quilting

Christmas Tree Mini

July 20, 2018

It’s hard to believe the year is half over. Here in Minnesota, we have been experiencing high temps, humidity, and bugs. It’s typical Minnesota summer weather, and a perfect time to spend a little time dreaming of a white Christmas! The summer months are done so quickly it seems, while the winter months can be long and tedious.

Anyway, speaking of things being done so quickly, how about a little project for Christmas gifts that can be done in a day, maybe two? It’s my stop today for the 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop, hosted by Sarah of Confessions of a Fabric Addict, where you can find easy, fun projects to make ahead of the Christmas rush!

Christmas Tree Mini - My project for the 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop, hosted by Sarah of Confessions of a Fabric Addict - piecefulthoughts.com

If you’re like me, you have all good intentions of getting Christmas projects done early. Then December rolls around, and the scrambling begins to get them all done. July is the perfect time to make some quick projects for those gifts for teachers and others who are part of your life and deserve a small gift.

My cousin, Deb, is a teacher, so I asked her what teachers might enjoy receiving as gifts. One of her suggestions was a mini quilt for bulletin boards. I recall helping decorate bulletin boards while in school. It was a favorite project of mine, because I could play with colors and design. I thought a small mini quilt that could be put on a bulletin board, or possibly hung on a door, might be a fun, fast project for a teacher.

Christmas Tree Mini - My little mini quilt for the 12 Days of Christmas in July Blog Hop, using the Geometric Christmas Tree FPP block pattern by Center Street Quilts, available as a free download on Craftsy - piecefulthoughts.com

This little mini quilt finishes at 6″ by 24″ and is made up of four blocks. For the design, I used the Geometric Christmas Tree block pattern by Kristina of Center Street Designs. The block is a free download on Craftsy. I did contact Kristina of Center Street Designs and asked her if I could use the design for this blog post, and she graciously said yes.

The Details

For my mini quilt, I pulled out my charm pack of Vintage Holiday by Bonnie & Camille. Just when I was pondering what fabrics to use for this, I received these charm packs in my Sew Sampler box. I love it when that happens!

Christmas Tree Mini - Fabrics I used for my mini, Vintage Holiday by Bonnie & Camille - piecefulthoughts.com

For my mini, I selected greens and reds from the charm pack to use for the trees. All of the fabrics for this mini are from the Vintage Holiday line, with the exception of the background fabric, which is a white on white from my stash.

TIP: This mini could also be made using a more generic winter theme for the trees, with varying shades of greens, giving a gift that could be used longer than just during the holiday season.

The Right Tools for the Job

Since the pattern is foundation paper pieced, I gathered my favorite tools. The only thing missing in this photo is my tweezers, which I use for pulling those little pieces of paper free.

Christmas Tree Mini - My foundation paper piecing tools: mini cutting mat, 1" x 6" ruler, Add a Quarter ruler, stiletto for ripping, Hera marker for scoring the paper, small rotary cutter - piecefulthoughts.com

While you can easily do foundation piecing without most of these tools, they do make the project quicker and more enjoyable. From left to right: mini cutting mat, 1″ x 6″ ruler, Add-a-Quarter ruler, stiletto (or seam ripper), Hera marker for scoring the paper, and small rotary cutter.

The Finishing Touches

The blocks are 6.5″ unfinished and go together quickly. It took me two days to complete the mini, only because I had to take a break to finish other projects.

Christmas Tree Mini - Detail photo of my little mini, showing the wavy quilting and that delicious striped binding - piecefulthoughts.com

For the quilting, I did a quick outline of the trees just inside the stitching line using lime green thread from Aurifil. Then I used Aurifil white to stitch an organic wavy line over the background.

Here’s another peek.

Christmas Tree Mini - Another close up of the quilting - piecefulthoughts.com

For the backing, I used this lovely fabric from the Vintage Holiday line. It has a little bit of glitz with the shine on the snowflakes. I added little corner triangles for a hanging option.

Christmas Tree Mini - My mini quilt backing fabric, along with little corner triangles for hanging, and that yummy striped binding - piecefulthoughts.com

I couldn’t resist the striped fabric from the Vintage Holiday line for the binding. Doesn’t it make you think of candy canes? It just adds a little festive flair to the mini.

One more view of the finished mini for you to enjoy.

Christmas Tree Mini - Finished mini quilt, which measures 6" x 24" using the Geometric Christmas Tree FPP pattern from Center Street Designs, available on Craftsy. Fabrics are Vintage Holiday by Bonnie & Camille, background fabric is a white on white from my stash - piecefulthoughts.com

This blog hop wouldn’t happen without the efforts of Sarah from Confessions of a Fabric Addict, so I want to say a big thank you to her. Please stop by and say thanks to Sarah as well, and join in on her quilt along for the beautiful Rejoice quilt. And there are giveaways — did I mention that?! We have some amazing sponsors for the Hop, so don’t miss that. Then grab another cup of coffee or tea and visit the other bloggers in the hop (many of them have giveaways too!). Here’s the full schedule:

Saturday, July 14th

Sunday, July 15th

Monday, July 16th

Jamie @ L’Fair Quilts

Tuesday, July 17th

Sharon @ Vrooman’s Quilts

Mary @ Made by Marney

Wednesday, July 18th

Thursday, July 19th

Danice @ Homespun Hannah

Friday, July 20th

Wendy @ Pieceful Thoughts  — Hey! That’s me!

Saturday, July 21st

Marian @ Seams To Be Sew

Sunday, July 22nd

Anja @ Anja Quilts

Moira @ Quilted Snail

Monday, July 23rd

Brenda @ Songbird Designs

Tuesday, July 24th

Summer @ Summer Lee Quilts

Wednesday, July 25th

Do you have a go-to project that you make for easy Christmas gifts? I’d love to hear about it!

Wendy

 

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