Mercantile Sew-Along - progress

You didn’t even know I was doing this sew-along, did you?

Of course not, because I didn’t mention it. I wasn’t actually sewing along, anyway.

I started making the blocks last week - and finished them all in 3 or 4 days.

They are free blocks from Lori Holt’s site and You Tube channel.

I had decided I wanted to take some time in 2024 and make some other people’s quilts for several reasons.

  • First of all, I thought I could use a break from some small strips.

  • Secondly, I want to make some CUTE things and/or bigger blocks using up some of my extensive beautiful fabric stash and not just my cut up strips which are in essence being saved from the trash or being donated.

  • Thirdly, I wanted to maybe learn some new skills or techniques which I can easily do by reading and making someone else’s quilt patterns for a change.

So, here is the second one for this year using a different person’s pattern -- wait, actually I made two in Florida for the store, so this is nr. 4.

Once again, it is Lori Holt’s and while I don’t have the Mercantile fabric, I wanted to try to imitate the feel of her quilt.

So, I did make the background blocks out of fabrics that have a vintage feel with a lot of white in them. When I started cutting out fabrics for the background of this quilt, I examined carefully how her blocks looked. I realized at that time that she used fabrics with a lot of white in them so they do not look like what I might call “saturated colors”. These definitely add interest to the background without being overpowering.

These are those 4 patch blocks. I laid them out on the floor and tried to come up with an arrangement that will please me. Obviously once covered with a white circle and pieced block, the background will be much less significant. However, this is what I was going for.

I didn’t worry too much about the actual fabrics but visited my shelves of stacked up fabrics over and over to pull out fabrics that I thought might work with the idea of what I was going for. It was definitely a different experience for me. I actually enjoyed it.

I also am enjoying working with some of my stash that has been sitting for years, not being used for anything because I’ve been so busy making patterns and quilts from strips. (Not that I’m sorry about that - not at all, but I really do like other things as well and am determined to carve out time for something a bit different.)

My husband cut this perfect 12” circle template for me from his CnC machine. He also scored along the middle making it easy for me to find the center.

I did finish up all the pieced blocks, as I mentioned, and am getting started on sewing the interfacing circles on them. I will then turn them by cutting a slit in the back of the interfacing and pulling the front block out gently. Then I will press them once again and place them on the 4 piece blocks that I showed you above.

Once I do that to all 25 blocks, I can sew the top center together. I may go ahead and just finish the first 5 blocks completely and sew them together, then the next 5, etc. We’ll see.

This is the original quilt by Lori on the right. That’s my “goal project” but naturally mine won’t be exactly like that.

I think it is so pretty. I’m not sure why I do like it so much - but it is striking me as gorgeous.

Maybe it’s because I have so many little prints that will work for these types of quilts and am eager to get to using them up!

Maybe it’s just my vibe.

The background circles are giving me just the right amount of visual eye space relief to really like this quilt. The white creates that focus that I find I need in a quilt to enjoy it to its fullest.

 

These are my blocks. I will be turning some of them on point and some will be just laid out like normal on my 4 patch backings and stitched on in a straight setting. I’ll follow the setting that she gives.

It did take me roughly an hour per block to make them (25 blocks). I did not cut them all out ahead of time. I just don’t work well that way since I was not using her original Mercantile fabrics. I cut out three or four. Each block pattern was printed and put in a plastic sleeve for a binder. That link is where you can download for free the actual block patterns. Believe me, it’s really not always the easiest to find such a link - it’s a direct download from Riley Blake designs.

I put my cut pieces for that block and put them into that plastic sheet protector. Then I took the whole plastic sheet protector to the machine where I made the blocks. Then I repeated it. It is kind of hard to do this kind of quilt because you can never get in a groove and feel productive. This whole thing is a new experience for me. I can do it for a few times, but I’m not sure I will ever be truly a sampler-lover only type of gal.

Here are some of the blocks that will be put on a straight setting on the background.

These are the ones that will be put on point. I didn’t spread them all out simply because I wasn’t sure you are that interested in seeing each individual block.

I do need to cut out some blocks for the outer border - that is, outside of the inner red border. I haven’t done that yet, but I’m not really ready to make them yet, though I will probably do that in the next few days. If I work on those blocks a few a day it won’t feel so tedious. Maybe by the time I have all of the round pieces appliqued to their backings I can have my outer border blocks made. Looks like I will be ‘snowballing’ some 2.5” squares to two corners of a rectangle to make those.

I haven’t always made all the blocks like Lori tells you to. Her instructions on how to make the blocks are on her blog or on her You Tube channel.

It feels sort of like a scavenger hunt to find the actual instructions and I longed for a simple link (Mercantile) with subsequent links for block 1, block 2, block 3. Apparently, however, that isn’t how she thinks. After the first couple when I saw what she was doing, I quit looking for her instructions on how to make the blocks and just figured out how to do them.

I found the best way to find the links to her block instructions was to look on the side, not under mercantile, but rather, under her blog and then click on April or March (2024) and find the block you are looking for. Let me show you.

Anyway, next I’ll update you once I get the blocks all appliqued to their backings and the center of the top done. That will take a while. I’m off to starting another top anyway, as this one is getting to the less interesting part and am eager to get going on something else. I’ll not stop working on this one, however, don’t worry.

I actually think I’m going to love this one!

Thanks so much for coming along with me on this journey!

Have a great day wherever you are reading this!

Becky Petersen5 Comments