Economy Block and a Flower Tutorial!!

I have always loved this 

traditional quilt block.

It has several names but the

 most common and oldest name that 

I know for it is called the

 ECONOMY BLOCK

Traditionally it has always been

 fairly simple to construct...

 but the down side is that 

 because all of the angles are on a bias

 it is super hard to have made the

 block accurate when 

piecing the traditional way.

So when I was given the opportunity to

 design foundation paper piecing blocks

 for It's Sew Emma...

 I jumped on it right away

 and the first block that I chose

 was the Economy Block! 

Piecing it on paper takes out 

all of the distorting of the block

 because of the bias and your blocks

 will come out perfect and accurate every time!

YaY!

It's Sew Emma is also doing a

 blog post today about 

these amazing foundation papers.

CLICK HERE

to read their blog post.

There are 2 sizes available...

12" and 6" finished blocks.

The blocks are made using my 

current fabric collection called 

PRIM

Of course you can use 

any fabric to make yours!

This simple block makes into a 

beautiful and easy patchwork quilt 

and will add to the comfort of your home:)

This is the 6" Block paper pad.

There are 42 papers in each one.

And here is the 12" paper pad which 

also has 42 papers.

The 12" has another option to it...

You can replace the center 3 rounds

 of the block with a 6" 

pieced or appliqué block like this!

And I did that very thing!!!

I also added borders around my

 12" block to make an 18" pillow.

I love how the pillow looks 

with these 2 Economy Block PRIM Quilts.

The one on the wall is made with

 42 - of the 12" blocks

 and the one on the ladder is made with

 42 - of the 6" Blocks.

Wouldn't it be fun to add a flower 

in the center of all those 

12" quilt blocks?

This is how I made the 

flowers and the pillow:

First I started by using 

3 of the shapes from my 

PRIM Sew Simple Shapes set.

The shapes I used are:

K9 - flower center

K51 - leaves

K61 - flower

If you have never used my 

Sew Simple Shapes applique method 

CLICK HERE 

to go to my week one blog post tutorial 

during my PRIM Quilt Sew Along.

You will need a stem about 

6" long for the flower.

Make the stem by cutting a strip of 

fabric 5/8" wide and running it through

 a 1/4" bias tape maker.

This tutorial is also on week one

 of my Prim Sew Along.

I cut my background fabric about

 8 1/2" square and pressed 

in half to mark the center.

All of the backgrounds that I used 

are from my Bee Backgrounds Collection

 for Riley Blake designs.

I used the Sue Glue and

 lightly glue basted 

the stem on the center crease.

Use the 6 1/2" Trim It - Ruler 

to lay out the flower.

Then either machine or hand applique

 using matching thread 

for each applique piece.

After applique...

press from the back and use the

 6 1/2" Trim-It Ruler to trim down

 your block to 6 1/2" square.

Now it is ready to go into

 the center of the 12" ECONOMY BLOCK.

I love this little flower block...

so I made a few more:)

The 6" flower block easily fits 

in the center of the 12" Economy Block.

Keep in mind that it should measure

 6 1/2" square before you sew it in.

like this!

To make the pillow top 18" square 

for the pillow form...

I cut 2 borders 

3 1/2" x 12 1/2" for the sides

and then I cut 

2 - 3 1/2" x 18 1/2" 

for the top and bottom.

Easy peasy!

Kimberly did a video tutorial 

on her YouTube channel on how she

 made her project using the 

Economy Block Foundation Papers.

CLICK HERE

to watch it.

I love these papers!!

I just had to show you that 

when I was taking pictures of the pillow

 and the quilts for this blog post

 our dog Toby of course had to

 get in on the action...

he thinks he's a model 

and he is always ready 

for his close up:)

He does it every time...LOL

I hope you try out my 

Economy Block Foundation Paper

Chances are you will love it 

as much as I do!!

xx

Lori