Piece & Joy Quilt Along: Week 1
We’re so happy to have you here for our Piece & Joy Quilt Along! July is the perfect time to start a holiday quilt, since it gives you plenty of time to finish up before December rolls around. This giant tree quilt is especially fun to make with Christmas fabric, but you can absolutely use anything you’d like.
For our quilt in this quilt along, we will be following the directions for Piece & Joy that are found in our Piece & Love Book. If you are following along with the standalone Piece & Joy pattern, there may be slight differences in the cutting (this week) and piecing the quilt top (Week 3). Pay careful attention, and when in doubt, follow the pattern or ask us!
First up, cut out the squares if they aren’t already the right size. Since we’re using a set of fabric that only has 29 prints instead of 40, we will be doubling up on 11 of the prints. You can do this to some extent, but you do need a large variety so the same prints don’t end up next to each other. We wouldn’t suggest using fewer than 20 different prints or colors.
After you have all the squares required, you’ll be cutting the squares on the diagonal. This is the major difference between the two patterns. For the book version, cut on the diagonal both directions. For the pattern version, you will only make one diagonal cut. The cutting shown below is only for the book version of the quilt:
Once the triangles for the tree are cut, you just have the background fabric left. We’re using Moda’s White Bleached Bella Solid. It’s probably our favorite white basic, and it really lets the prints be the star of the show.
After you have the fabric cut, you’re all done for this week! You can share your progress and enter our grand prize drawing in a couple of different ways:
- On Instagram, use both both #pieceandjoyqal and #theclothparcel hashtags in your post. You can also tag us @theclothparcel. (Please note that if you have a private Instagram account, we won’t be able to see any of your posts. You are welcome to screenshot and DM us for your entry to count.)
- In our private Facebook group, you can share photos in a post or in the comments of any of our posts. You can also ask for help or advice there!
We would love to see your progress, and every photo you share on Instagram or in our Facebook group will earn you an entry into our grand prize drawing at the end of the quilt along!
Prizes will be a queen size batting from Hobbs Batting, along with patterns, stickers, and pins from us. We hope you’ll participate in the fun! Next week, we will start piecing the tree blocks. Let us know if you have any questions about cutting or anything else about the quilt along in the comments!
