Vintage Block Along - Block Eight - Humble Block Tutorial!!

Hello there and welcome again to the 

Vintage Block Along

I have another block to share with you

 from grandma's pattern basket:)

It's a simple little block 

that finishes at 5"

  

It's a block that is easily 

pulled together with 

Farm Girl Vintage prints 

or scraps from your stash:)

As you can see in the photo...

the block on grandma's pattern

 shows a border

 but I chose just to use just 

the block alone 

because of how it's going in the quilt.

I named this block

 HUMBLE

because of it's simplicity and because...

We all looked to grandma when 

we needed help in making a decision.

 She was very wise and thoughtfully considered our questions...

which always resulted in

 good and sound advice.

"work hard and stay humble" 

was one thing she always said

 over and over again.

Grandparents and the older generation

 can teach us so much...

if we only choose to listen.

They know from experience and 

know what they are talking about.

Their words of advice are 

sometimes dismissed too often:)

Both of my grandma's 

came from humble beginnings and

 both taught me the value of

 working with my own hands.

A quilt block also comes from 

humble beginnings...

just a few scraps here and there...

placed just right into a 

simple patchwork pattern 

becomes a true thing of beauty!!

My grandma's were very self sufficient.

They made their own clothing 

as well as their husband's and

 their children's clothing.

They grew...harvested and 

canned their own food.

They took care of their families well 

and always tended to farm animals...

saving egg money for 

carefully thought out purchases.

They played just as hard as they worked.

They made their own entertainment...

as well as decorated their 

own homes and gardens.

No calling a repairman for them!!

Basically...they did everything!!

They taught me how powerful it is 

to use my own thoughtfulness 

and creativity in all things.

From them I have learned practicality.

I have learned that by 

using my own head...

following my own heart...

 and using my own hands...

 I am contended.

I Love Love Love being self sufficient...

and being creative every day.

 It's a truly wonderful way to live!

Okay...

back to making the 

HUMBLE BLOCK

and choosing fabric:)

For this block you need 

one background and two colors...

easy peasy!!

I'm going to show you my fabric combos 

from Farm Girl Vintage 

and Bee Backgrounds collections that 

I chose for each of my four blocks...

I'm going to show you how to make just one...

obviously you make them all the same:)

For ONE block you will need to

 cut from the background:

4 - 2 1/2" squares

5 - 1 1/2" squares

Color one:

4 - 2 1/2" squares

Color two:

4 - 1 1/2" squares

Grab the 2 1/2" squares and pair them up

 to make half square triangles:)

To save time...

chain piece them and use the 

Seams Sew Easy Guide 

instead of marking your lines.

CLICK HERE

to see how I use it 

and put it on my machine.

Trim away the excess and press.

You should have a total of four 

that measure 2 1/2" square.

Now grab the 1 1/2" squares...

(leave a background one on your design board)

And sew them together like this.

Now lay out all of the segments 

and sew them into a block...

Like this!!!

HUMBLE BLOCK

should measure 5 1/2" square at this point:)

Now stitch up the remaining 3 blocks:)

I love these blocks and I hope you do too!

This is the eighth block so far in 

Vintage Block Along 

and they will all eventually be in a quilt!

I'm hoping to be back next week 

with another block...

it may not be until Saturday though 

because I'm also working

 on week 2 of the 

Farm Sweet Farm Sew Along

and shhhhh...

you did not hear this from me...

but I'm right in the middle

 of a new book as well!

Stay tuned and remember what grandma said...

Work Hard and Stay Humble!

xx

Lori

If you are just joining us...

click on these previous 

vintage block along tutorials

 in this sew along:

1. Grandma's Star

2. Pattern Basket

3. Around the Corner

4. Little Farmhouse

5. Rhinestone

6. Vintage Lily

7. Star Shine

Farm Sweet Farm Sew Along - Week One!!

YeeHaw! 

I cannot even tell you 

how excited that I am:)

It's week one in the 

Farm Sweet Farm Sew Along!!

We will be sewing with my brand new 

 Farm Girl Vintage Collection...

And using the

 Farm Sweet Farm 

Sew Simple Shapes

To make the

 Farm Sweet Farm Quilt

75" x 87"

A few weeks ago I posted all about 

how you can "Bee Prepared"

 for this sew along.

I told you all about the free

 Sew Along Guide

 and showed you how I 

put mine in a binder.

