Fold charm squares on the diagonal to create a pocket unit — 24 times!
Yesterday, we did the preparation for our Pockets Full of Blessings Wall Quilt. This is a quilt that will be a multi-season project — a count down calendar for Christmas and a hold-all quilt for the rest of the year.
Unwrap the two packages of charm squares and grab the top three.
Place one right side up in front of you. Fold the second on a diagonal, corner to corner. Lightly press the seam with a finger pressing tool. Use a dry iron to set the seam.
While working on the diagonal like this, it’s important not to use steam, which can stretch the fabric while it’s on the bias.
Place the first triangle of fabric on the square, matching the corners and the edges.
The pocket units look like this — before they are sewn together.
Repeat the same folding and pressing procedure with the second triangle, but place it on the opposite side of the square as in the photo above.
Press the whole unit with a dry iron, then pin the triangles to the square on three sides.
Use a contrasting thread to baste the three sides together, and remove the pins.
You’ll be making 24 of these pocket units.
Pin the folded charm squares to the backing square.
Baste the unit together to ensure the folded elements stay properly aligned.
This will take some time. It’s a surprising challenge, mixing and matching all the colors found in the charm square pack.
There aren’t any hard and fast rules to doing this, but I found picking three squares from the front, three from the back, and then three from the middle, was a good way to mix and match the overall pocket designs.
It’s important to vary the fabrics as much as possible — you’ll see why tomorrow, when we begin piecing the rows together on our Pockets Full of Blessings Wall quilt.