Land of Magic Quilt Sew-A-Long Unicorn

This is the last block release for the Land of Magic Quilt sew a long and it's definitely one of my favorites. Don't be sad though - we still have some more sew along posts to keep things going to get your quilts done.
If you are new to the sew along or missed one of the blocks, you can click on the links to learn more about each one here and catch up as you can: Crown, Star, Castle, Dragon and the Mermaid. To sew your own Land of Magic quilt using all of the Sarah Jane Studios new Magic fabrics, just as I designed this quilt with, you can purchase a Land of Magic quilt kit from the Fat Quarter Shop. There are limited quantities available - so get one before they are all gone. You can find all of the patterns in my Kid Giddy Etsy shop.

This Unicorn block was based on Sarah's Unicorn border print. I loved the prancing unicorns and felt they would make the best block compared to the other unicorns in her collection. I especially loved the simplicity of the unicorn hooves.  I seemed easy to do to also match with the hands of the mermaid. It took some time to figure out the fabrics I wanted to use based on it being the last block. I loved using the Magic Folk as the background. It's a directional print, but looks great when arranged accordingly. 

The Unicorn block will piece together as a full top and full bottom piece. The top half is very straight forward.

The bottom right section is a little difficult because of the angles. Follow the previous tutorials for helping with angles and it will go together much easier. Once this section is done, the Unicorn block is a breeze. 

As usual be sure to press each section prior to trimming and check all of your fabrics to be sure each one is correct.

My two guest bloggers are Peta from She Quilts A Lot and Jennie from Clover and Violet. Peta decided to make her unicorn a solid pink with Sarah's Magic Folk print in the background. Visit her website to see what else she made!

Unicorn block sewn by Peta at She Quilts A Lot

I love Jennie's choice of fabrics and love that her unicorn 'alicorn' stands out in a perfect way, and that the mane is blue. Proof that there are so many possible variations and they are all sure to look amazing! Jennie shared a bit more about her making of the block on her Clover and Violet website...I love their blocks so much that I now want a whole quilt made of unicorns!

Unicorn sewn by Jennie at Clover and Violet

For those of you playing along and sewing along with each new block release...we have an awesome giveaway from Sarah Jane Studios herself. She is generously offering a $50 gift certificate to use in her online shop. One of the sewalong participants that finishes their unicorn block and posts it on Instagram will have a chance to win! You must be following myself (@kidgiddy) and @sarahjanestudios using the hashtag #LandOfMagicQuilt so I can see your block and will choose a winner. You will have two weeks to get your Unicorn block finished and entered for your chance to win the $50 gift certificate from Sarah.









As always, please advise any questions you may have and thank you again for joining with me in this sewalong. Thank you again to all of my awesome Land of Magic sewalong sponsors too!

Disclaimer: I received fabric from Michael Miller Fabrics back in April to design this quilt for Sarah Jane Studios Quilt market booth. Opinions are my own, and there are no affiliate links. Thank you.

Land of Magic Quilt Sew-A-Long Mermaid

What's more magical than a mermaid? Maybe a Unicorn is but we have to wait two more weeks on that one. Today for the Land of Magic Quilt sew along, we are releasing the Mermaid block. If you are new to the sewalong or missed one of the blocks, you can click on the links to learn more about each one here and catch up as you can: Crown, Star, Castle, and Dragon. To sew your own Land of Magic quilt using all of the Sarah Jane Studios new Magic fabrics, just as I designed this quilt with, you can purchase a Land of Magic quilt kit from the Fat Quarter Shop. There are limited quantities available - so get one before they are all gone. You can find all of the patterns in my Kid Giddy Etsy shop.

I designed this mermaid block based on two of Sarah's mermaids in her print, the one in the top left corner of my block and the one just below her hand with the crown on. There was not enough time to capture her wavy curls, but I tried best to capture the movement in the tail, and the sweet simplicity of their hands. I chose not to embroider the face as I feared ruining all of my hard work up to that point. I'm going to practice on some scraps though first and add it soon to finish her. 

The block I made and used (as seen above) in the final quilt was actually the second mermaid. The first one I sewed together didn't work because of the fabric shade I used for the mermaid skin. Do keep that in mind when choosing your mermaid's skin color and background. Before proceeding with the second mermaid, I decided to play with some scraps on top of the original block to see if there was a different color combo I might like better than the first. In the end I only changed her hair to solid white, but the exercise was fun.