CLICK HERE

to download the guide 

if you haven't yet:)

CLICK HERE

if you have not read the

 "Bee Prepared" post 

or if you need any reminders

 about supplies before we get started:)

First up is this cute PIG BLOCK!

After going through the guide

 and following the cutting directions...

you should have all of the pieces

 for the pig block all ready to go!

I'll list the Sew Simple Shapes 

needed for each block...

even though they are listed in the guide

 just for clarification:)

PIG BLOCK:

1-H23

4-H11

10-H15

1-H29

2-H36

2-H4

As always for the first week 

only and first block...

I did a video tutorial with Cindy at

 Riley Blake Designs Studio.

CLICK HERE

to watch and get the instructions

 on making the PIG BLOCK:)

I'll also tell you how long to cut 

the flower stems for each block.

For the PIG BLOCK you will need to cut:

2 - 8 1/2"

1 - 4 1/2"

1 - 2 1/2"

In the guide I asked you to cut

 6 - 5/8" wide x Width of Fabric strips

 for all of the flower stems in the quilt.

Run all of them through the

 1/4" wide bias tape maker 

just like I showed you in the video.

Wrap the prepared stems around 

an old spool or you can use 

an empty Vintage Trim spool like I did:)

Now when it's time to make each block...

all you will need to do is 

cut the lengths required 

from your prepared stems.

Easy Peasy!!

When preparing your block for appliqué

you need to stay within the guidelines 

of the finished block size 

so that when you trim up after applique...

you will not cut off tips of leaves

 on the sides or any pig feet on the bottom!

The finished size of the 

PIG BLOCK is 11" tall x 12" wide.

So when laying out your block 

you do NOT want the design 

to go any wider than 11 1/2".

That means after sewing it 

into the quilt there will be 

1/4"space on each side of

 the width which is your goal:)

The measurement from the bottom 

of my pigs feet and the tip of the 

goose wing is 9 1/2"

That leaves plenty of room 

when trimming up the height.

On page 14 of the guide you will

 see the FINISHED measurement of each block.

This is so that you will know

 how tall and wide your appliqués need to stay within when laying out 

each block for applique.

Take note that this is

 NOT THE TRIM UP MEASUREMENT.

The measurement for 

trimming up your block after applique 

is always 1/2" than the finished size.

This is the standard rule 

when making any quilt.

I did not trim my block in the video

 because I want to walk you

 through how I do it.

I like to do the side first.

I need to trim it 12 1/2" wide 

so I grabbed my 12 1/2" Trim-It Ruler 

for this.

Of course you can use any ruler

 that you want:)

I just find these handy because I can

 see inside the "window" of the aqua

 what my finished block will look like.

You can see here that there is 1/4"

 to the leaf and I'm happy with that.

Also 1/4" on the left side as well 

so I go ahead and trim the sides.

There is plenty of room from 

top to bottom and I usually 

measure 1/2" from the bottom 

of the feet and trim.

P.S. I did not zig-zag the edges 

of the linen on this first pig block 

because I forgot.

Linen frays easily so be sure to 

zig-zag or serge your edges.

And now I only need to trim the top.

I measure 11 1/2" from the bottom line

 that I just trimmed and cut:)

I'm always VERY CAREFUL 

when I trim up my blocks.

After all...

I've just appliquéd an embroidered

 and I don't want to make a mistake!

My advice is as always...

measure twice and cut once.

I've also learned from experience 

that during my trim up time 

I turn off my phone...laptop... TV...Radio...pop out my ear buds...

shoo the kids and pets 

out of the room ...

because I'm easily distracted LOL

Now that my little piggy is all trimmed 

up it's time for the buttons!

But you already know all about

 this step because I talked 

about it in the video:) 

PIG BLOCK

should be completely adorable

 and should also measure

 12 1/2" wide x 11 1/2" tall 

BEFORE sewing it into your quilt:)

OINK OINK!!!

HONK HONK!!

Okie dokie...let's make a horse!

Grab your horse block pieces

 and traced shapes.

The shapes used in this block are:

1-H28

4-H11

9-H15

2-H4

2-H36

1-H16

Cut your flower stems:

2 - 5 1/2"

2 - 2 1/2"

Sew and trim.

Before turning remember to clip the 

cleavage and inner curves on the horse...

flowers and baby chick.

Turn and shape them and give 

each piece a quick little press.

P.S. If you like my little 

vintage red tractor pincushion...

