 2 1/2 squares on the proper end(s) and stitch on the diagonal. Trim and press to form the white corners. You sew it together in 3 groups. A to H, I to M, and then stitch those to each other. After those are joined, sew on "N"
The sashing is optional, but it makes a really pretty quilt. Mine was 1 1/2 inches wide. You are on your own from here on putting together your blocks. I recommend looking at Youtube for help in setting blocks on the diagonal and figuring out the dimensions you will need for your white corner pieces.
This is not a beginner project by any stroke of the imagination, but it sure looks cute when it's done! I was able to make a big dent in my red and white scraps for sure. When you wash it, be sure to use a couple of Shout Color Catchers in the wash to keep the bleeding onto your white to a minimum. With scraps, sometimes finding out things aren't so colorfast can break your heart, so better safe than sorry for sure.
If you make this block, I would love to see your finished project!
