Ho Ho Ho and On We Sew - Free Pattern & Giveaway!

Welcome to my stop on the Ho Ho Ho and on we Sew monthly tutorial and link up party hosted by Fiona @ Celtic Thistle Stitches and Paula@ Mud Pies and Pins.  Yes it is only June and Christmas in July hasn't even started yet, but some of us are making gifts all year long.  Holiday makes don't have to be just for the holidays or even from Christmas themed fabric.  Today I am showing you how to make flying geese 4 at a time and so you can make this free pattern I designed for my stop on the hop, called So Frosty!  (I used Tula Pink Acacia with some pale blue print and solid Kona Snow for my version.) 

Included with today's tutorial/pattern, at the bottom of this post, is a giveaway from Fat Quarter shop for a mini charm pack of your choice and the Ho Ho Ho and On We Sew Linky party where you can enter and link up all your holiday makes or hand made gifts.

The linky party is open until the end of the month and random number generator will choose a winner!

So Frosty is a big block quilt, making a 72" x 72" lap quilt.  It's a quick make and perfect for a gift.  Fabric selection makes a big difference to this block.  Even though this fabric comes from a Christmas collection doesn't this one look very 4th of July?

Downton Abbey anyone?

Or maybe a child quilt for a special birthday?

I have to include at least one more traditional holiday though don't I?

The block is made up of squares and flying geese.  As there are so many geese I wrote the pattern (Download Here) using the no waste method which makes 4 flying geese at a time.

Flying geese are traditionally twice as long as they are tall.  There are a number of ways to make them.

The no waste method uses a large square for the Goose fabric and 4 smaller squares for the Sky.

To start with you need a square the finished length of your goose +1 1/4".  For the Sky squares you need the finished height of your goose +7/8".

So Frosty being a big block quilt uses 12 1/2" x 6 1/2" Flying Geese unfinished (1/2" for seam allowance) or 12" x 6" finished.  So I've used a Goose fabric (white) of 13 1/4" x 13 1/4" square and placed 2 of my Sky squares (pale blue) 6 7/8" on two opposing corners.

1. Mark a diagonal line from corner to corner.
2. Sew 1/4" on either side of this line.
3. Cut into two pieces along your marked line.
4. Press open.
5. Take your remaining 6 7/8" squares and place on the corners of one of your pieces as shown.
6. Mark a diagonal line and sew 1/4" on either side
7. Cut along your marked line.
8. Press open and you should have 2 identical flying geese.
9. Repeat for the remaining piece to make 4 flying geese units!

Here's a summary image  if you should ever want to refer to this method in the future! Large flying geese blocks like these make this pattern a very quick make.


So on with the linky party.  Please link up your gifts and holiday makes and the winner of the mini-charm pack will be selected at the end of the month by Random number generator.

Thanks for visiting my blog on the hop and I hope you have fun with So Frosty.  If you do make your own version of this quilt I'd love to see it - please get in touch (email and social media buttons are at the top of the page!)
 

A Finished Flimsy: So Frosty

Meet So Frosty!  This is a giant block, quilt top approximately 72" x 72".  It is quite bonkers as Tula Pink Acacia Raccoons are popping up everywhere!

I've been playing around with a block design for a Christmas QAL for the Modern Quilters Ireland Group later on in the year and came up with these three designs based on the traditional Snow Crystals block.  I always find it funny with traditional blocks, a tiny change means a big name change on the block so I've called these three Super Frosty, So Frosty and Sub-Zero to try and link them together.  I'm always reminded of the Running Man movie with Arnie when I think of sub-zero!

Super Frosty, So Frosty and Sub-Zero Quilt Blocks!

Changing the colour placement & tiling can give really fun results

I'm working on the instructions for various sizes.  I like the idea of making a cushion!  What do you guys think?  Interested in a Christmas Quilt-A-Long in Sept/Oct? 

For the moment it's my stop on Ho Ho Ho and on We Sew linky party next Thursday the 18th of June and I'll be sharing the instructions here on the blog so you can make this big block version if you like.  Please drop by and join the fun!

Linking up to and the Friday Finishes @ Crazy Mom Quilts and