Today's paper piecing lesson involves the seams. When paper piecing really small pieces, you'll have areas where there will be bulky seams - you may even deal with this on large pieces where multiple seams intersect. Once the paper is removed, it will help a little, but there will still be fabric that needs to be pressed certain ways to help it even more. As you are piecing the mermaid together, you'll have only two diagonal sections to piece together, and a few areas where bulk can easily be an issue.

Using the mermaid's waist line as an example, notice the skinny area in the center. As you are piecing these smaller areas, trimming the seam allowances is especially important.
Once sewn together, you'll see two seams, on the reverse side, with a section in the center. I have taken out the paper in the center so you can see the seams. If you were to press the two seams together, they will overlap and create too much bulk in the center area. The side seams here are not a concern either way, but because of the center bulk, in this case, it will be better to press the seams apart.Sometimes it will be better to press seams open, press to one side or the other, and when there are 8 seams coming together, you would press them in a circular pattern. Although you won't be pressing any seams until the paper is removed, it's important to consider which way you will be pressing them as you are sewing sections together. This will help prevent twisted seams in the end.
As mentioned in the dragon block tutorial, it's important to double check your fabric pieces within each section before sewing it all together. The white triangle piece between the mermaid and the crown in the picture below, is not supposed to be white. I truly didn't notice it was wrong until I put the blocks together with the sashing. I knew if I didn't go back and fix it I would be really bummed. I figured since I took all of these photos I would share that mistake so you wouldn't. 

The other two tips I wanted to share when piecing: in the photo above, you'll see a very small piece of fabric above the crown section that was a tad too small. My general rule of thumb is if it's at least 1/8" away from the seam, I'll leave it as is. If not, I will replace it. If you'll notice her arm pit on the right of the photo below, my piece of fabric just barely made it into the seam allowance. If it's too close, the seam will eventually come undone. It's of course easier to notice when the section is trimmed, but keep an eye on your seam allowances as you go along.
Lastly, always sew each seam all the way from end to end including the seam allowance. That means to sew at least 1/4" beyond the lines. When you do this - the pieces near the edges will stay in place and stay strong. This also helps to ensure your fabrics will be sure to extend in the seam allowance and not be missed.

There are two awesome mermaid bloggers to share today. Giuseppe (aka Giucy_Giuce) and Alisa (aka A Stitch in Between).
First up is Giuseppe's mermaid Amara. I love his story about her and you can check it out on his IG feed. Isn't she beautiful?!

Alisa made two mermaids - the original size and a smaller version too. You can read more about her mermaids and how she made the smaller mirror imaged one on her website A Stitch In Between. They remind me of my daughters and I can just imagine them having so much fun together!

For those of you playing along and sewing along with each new block release...we have an awesome giveaway from Michael Miller Fabrics. They are generously offering a fat quarter bundle selection of their Cotton Couture solids.

There are 150 different solids in their collection and the bundle will be a surprise collection of some of the colors. One of the sew a long participants that finishes their mermaid block and posts it on Instagram will have a chance to win the bundle. You must be following myself (@kidgiddy) and @MichaelMillerFabrics using the hashtag #LandOfMagicQuilt so I can see your block and will choose a winner. You will have until the Unicorn block is released in two weeks to get your Mermaid block finished and entered for your chance to win the bundle.




As always, please advise any questions you may have and thank you again for joining with me in this sew-a-long. Thank you again to all of my awesome Land of Magic sew-a-long sponsors too!

Disclaimer: I received fabric from Michael Miller Fabrics back in April to design this quilt for Sarah Jane Studios Quilt market booth. Opinions are my own, and there are no affiliate links. Thank you.

