Block 1 of the Barn Quilt BOM QAL

Barn Quilt BOM Quilt Along: Block 1

9/4/2019

My Version of Block 1 of Barn Quilt BOM Designed by Sherry Shish

Sew excited! Today is the first month of Sherry Shish's Barn Quilt BOM Quilt Along! Sherry @Powered by Quilting and I both belong to Partners in Design, which is a group of bloggers and quilt designers who enjoy working together. As a group, we have designed three quilt alongs. You can read about them here. When Sherry asked me to participate as a host in her BOM, I happily said yes.

The quilt along is based on Sherry Shish's new Barn Quilt BOM pattern. On the first Wednesday of each month, for the next 6 months, I will make the block for that month, post photos of my blocks, and provide hints and fabric suggestions right here on my blog. I will also post on the Powered by Quilting Quilters Group Facebook page and on Instagram (#janda_bend_quilts).

There are options in the pattern to make a 72" by 84" quilt which uses all of the blocks, three different 72" by 72"quilts, and three different 24" by 24" mini quilts! I will be making all three mini-quilts. I think that they will make great wallhangings or table toppers.

How do I get the pattern?
You can purchase the Barn Quilt BOM pattern at Powered by Quilting. Note that this is an affiliate link. This means that if you use this link and buy the pattern, then I will receive a small compensation from Powered by Quilting. However, it does not affect the price of your pattern. Thank you for your support!

My Hints and Suggestions for Block 1
This month, I made four blocks of Block 1! Next month, on October 2, 2019, I will post Block 2 and my mini quilt. The mini quilt uses four blocks of Block 1 and four blocks of Block 2.

In my Introductory Post last month, I showed all of my focus fabrics. The fabrics for Block 1 are shown below. They are from You Are My Sunshine by Moda and solid white from Kona Cotton.

Fabrics for Block 1

To speed along the cutting of the quilt pieces, I am use my Accuquilt cutter to cut pieces for the half square triangles and the squares. I have a Go! Big Cutter and really love it. The cutter is electric and can cut large dies or two smaller dies at the same time. If you have been thinking about purchasing a cutter and/or dies, select dies are on sale, and there is a $150 rebate on the Go! Big cutter (affiliate links) until September 30, 2019. See pictures below.

Go! Big Cutter and Dies

Cut Pieces

After cutting enough pieces for 4 blocks, I sewed the half square triangles together. There was no need to trim dog ears because the half square triangle die trims them before you sew!

Then, I sewed the Flip and Sew Corners as directed in the pattern. Be sure to follow all of the ironing directions as you go. They are important. Pressing as you go helps your seams to lie as flat as possible. See photos below.

Half Square Triangles

Flip and Sew Corners

Next, I sewed another set of Flip and Sew Corners and then sewed a four patch with two squares and two half square triangles as shown below. Be sure follow the pressing directions and to lock seams when sewing the four patch.

Flip and Sew Corners

Four Patch

Now I was ready to sew the flowers section. I first laid out the block and then sewed the pieces together as shown.

Align the Pieces.

Sew Together.

Next, I sewed the half square triangles together as shown and added a square to the top row. Please be sure to match the diagram in the pattern when sewing these rows.

Align Blocks in Rows.

Sew Rows.

I added the rows to the flower section of the block as shown below.

Align Rows with the Flower Section.

Sew Together.

Finally I aligned the remaining pieces and sewed them together to complete the block.

Since I am making the 24" mini quilt, I made a total of four identical blocks. I will also make four identical blocks of Block 2. Then, I will sew them together to make the mini quilt. If you are making the quilts, please consult the directions for the number of blocks that you will need. See the completed Block 1 below.

Completed Block!

Want to See More Versions of Block !?
Here are the Hosts who are Quilting Along:
Abbie Danahy @ Sparkle On!
April Adams (That's Me) @ JANDA Bend Quilts
Kathleen McCormick @ Kathleen McMusing
Vanda Chittenden @ Quilting with Vanda

You can also sign up for the Powered by Quilting Quilters Group Facebook page to see other versions and post your own!

What is the Schedule?
The blocks will be released on the first Wednesday of each month for six months.

September 4, 2019: Month 1 Blocks
October 2, 2019: Month 2 Blocks
November 6, 2019: Month 3 Blocks
December 4, 2019: Month 4 Blocks
January 1, 2020: Month 5 Blocks
February 5, 2020 Month 6 Blocks and Quilt Top Assembly
March 4, 2020: Finish!

How Do I Start?