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8+ amazing pineapple quilts

By Hatun Comak → Sunday, October 28, 2018

Besides working on some other projects, I have been making pineapple quilt blocks. So far I've completed three of these pineapple quilt blocks of this.

At the same time I have been searching various quilts made with pineapple quilt blocks for some inspiration for the layout and just because I like looking at them. All these quilts with pineapple quilt blocks look wonderful to me and I collected some of these quilts here so that you may get inspired as well. Honestly, pineapple quilt blocks require a great deal of time to deal with since it is a slow process but it definetely worths it.

Pineapple quilt by Hyacinth quilt design

Pineapple quilt by gigis thimble

Red and white pineapple quilt by cupcakes and daisies

Rainbow quilt by quilt and prayer

Paper pieced pineapple cushion by katies quilting corner

Rainbow pineapple by my quilt diet

Scrappy pineapple quilt by red pepper quilts

Pineapple quilt by frances quilts

These quilts are all amazing and definately my favourite. I hope I will have that patience and time to finish my pineapple quilt.

using up scraps

how to sew a crazy quilt block

By Hatun Comak → Monday, October 22, 2018

Life is hectic and I could hardly find time to sew this week. It is a pity to me but still I was able to give a try to those little cute crazy quilt blocks. It took ten minutes to finish the crazy quilt block, which is 2.5"x2.5". And it was quite proper to turn it into a pincushion. I've made several other pincushions but I can 't use them because my kids took them as toys and do not give them back. One was a turtle pincushion and quickly became favourite of my 5-year-old son. The other was a hexie pincushion and it became my 10 year old daughter's barbie doll's cushion. Alas! I hope this crazy quilt block pincushion will be mine.
You can use these super cool quilt blocks for various things, like quilts, cushions, wall hanging or a pincushion as I did.

Here I also would like to share crazy quilt block tutorial with you. It is easy, quick to make and totally scrap friendly.

1- Prepare your materials
Crazy quilt blocks are perfect to use your scraps, so bring a variety of your scraps together. You can use any kind of fabric, but for a beginner, cotton fabric will do great work since it is the easiest to deal with.

2- Trim the center piece
The chief idea of crazy quilt block is that it is off-kilter and crazy. So you wouldn't like to start with a square. Use your ruler and cut some angles with your rotary cutter. A shape with five sides is good.

3-Start adding pieces
Start by adding pieces around the center piece, but I prefer to take scraps in different size rather than strips.

Do not forget to trim as you go to have straight edges. This will help you go on adding pieces easily. Always finger press before you add the next piece of scrap. You should get a wonky look.

4- Finish the block
You stop when you reach the size you would like to get. Here I planned to make a pincushion, so I used tiny scraps and got a 2.5"x2.5" square in the end. If you are planning to make something bigger, you should work with larger pieces than I use and sew till you get the right size. When you finish sewing, you trim the edges to a square. I sewed around strips before making the pincushion.

What I like about this block is the randomness of the seams.
With this crazy quilt block, you not only use up your scraps but also make a perfect quilt block. Now tell me, how does it look?

pineapple quilts

pineapple quilt block paper piecing tutorial

By Hatun Comak → Tuesday, October 16, 2018

Pineapple quilt block is one of the most remarkable pattern of all the quilts. At first pineapple quilts may look complicated but they are comparatively easy to make. Actually, pineapple quilt blocks are a variation of log cabin quilts. The only difference is that the corners are cut off. When you contrast the colors between the rows, it can be striking. They are perfect to play with colors and you can create amazing pineapple quilts with your own choice of colors.
There are some techniques to make pineapple quilt blocks; but most preferably paper piecing is used to obtain precise and sharp edges. Thanks to paper piecing techniques, we can make that pattern accurately. If you have never made a pineapple quilt block, this is a beginner friendly tutorial for you. The design is so sweet and hard to resist.

Pineapple block paper piecing tutorial

Although this pattern looks complicated, you can easily learn how to make a pineapple paper pieced block with this step-by-step tutorial. If you are new to foundation paper piecing, you should have a look at my FOUNDATION PAPER PIECING TUTORIAL first.

1- Download and print the pattern

First you need to download and print PINEAPPLE QUILT BLOCK PATTERN. Once you have printed out the pattern, you must cut by adding a quarter inch width around the pattern as the dotted lines aren't seen in this paper. Namely,you must add a quarter inch seam allowance to the all sides of the pattern.

2- Cutting

The patches that form X are one colour (here I preferred dark colors) and the patches that form + are another color (light color). Or you just can do the opposite.

In this pattern I just used two fabrics; one light and one dark. You can also make it scrappy but to create the right affect, there must be a clear distinction of the colors between dark and light fabrics.

To simplify the cutting process, just cut 1-1/4" wide strips for an 8" pattern. Then you can subcut the strip into segmente as you sew along.

3- Start sewing the pineapple block

Cut the center piece and pin the wrong side of the fabric to the wrong side of the paper within the dashed placement lines.

With right sides together, align the edge of number 2 fabric with the center fabric and pin it from the right side of the pattern. Number 2 should be a little wider than center patch.

