I have a quick quilt for H2H that I’d like to share with you today. If you are not familiar with H2H, short for the Hands 2 Help Comfort Quilt Challenge, it is an annual quilt challenge with the goal that all quilts made will be donated to a charity of your choice.
Mari of The Academic Quilter has stepped in to host Hands 2 Help this year while Sarah (Confessions of a Fabricaholic) takes some time off for personal reasons. Thank you, Mari, for stepping up and taking on this huge task. You can find information about Hands 2 Help here. You can sign up and find answers to questions about that here. There is still time to sign up, and we’d love to have you join in on the fun. And, of course, there are prizes, too!
When Mari asked if I’d be willing to share a quick quilt, I was happy to do so. One quilt I made in the past immediately came to mind, so I pulled out the pattern and whipped up this little baby quilt.
This pattern is the Jolly Bar Meringue Shortcut Quilt, a free download from The Fat Quarter Shop. A “Jolly Bar” is a precut pack from The Fat Quarter Shop with cuts that measure 5″ x 10″. The other shortcut for this quilt is using the Creative Grids 9-1/2″ Perfect Rectangle Ruler. (**No affiliations here, just two products that I find useful.)
The baby version of this quilt uses 16 5″ x 10″ rectangles of prints, and 16 5″ x 10″ rectangles of background fabric. One 5″ x 10″ rectangle will yield two half square rectangles. The Jolly Bar packs make this simple, because you just pull them out and cut. If you decide to cut your own rectangles, and are using the ruler, don’t miss this tip: Once your cutting is complete, make sure you stack all of your rectangles right side up. If you leave them as cut, you will have some HSRs that face the wrong way. We don’t want that!
You can make half square rectangles without the Creative Grids ruler. There are several tutorials out there if you just do a quick search. I thought this one was helpful. Since I used the ruler, let me show you why I like it.
For this quilt, I marked off the size on the ruler with washi tape. I lay the ruler down and make a cut, then I flip the ruler and make the second cut. A rotating mat is very helpful for this step.
There is very little waste, and cutting goes quickly. I cut in stacks of two, but you can do more as long as your rotary blade is sharp.
The other nifty thing about this ruler is the notching at the tip.
The notching helps line up the fabrics for that nice 1/4″ seam, and makes for quick sewing. I had all the blocks done and the quilt top assembled in an afternoon.
And there you have it, a quick quilt you can make for Hands 2 Help. My quilt top measures 32″ square. I used part of a Jolly Bar pack from my stash for the prints, and Grunge Faded Denim for the background fabric.
Happy Sewing!
Wendy
I really love the pattern, and your quilt. Helping H2H every year is so fulfilling.
Thanks Wendy for sharing this pretty quilt and instructions.
Such a cute baby quilt, Wendy!!! And that ruler makes it snazzy easy!!!
This is darling Wendy, and a perfect baby quilt for a girl or a boy. Thanks so much for sharing!
Thanks for the reminder of using this ruler, I thought it was fun to use. I have to get busy with my H2H soon!
I love these half-rectangle blocks! It is a perfect baby quilt!
That’s a great design! Sounds like that ruler with a Jolly Bar makes it simple. Thanks for the inspiration, Wendy!
I love that design and it looks so easy!
Very striking design. I have a binding tool with that notch. It does help to cut off that itty bitty triangle and have two straight sides to line up on.
That is a great quilt! I keep meaning to do more with Half Rectangle Triangles but haven’t yet. Maybe I will make one of these. I’ll try to remind you to link up on the 22nd!
Hi Wendy! Love this baby quilt and especially the use of HRTs. How clever to use Jolly Bars – they have to make this project go even quicker. Nice job and a lovely finish. {{Hugs}} ~smile~ Roseanne
A wonderful quilt and your instructions make it look so easy. Thanks for the links to the tutorial and to the pattern. So helpful!
Lovely Baby quilt, Wendy. Thanks for sharing.
Having the right tool like the creative grids ruler can make the process so much easier for some quilts (like this one). That extra notch is great for getting everything aligned just so. Thanks for sharing, and what a lovely baby quilt!
Sounds quick and easy, Wendy. Thanks!
This quilt is fantastic Wendy! 🤩🤩 thanks for the pattern info. It’s now on my list.
Question: Can you use charm squares for this?? Thanks! Love the speed/ease of this pattern.
It’s a great baby quilt, and it’s probably no surprise to you that I prefer to paper piece my HRTs!
Super cute quilt Wendy! Nice to have these that you can make in a day.
This is such a bright and cheerful quilt and is going to make a child happy, I am sure. Thanks for showing us how you made it, too.
Wendy forgot about this pattern. Great idea for Hands 2 Help.
The cutest of quilts in these eye pleasing colours too..and thanks for the tutorial which makes it sound like something I could sew. I think I need more gear like new rotary blades for starters, LOL.
Such a sweet quilt Wendy. Thank you for sharing the tutorial.