Scrappy Happy Summer - A Sew Along!!!

Good Morning cute people!!!

I'm sew excited to share with you 

the first project that I made for our 

"Scrappy Happy Summer" 

This is going to be a fun and casual summer sew along…

with alot of fun projects and several tutorials

along the way!

The projects will be based on 

Scrappy Happy Block

that I designed quite a while ago specifically for a sew along.

You can find it in my newest pattern called

Cut. Press. Sew. Quilt.

So if you happen to have a copy and you want to play along…

join us for a summer of scrappy happiness:)

As you know…

we will be using this pattern as our manual.

The pattern has the instructions for

 making my Scrappy Happy block

as well as cutting instructions for 4 different sizes.

We will not only be using all 4 sizes during the sew along…

but also 4 different settings of the block as well!

Okay!…onto the first project -

my Scrappy Happy Table Runner.

I've been wanting to make a new runner for

 my kitchen farm table for quite a while…

this sew along is the perfect opportunity:)

I made 3 - 18" Scrappy Happy blocks…

added sashing and borders…

and had a runner sewed up in no time:)

The runner is 22" wide x 62" long.

The first thing to do is choose your background fabric.

I decided to go with my very favorite yellow…

"Beehive" by Riley Blake Designs.

I chose this color for one of the solids

 in my very first fabric collection…Sew Cherry

and it's still my go to yellow.

I thought this would be a perfect

 sunny color to kick off our summer sew along!

You will need just a little under

 1 yard of background for this runner:)

First I cut 3 center squares for my 3 blocks.

Again…I used the cutting instructions

 in the pattern for the 18" finished block.

Next up…

I pulled out my 3 1/2" scrappy stash basket and chose

some strips that I thought would go well together.

Don't stress about this part…

remember that the whole point of this sew along is to

 use up some of your stash and also play with color…

so be brave!!!

I laid out my strips on my background fabric before I chose them…

just to make sure they would show up well against the color.

I also chose 3 fabrics with quite a bit of white in them…

or what I call "busy backgrounds"

Because I am using a solid color for the background…

these will show up nicely and add a little spark to my runner:)

After choosing your fabrics from your basket…

Cut the strips into the squares and rectangles 

according to the instructions in the pattern.

Sew your blocks together…

 and the sew a sashing strip onto each side.

Cut 6 - 2 1/2" x 18 1/2" from your background fabric.

After you have sewn one to each side of your blocks...

Sew the blocks together with sashing strips

 in-between and on each end of the runner.

(Cut 4 - 2 1/2" x 22 1/2")

Layer your runner with batting and backing…

and quilt as desired!

Trim off the excess batting and backing and 

prepare your binding:)

 I chose to use some of the strips from my 2 1/2" scrappy stash basket.

You will need about 200" of prepared binding for the runner.

I cut 21 strips - 2 1/2" x 10" long.

(I had 3 leftover after binding)

I sewed them together randomly…

with a 1/4" seam allowance.

Then I pressed them open for less bulk.

I pressed it in half with wrong sides together and bound my runner.

CLICK HERE

to see my binding tutorial if you have any questions:)

This sew along is all about using scraps 

to make some fun scrappy things for your home or for gifts.

These projects should be customized to suit your needs.

For example...

If this runner is too big for your table…

use the 12" block size.

I will simply be showing you what I made 

and how I made it.

You can do exactly what I did…

or change it up a bit for your needs:)

I like a large runner to protect my table top.

But sometimes I like to put a small square one in the center of my table…

or a large square quilt laid 

in the center diagonally as well.

I chose scraps from my stash to match my kitchen every day…

but you may want to make a runner

 for another season such as autumn…

or in holiday fabrics!

YOU CHOOSE.

My point is…

you are the boss of your own runner:)

Now before you think we are all finished…

I have something for next week

that I made with the leftovers cut 

from the Easy Corner Triangle trimmings

of the three 18" Scrappy Happy blocks:)

My rule of thumb when deciding if I should

 throw away my ECT trimmings or keep them 

and add back into my stash is this -

If I can cut at least a 1 1/2" square from them…I will! 

If I can't…

they are too small for me and I throw them away:)

If I have deemed them worthy of keeping…

 I always cut them into squares right then…

 and add them to my 1 1/2" strips and squares basket

so that I can actually USE them.

I have learned not to put them into a

 bag or container and think I will get to them later.

I won't.

And it's so easy to do it 2 at a time because 

they are already paired up that way when you trim them

off of the Easy Corner Triangle.

After I cut all of the 1 1/12" squares from my ECT trimmings…

This is what I had -

48 - yellow solid

16 - aqua

16 - red (chicken wire)

16 - green (vines)

and 8 EACH from the 6 remaining prints.

Certainly enough to make another smaller project

by adding a different background this time maybe?

I can't wait to show you what I made…

and I will next Monday!

(don't forget to save your squares

 too so you can make one with me!)

Add this button to your blog

 to show that you 

are a member of the 

Scrappy Happy Summer

 Sew Along!!!

 Click here to join us!

This link will take you to the 

homepage of the 

Scrappy Happy Summer flickr group.

Here you can see photos of projects

 from others who have joined …

as well as a place to 

add your photos too!

While you are there…

click on the "ABOUT" tab

to see a list and every link

pertaining to this sew along:)

 Feel free to load pics of 

your fabric choices, 

your Scrappy Happy blocks 

and your projects…

 so that we can all have a 

scrappy summer of inspiration!

Have a quilty kind of summer with me!

xx

Lori