CLICK HERE

to read where I tell how I made it.

It's time to make a 

cute little quilt for the horse:)

Lay your squares out like this...

And sew into 4 rows of 4.

This is my handy little double pin

 that I use when doing small patchwork.

These type of pins have been around

 forever and are normally used when 

making clothing but I have always

 used them for piecing fussy patchwork!

(if you have attended my workshops

 you already know this lol)

I'm excited to now have some 

Bee in my Bonnet ones

 and I call them Double Pins:)

This is why my double pins are nifty:  

While using only one pin...

you are pinning on both sides 

of the seams

 that need to line up with each other.

Now there is no room for that seam 

to shift when they are pinned this way.

I love the results!!

CLICK HERE

if you need some 

DOUBLE Pretty Pins:)

You can sew over them if needed...

I just go slowly while watching 

to make sure that the 

needle doesn't come down on one.

They are thin and they work like a charm!

See how each and every seam 

lines up perfectly!?

Normally that is hard to do

 with little patchwork pieces.

They sure save me from spending

 time with the seam ripper:)

The cute little 

horse quilt is all pieced...

And all the seams are pressed open 

so as not to distort it...

and to reduce bulk...

 and to help it lie flat.

Your little quilt should measure 

3 1/2" square at this point and

 you can trim it up if you want to:)

But it's not really necessary because

we will be using the interfacing and

 turning it into an appliqué shape!

This is the "Ruler Work" that I gave 

you instructions on tracing in the guide:)

Center it onto the quilt and

 pin into place for sewing.

Trim the seam allowance and

 clip off a little of each corner:)

Turn and press.

Use the turning tool to 

gently shape the corners.

So cute and tiny!!

I just love little patchwork:)

One more thing before you prepare

 your block for applique...

trace the mane onto the horse

  and embroider it first.

You could do it after but it's

 bulky through all of those layers.

I like to use washi tape to place 

the pattern onto my Easy Trace Light Box.

It's easy to remove and leaves no residue!

I have a set of 

Farm Girl Vintage washi tape

 to be released soon:)

I use a backstitch and all 6 strands

 of my steel gray Aurifloss.

I do not make perfect tiny stitches...

I like them kinda chunky because 

it adds texture and free style to the block:)

Again...when laying out each block...

use a ruler so that your shapes

 do not "grow" past the finished size.

The finished size of the

 horse block is 14" wide...

so your pieces should not be

 wider than 13 1/2"

It finishes at 11" tall.

From the bottom of the hooves

 and the tip of the ears

 it should measure 10"

Use the applique pins and pin your 

shapes onto the background and 

straight into the design board 

while you are placing them...

just like I showed you 

in the video for the pig.

When you are happy with the placement

 grab your Sue Glue and 

glue baste them down.

I used a stapler and my Queen Bee rock 

and a couple rulers to 

cover this block when drying

 LOL...whatever works!!

All ready for applique and the 

rest of the embroidery:)

I used 3 strands of the 

Steel Gray for the baby chick:)

You will need to trim up your block 

in the same way that I showed you

 with the pig....but take note that

 this block will instead 

be trimmed 14 1/2" wide.

It will be trimmed 11 1/2" tall

 just like the pig.

There is 1/2" measured in down at the bottom 

of the feet in the exact same way.

Take note that all four of the 

applique blocks on the top row

 are 11" tall finished.

That's how they all fit together:)

After trimming...

sew on the Cute Little Buttons:)

I absolutely love my horse block 

and I hope that you do too!

At this point he should be 

nice and warm wearing his quilt...

 and measure 14 1/2" wide and 

11 1/2 inches tall 

(I meant 11 1/2 hands tall lol) 

NEIGH!!!

WHINNY!!!

YeeHaw!!!

Two super cute blocks completed:)

Whew!

That was a lot for the 

first week but it's okay.

This post will stay here FOREVER 

and we will only do one applique block 

per week with the exception

 of week four when we will only do 

the pieced blocks.

The word" schedule" simply means 

those are the days that I will 

be posting that block tutorial 

but that does not mean that 

you have to have that block completed

 by the end of the week.

We all work at different speeds and 

some do not even have their fabric yet.

 It's all good y'all!!!...

there is time to enjoy the process.

We have plenty to bee happy about...

and we are going to have 

sew much fun with this sew along!!

Thanks so much for 

"plowing through" 

with me today and we will

 do more farmin' next Monday!

xx

Lori