New Quilt Pattern Series Coming Soon!

Edited to add that this pattern is now available!

A few posts back, I did a tutorial on dealing with partial seams. That post was not a coincidence, I wrote that one to help with the partial seams in my new pattern that is set to hit my shop on August 5th. This pattern has a lot of those partial seams. It looks easy at first glance with all the big pieces, and it does go together quickly. But I’m calling it an intermediate due to all of the partial seams and because no two cutting diagrams are alike. I’ve been showing teaser shots on my Instagram for about a month. Now that this pattern is out with testers, it’s time to rip off the band-aid on this one and show full shots like the one above. It looks like Cleo approves of that quilt top since she ran right up to it, sat beside it, and looked at it without being prompted.

Details about this pattern:

– Size: approximately 72″ x 84″

– Level: Intermediate

– Fabric Requirements: 12 half yard cuts. There is also a piece breakdown if you want to make a quilt with a scrappier look. The pattern featured in this post is my yardage version. I also made a scrappy version, and you’ll be seeing it featured on this blog soon.

– This pattern has LOTS of diagrams to take you step by step through when to sew full seams and when to sew partial seams to make the process of piecing this quilt with all those tricky seams less overwhelming.

– There are also hyperlinks to posts to help you throughout the pattern.

How this pattern came about:

I wanted to make an improv style quilt similar to one of my grandmother’s old quilt tops that I finished last year. It looks like she was just collecting whatever fabrics she could get her hands on and sewing them together until the top was a big as she wanted it to be. It was a really cool old quilt top. I talk a lot about how I finished her quilt top here.

Sadly, I never got to meet this grandmother, my mom’s mother, because she passed away before I was born. We do have that improv style in common though. I use that style backing a lot. I pieced a really scrappy backing in one of the quilts I made from my Pumpkins ‘N Patches pattern, this one to be exact. I was looking at some pictures of the quilt top I finished for my grandmother when I decided to try to write a pattern that looks like improv. This pattern actually only LOOKS like improv because it was actually very carefully planned, and it actually doesn’t look anything like her quilt. I decided to name this pattern “Sarah Elizabeth” after my grandmother anyway though, since I was looking at our quilt when I got the idea for the pattern. Did I mention, she is THE “Sarah” that I was named after?

Pattern Series:

The title says i have a new pattern series coming soon. So, why am I only talking about one pattern? As soon as I decided to write a pattern named after Sarah Elizabeth, I knew that it wouldn’t be fair to NOT make a pattern in honor of my other quilting grandmothers as well. I have patterns planned for both of my grandmothers and one great grandmother from each side of my family. If I happen to find out that one or both of the other great grandmothers where also quilters, I will add them to this pattern series too.

The other grandmothers I have patterns planned for:

– Rella – Sarah Elizabeth’s mother, my great grandmother off my Mom’s side. She lived to be in her 90’s, and I do remember her. I didn’t know she was a quilter until I was in my 30’s and making a LOT of quilts on a regular basis. By the time I was old enough to have memories of her, she was no longer able to make quilts. There was actually some debate amongst my mom and her twin brother as to whether Rella or Sarah Elizabeth made that quilt top I finished. We finally decided to go with Sarah Elizabeth as the maker of that quilt top, but Rella will get a pattern in her honor as well.

– Bonnie – This is the grandmother I spend the most time with, my Dad’s mom. We actually made a few quilts together – one when I was in middle school, and one when I was a teenager. The one I made when I was in middle school was actually my first quilt. I was 10 or 11 years old at the time. She knew I wanted to make a quilt. So, she went and bought fabrics and cut them up for me to make a simple 9-patch quilt. I hand pieced the top with the help of some of my cousins, and she finished it for me. I have an Instagram post about this quilt if you want to see it and read a little more about it. Warning: it’s a complete hot mess like you would expect from something that was hand pieced by a 10-11 year old with the help of some other 10-11 year old. Bonnie’s pattern will be based on that other quilt I made with her, the one I made as a teenager.

– Chappel – Her name was actually pronounced “Chapel” like the church but with a unique spelling. She was Bonnie’s mother in law, my great grandmother off Dad’s side. She also passed away before I was born. I was fortunate enough to get my hands on some of her old quilt blocks about a year ago. My plan for her quilt pattern revolves around those blocks. I have an idea for working those blocks into a quilt, and her pattern will be designed to look like that.

Those fabrics in this quilt top:

I got those fabrics from another quilter in my state. She not only makes quilts and the fabulous custom labels everyone always asks me about, but she also has a fabric shop and designs some of the fabric lines she carries. The lovely fabrics I used in this quilt top are from her “Earthy Goodness” line. You can check out her shop at Meander + Make. She was nice enough to give me a coupon code to share with you. Use the code SNUGGLEBUGSTITCHING for 10% off!