WINTER WALK IN THE WOODS: WEEK #4

Susan and I Welcome You Back to the Winter Walk in the Woods Sew Along Week #4! 

Thanks so much for joining us as we work our way through this Winter Walk adventure over the next few weeks.

From Susan:

We are still working on stars this week, and these particular stars will sparkle in the border of your quilt! 

Constructed exactly just like Star # 2 from last week, these stars will form the basis of your pieced borders.  Grab Cream Print #6 and let’s get started!

We opted to use the Cream Print #6 for the center of our stars and the solid ivory for the points.  You should have lots of variety left in your cream prints, so feel free to pick a small scale tonal cream print or more of Cream Print #6 for your star points if you prefer a scrappier feel. They would look equally sparkly either way!

STAR BLOCK #6

4 ½” Border Star (12 Blocks) [4 ½” x 4 ½” finished/ 5” x 5” unfinished]

CUTTING INSTRUCTIONS:

IVORY SOLID:

• Cut (2) 3” strips.  Cut (24) 3” squares cut into quarters on both diagonals to form (96) triangles [a].

CREAM PRINT # 6:

• Cut (1) 2” strip. Cut (12) 2” squares [b].

BACKGROUND FABRIC:

• Cut (2) 3” strip. Cut into (24) 3” squares cut into quarters on both diagonals to form (96) triangles [c]
• Cut (3) 2” strips.  Cut into [48] 2” squares [d].

ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS:

** Block Assembly Instructions are identical to last weeks **

Step 1: Combine triangle [a] and triangle [c] together as shown to form quarter square triangle unit. Press open. Trim to 2”. Make 4.

Step 2: Arrange block as shown, combining quarter square triangles with [b] and [d] squares.  Press seams to [b] and [d] and then open. Follow last week’s diagrams for identical star assembly.

Make 12 blocks. These particular stars will be for your outer border!

BLOCK #7: TRUNK SECTIONS

The second half of our assignment for this week is to start on some of the block components that we will need to finish off our trees.  (Did you know you made trees already and you didn’t even know it ?!?).

To make our tree trunk sections, we will use a simple strip piecing technique. 

Anytime you are sewing long strips of fabric together, be sure to sew slowly paying attention to your seam allowance as you go.  I like to pin every few inches and press my pieces after every strip I sew.  I find this helps to keep all the seams laying straight and flat.  Many people also have good luck keeping seams straight by alternating the direction they sew their strips. 

Since you will be sub-cutting this strip set, it is important to keep it as straight as possible. 

STRIP PIECED TRUNK SECTIONS #1-#5

CUTTING INSTRUCTIONS

• BACKGROUND: Cut (2) 3 ¾” strips [a].
• IVORY SOLID:  Cut (1) 2” strip [b].

ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS:

Step 1: Sew together strips [a/b/a] to form one strip unit as shown. Press toward the background. Your strip should be 8 ½” wide after pressing.

Cut into the following Sections:

• (1) 8 ½” x 7″ Section #1
• (1) 8 ½” x 5 ½” Section #2
• (1) 8 ½” x 4 ¼” Section #3
• (1) 8 ½” x 6 ¾” Section #4
• (1) 8 ½” x 9 ¼” Section #5

When finished, this week you will have made (12) Border Star Blocks and (5) Trunk Section Pieces. 

Be sure to label each section piece for easy reference during assembly.

Use labels “Section #1- Section #5.

See you all next week with another set of cutting and piecing info!

xoxox

Susan and Joanna

---

Find all of the Winter Walk in the Woods posts here:

Fabric Requirements

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Week 5

Week 6