 

Land of Magic Quilt Sew-A-Long Dragon

Hello everyone - Thank you so much for all of the well wishes and your patience as I experienced a little medical emergency and was unable to get this Dragon post up in time for you all on Tuesday. I think I am on the mend and wanted to make sure you have this Dragon post before the next Mermaid post is scheduled. This Dragon block is the 4th block in the Land of Magic Quilt sew-a-long. If you are new to the sew-a-long, and don't have the  Land of Magic Quilt Fabric Kit, you can get one on the Fat Quarter Shop website. I was told they only have 16 left - so get yours quickly before they are all gone. You can purchase the LOM quilt pattern in my Kid Giddy Etsy shop, or on the FQS website as well. If you only want to do a specific block or two, you can purchase the blocks individually as you wish. (anyone catch that Princess Bride reference?)! the Magic fabrics are from Sarah Jane Studios newest fabric release with Michael Miller Fabrics and this quilt was directly inspired by and created with Sarah for her quilt market booth.

My momma always told me I should not pick favorites - but I think this Dragon might take the cake. In Karate - The Dragon represents "wisdom and fighting spirit". It has always been one of my favorite animals as I've trained in the martial arts for the past 9 years and am enthralled by this mythical magical creature. After designing the Crown and Star, this was the next block I designed not being able to wait any longer. I originally looked to Sarah's Magic Parade dragon as the inspiration for this block, but wanted this dragon to represent the "fighting spirit" and add to the quilt, a feeling of power and fierce determination. The Magic Parade dragon was so sweet and also intricate. The little Tiny Dragon print dragon was a simple silhouette that worked perfectly and fit the image for the quilt.

I used Sarah's Castle Plans print in white as the background, as if to say this is the land the dragon presides over. The Castle Plan print is a directional print. If you are making this quilt using the kit from the Fat Quarter shop, or as is, all you have to worry about is making sure to keep your castle plan pieces upright (this is also true for any directional prints you may want to use). See the previous photo tip from the Castle Block post to fussy cut your pieces. As you can see in my photo above, they don't have to match up perfectly along side each other as they tend to blend nicely on their own.

As part of the Dragon block release today, I'm sharing my tools tips and troubleshooting. If you are new to paper piecing, you can find some detailed information on learning to paper piece with the Land of Magic Crown tutorial (working 1 full block), the Land of Magic Star tutorial (working one block in multiple sections and connecting at angles), and the Land of Magic Castle block tutorial (working with directional prints and "fussy cutting").

Tools:
When working on any paper piecing project, I always have the following tools near my machine. I used to get up every five seconds, run to the iron or cutting mat and then back down to sew the next step - it wasn't just exhausting it was time consuming. By having these items nearby, you can save a lot of time while sewing. You will still need your iron for larger pieces, but a seam presser will be great for those smaller pieces.

(Small self healing cutting mat, clear ruler with 1/4" line, seam ripper, fabric scissors, rotary cutter, seam presser)

Troubleshooting:
The Dragon block is the first block that will utilize many large fabric pieces. Some of these large pieces are only one large piece as it's own section. When working with large pieces, you can pin the larger fabric piece in place before attaching additional pieces, or glue baste them to stay in place. I don't prefer to use pins as they are often in the way when trimming edges. Glue basting the fabric to the paper with one or two little dots and then pressing (on fabric side) will keep it in place and offer the ability to easily sew and trim without shifting or having to remove pins. If you have a piece shift (large or small), as I did below, you'll need to unstitch the pieces and adjust.

As I continue sewing large sections, I will stop and check each previous piece that I have sewn. The best way to check is to try to see if you can push any excess fabric towards the most recent seam. If there is any give in that fabric piece, that fabric will buckle while quilting. You can see in the pic below the amount of excess fabric there was based on the seam allowance. It doesn't take much to make a difference.

You may not have to unstitch the entire seam, only the portion that is buckling with excess fabric. While unstitching, be careful not to rip the paper. To avoid this from happening, I start ripping the seam on the fabric side first. If by chance you do rip the paper, use a piece of washi tape or masking tape to hold it back together. Using a stronger tape, could make it more difficult to tear part later when taking all of the paper off the block. Once resewn flip it over and re-trim the seam.

Before trimming and piecing all of the sections together, lay all of them out to be sure the image looks correct. This can help you to discover any fabric mistakes prior to having the block entirely pieced together. Check again once all sections are trimmed, and continue to do this as smaller sections are sewn into larger sections.