From the printed side, start sewing on the line of number two. Start sewing 1/4" before and after the solid line between number 2 and the center. Pay attention to the red arrows below.

Repeat the same for number 3 and press the seams.

Add number 4 and 5, centering each on the previously sewn patches. Press the seams open.

Before continuing, you need to trim the excess fabric with a quarter inch seam allowance. Repeat the process for the three corners.

When you finish the first round of the pineapple(numbers 1-9), it will look like this:

Up till this point, we have added patches to two opposite sides at a time and pressing in between patches. But from now on, you can add the four strips of the same color and pin in place at a time. So it will be more practical to go on sewing.

Finishing the pineapple block

When you come to the final round, pay attention that numbers 38-42 are larger than the other strips. After you have stitched all four corners, trim to size. Trim with your rotary cutter for all four sides and remove the paper. It will look like this:

Perfect with precise sharp edges! I enjoy the process and quite happy about how it comes out. I preferred paper piecing because it gives perfect results.

UPDATE: I have been making a quilt of these pineapple blocks. See the progress HERE

jack o'lantern pattern

10 free halloween quilt patterns

By Hatun Comak → Wednesday, October 10, 2018

Since Halloween approaches, I thought it would be a good idea to share some free halloween quilt patterns. I have collected some of free patterns that are perfect for this festive holiday. By adding these to your Halloween decoration, you can make a big difference in your house. Maybe you find the inspiration in one of these to start a hallowen quilt.
To go to a pattern, click on the title above the photo of the quilt.
So here we go:

Jack o'Lantern mini quilt by Rose Johnson

This pumpkin mini quilt pattern will look great as a wall hanging, placemat or tabletopper. It measures 11"x 11"

Spooky wall hanging by Heidi Pridemore at Windham Fabrics

It measures 24"x 52". This Halloween wall hanging is really spooky!

Spooky spider mini quilt at Seasons homemaker

This is an applique black spider on white background. A quick and easy project to be finished in a few hours.

Itsy Bitsy Spiders wall hanging at AJ's Boutique

The finished size is 19"x 26". Until seeing this I wouldn't think that spiders can be so cute.

Fall table runner tutorial by Cloth Parcel

With a variety of oranges you will absolutely feel the spirit of autumn and Halloween as well. It measures 17.5"x 46.5".

Haunted House on the Hill by Elizabeth Hill at Purple Kitty Yarns

Witch pattern with stockings at Artisania

This is a paper pieced witch with colorful stockings, which makes it super cute. It is absolutely in my must-do list.

Witches hat pincushion at Peck's Pieces

An easy and quick project for Halloween. It is also great to use up your stash.

Halloween Chevron quilt tutorial at The Little Fabric Shop Blog

Boos and Ghouls quilt along at Bryan House Quilts

These are my choices of free Halloween quilts. I hope you get inspiration to start before Halloween. I chose mostly those that can be finished in a short time, since there is not much time left for Halloween.
Whatever you do, do not forget to enjoy It!

labyrinth quilt block pattern

labyrinth quilt block pattern tutorial

By Hatun Comak → Friday, October 5, 2018

Today I finished the quilt top for my labyrinth quilt block and I also prepared a tutorial for making this labyrinth quilt block. There are many version of quilts know by that name. My tutorial explains one version of labyrinth quilt pattern which is a star with two interwoven borders.
While making the labyrinth quilt block pattern I used squares and HSTs (half-square triangles). So there are two standard measurements for cutting instructions of the fabrics which, to me, is less complicated. Hope this labyrinth quilt block tutorial will be useful for you.

So here we go!

My block is a star with two interwoven border areas made from 2"x2" squares. The labyrinth quilt block finishes at 12"x12". The block is made from three different colours. I used green, red and grey. The photo below will help you organize and assemble the units.

Cutting instructions

Fabric A - Outer border and background of the star (mine is grey)

20 pieces of 2"x 2" squares
10 pieces of 2.5"x 2.5" squares (for HST units)

Fabric B - first wowen border (mine is green)

12 pieces of 2"x 2" squares
8 pieces of 2.5"x 2.5" squares (for HST units)

Fabric C - second woven border (mine is red)

14 pieces of 2.5"x 2.5" squares (for HST units)

Cutting instructions include the inner star as well.

How to make half-square triangles (HSTs)

If you do not know how to make HSTs, you may have a look at my making HST tutorial HERE.

Once you complete making of HST units, we will be ready to assemble the labyrinth quilt block. When you sew 2.5"x 2.5" squares together, you will have 2"x 2" HST units. The number of HST units you need to make are as follows:

16 Fabric A/C HST Units
4 Fabric A/B HST Units
12 Fabric B/C HST Units

How to assemble the labyrinth quilt block

Start sewing together with a quarter inch seam allowance to assemble the block and do not forget to press carefully. You can start sewing from the center star or you can start from the top, to go row by row. I prefer to assemble the block beginning from the first row. To make it clear, the template above will help you the correct order of sewing.

When you sew the pieces together in rows, you need to join the rows, making seam intersections and row ends carefully. Always press seam allowances.

BONUS: Below you can find more quilt blocks with tutorials. We always need inspiration. Hope you get it here.