Our guest blogger Angie from Gnome Angel was also very excited for the Dragon block. Angie picked an awesome "scale" like print and shares all the details of her block on her website. Isn't this photo awesome? I can't wait to see what she makes with the block. I can see a whole quilt of dragons too though.

To see some other awesome dragons made by my pattern testers, check out my instagram feed throughout the next two weeks.

For those of you playing along and sewing along with each new block release...wanna know what prize you'll be hoping to win? This time we have an awesome giveaway from Electric Quilt Company. I could not have made these blocks as quickly as I did with out the awesome EQ7 program I use on my Mac. I have now had this program for only 2.5 years and have learned so much from simply using it. I love their program so much, and they love my patterns too - and decided to make me one of their DoYouEQ artists! How awesome is that? Their website is chock full of books, software and so much more. They have some tutorials to help you along the way and an awesome FAQ and help section as well.

The Electric Quilt Co is generously giving away 1 EQMini software program to 1 lucky participant that finishes their dragon block and posts it on Instagram. EQ Mini is a scaled down version of EQ7. You must be following myself (@kidgiddy) and @TheElectricQuiltCompany using the hashtag #LandOfMagicQuilt so I can see your block and choose a winner. You will have until the Mermaid block is released to get your Dragon block finished and entered for your chance to win. This is an awesome opportunity to get your feet wet in designing your own paper piecing quilts. This is open to a domestic or international winner. Depending on your location - you will either receive your prize as a hard copy of the software, or a digital version.

As always, please advise any questions you may have and thank you again for joining with me in this sew-a-long. Thank you again to all of my awesome Land of Magic sew-a-long sponsors too!

Disclaimer: I received fabric from Michael Miller Fabrics back in April to design this quilt for Sarah Jane Studios Quilt market booth. I have not received any product or monetary means from the sponsors of this sew a long for this sew a long or for their participation as sponsors. Opinions are my own, and there are no affiliate links. Thank you.

It's a new week and a new block for the Land of Magic Quilt sew-a-long. Today we are talking about the Castle block, and blogger Cristy from PurpleDaisies, as well as our sponsor Aurifil. I had so much fun designing this Castle block based on Sarah Jane Studio's Magic fabric "Castle Plans". As I designed this block, I took elements from Sarah's Castles like windows, turrets, towers and the cloud line that bounces across the block. I love the illusion this line gives, that there are thick low laying clouds or fog with the castle hanging around in the distance.

When I first designed the Castle block it was much wider than 8", and quickly realized it was the wrong width and wouldn't fit in my quilt plan. I was so bummed because I loved it (and finished it) - but took a deep breath, changed the width, and loved it even more. It became longer and skinnier and looked perfect (and of course it fit in the quilt).

The best part about the Castle block is that it doesn't have any angled sections to put together. All of the sections themselves are straight lines so the sections go together easily. The only time consuming part about this block is the fussy cutting for the background, and of course the little flag (I put the dragon on mine)!

There are two things to think about as you are piecing your Castle. The first is you'll use the same print (Unicorn Border) for the background from top to bottom. As you can see below, there are 5 different layers to use. The white with gold stars, greyish white with gold stars, light blue with tiny dot stars, deeper blue with tiny dot stars and of course the grass. As you piece the sections, be mindful of the lines and the fabric usage. 

The second part to consider while piecing your Castle block is the Navy Castle Plans and making sure the "plans" stay upright and not sideways or at an angle.

To make sure your directional prints show the way you want them to, place the paper piecing block pattern upright. Place the fabric right side down in the way you would want to see it. Fold the line of the fabric where you'll sew, and then move that piece under the paper. lining up the fold. Flip the fabric back the opposite way before sewing that seam. (photo shown below is from the making of the unicorn but illustrates my point perfectly).

I love the versatility of the Castle block. One of my pattern testers this past summer, was inspired to make her 'castle' into a Sand Castle block. I looks to me that she used the "sand" colored print on the sides of the base to "support" the structure. I love the concept she completely switched it to.

Photo courtesy of Angela from @thegreenapricot on Instagram

Shauna (@smoobug) decided to add a couple of extra lines. One extra line to add another layer of clouds (or fog), as well as a grass line to denote a rolling hill. I also love that she used a bright yellow fabric in the upper tower window. It looks as if someone is in the tower and the light is on. lol.

Photo courtesy of Shauna from @smoobug on Instagram

My awesome blogger friend for today's block is Cristy from Purple Daisies Quilting. Cristy decided to make her Castle block look like Sleeping Beauty's magical tower, complete with little princesses in the window. Cristy is the queen of paperless paper piecing and taught me all I know about glue basting! She shares some of her tips for glue basting the pieces backwards all at once, then sewing. It's crazy awesome! You can find more about Cristy (@cristycreates) and see all of her amazing creations by checking her site Purple Daisies Quilting.

I'd like to thank our sponsor Aurifil for providing the prize for this week's block release. Aurifil is providing one #landofmagicquilt participant one of their small spool collections box (jealous!). For your chance to win Emily Herrick's (also a Michael Miller Fabric designer) Up and Away small spool collection, 1: be sure you are following Aurifil (@aurifilthread) and myself (@kidgiddy) on Instagram, 2: post pics of your Castle block and tag it with the #landofmagicquilt and tag myself and Aurifil so we can see it, 3: post and tag it prior to the next block release in 2 weeks. Winner will be notified when the Dragon block comes out.

Thanks so much for joining in on this sewalong. I really enjoy seeing all of your blocks and look forward to seeing more as the weeks progress. Please do let me know if you have any questions at all and be sure to check out the Dragon Block post up in a couple of weeks!

Disclaimer: I received fabric from Michael Miller Fabrics back in April to design this quilt for Sarah Jane Studios Quilt market booth. I have not received any product or monetary means from the sponsors of this sew a long for this sew a long or for their participation as sponsors. Opinions are my own, and there are no affiliate links. Thank you.

Land of Magic Quilt Sew-A-Long: Star

Two Land of Magic Quilt blocks in one day? Yep! If you've finished your Crown block let's have some fun with the Star block. I designed this block to maximize the fussy cutting potential. I just can't help myself when there are cute little designs from Sarah Jane Studios fabric patterns. I also wanted to make sure there wouldn't be any Y seams. Before getting started - check out these two previous posts for all the sew-a-long details and the initial paper piecing how to's while making the Crown.

If you just arriving - check out the Land of Magic Quilt sew-a-long post for all of the details. Then visit the previous post for all the details on paper piecing and making the first block - the Crown.

Ready to make the Star? Begin making your star with a fussy cut piece of fabric in the center of section C. To prevent your fabric piece from shifting around, pin it in place.

Flip the paper section over and place the fabric right side down to ensure the fussy cut piece for C2 will be aligned. Fold the fabric on the same line where it will be stitched.

Place the fabric in the same place just underneath the pattern piece. Visually align the letters or design in the same area to be sure it will be properly placed. Use a light source to confirm placement. This same method can be used when dealing with directional fabric prints.

When each of the pattern sections are sewn, press each piece prior to trimming.

After trimming, connect section C to D. Prior to sewing these two sections together, pin them together.

Fold along the seam allowance to be sure the edge alignment is correct.

Press open sections C & D before attaching section B (bottom corner).

After sections B, C and D are connected, center section A to C and sew all the way across. The Star block (as well as the Crown block) is great for an entire quilt.

This sew-a-long is generously being sponsored by some awesome peeps and companies.

The first prize is a $25 gift certificate from the Fat Quarter Shop. For your chance to win the prize from our first block sponsor, be sure to follow me @kidgiddy and @fatquartershop on Instagram and share your crown and star blocks when finished on IG, tagging them with #landofmagicquilt as well. As each block is released - there will be a block sponsor announced and a prize from said sponsor. When the next block is released the winner from the previous block will be announced. The Crown and Star blocks are being released together (although in two posts) so there is one prize and one winner. When all is said and done, if you finish your Land of Magic quilt and post a pic on IG - your name will be in the running for the Grand Prize as a thank you for participating.

Thank you so much for joining in on the Magic. I can't wait to see all of your pics! If you have any questions - please let me know. I hope you had fun making your Crown and Star blocks. The Castle block will be released next week, so come back for more fun paper piecing with me!

Disclaimer: I received fabric from Michael Miller Fabrics back in April to design this quilt for Sarah Jane Studios Quilt market booth. Opinions are my own, and there are no affiliate links. Thank you.