Color Options from American Patchwork & Quilting December 2010

A single star block split diagonally by color is rotated to create an intricate design.Get the free quilt pattern here.

Two-Tone Star Table Runner

Quilt tester Laura Boehnke amped up the contrast in her version of Half & Half by using black and white batiks from Hoffman California Fabrics for a graphic, gift-worthy table runner. With block placement similar to the original, she created the illusion of diagonal stripes. A narrower (2-3/4" cut) middle border better matches the proportions of her smaller quilt.

Go to the free table runner quilt pattern.

Pieced Pot Holder

If someone on your gift list loves to cook, whip up a pot holder, such as the one staff writer Maria Charbonneaux made using the Joy Basket and Morning Call collections by Hoodie for Blank Quilting.

No matter which way you turn it, this quilt is full of surprises. Two alternating blocks create the illusion of squares set on point.Buy this quilt pattern here.

Squares and Stars Tabletop Quilt

Quilt tester Laura Boehnke shows what Box of Chocolates looks like with border. She cut a 2-1/4"-wide border from a black print that accentuates the inner frames of the B blocks. While bold complementary orange and blue prints make the on-point pattern emerge, multicolor prints from the Enchanted Rainforest collection from Maywood Studio help tie everything together.

Go to the free tabletop quilt pattern.

Batik Table Runner

An extra-long table runner is a thoughtful gift for a friend who loves to entertain. Design director Nancy Wiles alternated three A blocks and two B blocks made in batiks from the Ceylon and Taffy collections from Hoffman California Fabrics in a row to make a 60"-long topper.

We challenged mother-daughter duo Bonnie Olaveson & Camille Roskelley to explore the possibilities of their latest jointly designed fabric collection.Get the free quilt pattern here.

Whimsical Windmills Quilt

Quilt tester Laura Boehnke gives this windmill-style quilt a colorful spin with playful fabrics from Kathy York's Urban Landscapes collection for Clothworks (left). She replaced the ivory sashing with a bold turquoise print for more defined rows. By alternating blue and yellow for the block backgrounds, she visually connected the Louisiana and triangle-square blocks.

Go to the free quilt pattern.

Dutchman's Puzzle Block

A big-block design is perfect for showcasing novelty prints, such as the Calico Kitty collection from Timeless Treasures (right). To keep the quick-to-piece baby quilt from looking too busy, quilt tester Laura Boehnke paired the larger prints with small-scale florals and dots. As a nod to the original's ample use of solid white, Laura used a light print for the background.

Go to the free baby quilt pattern.

Louisiana Block Canvas Prints

Create easy artwork to match a recipient's decor by mounting three Louisiana quilt blocks to pre-stretched canvases (left). Senior editor Elizabeth Tisinger used fabrics from the Oasis collection by Paintbrush Studio for Fabri-Quilt.

Flying Geese Pillowcase

Get in the giving spirit by making pillowcases for your favorite charity as part of our 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge. Senior editor Elizabeth Tisinger used fabrics from The Antiquity Collection for Michael Miller Fabrics (right). Visit AllPeopleQuilt.com/pillowcases to learn more about pillowcase construction and the 1 Million Pillowcase Challenge.

Surround a lush, autumnal motif with five intricate borders featuring Square-in-a-Square units, Album blocks, and skillfully cut stripes.

Tropical Medallion Wall Hanging

With two fewer borders, Oak Leaf Medallion still turns heads. Quilt tester Laura Boehnke lightened up the look with fabrics from the Paradise collection by Audrey Jeanne Roberts for Studio E Fabrics. For a quirky twist, she fussy-cut tropical birds from the outer border to showcase in Square-in-a-Square blocks in the middle border.

Go to the free quilt pattern.

Medallion Throw Pillow

While interactive editor Lisa Schumacher used a similar color palette as Laura for her appliquéd medallion, she turned her take on Oak Leaf Medallion into a large throw pillow to give as a gift. Fabrics are from the Felicity collection by Emily Taylor for Riley Blake Designs.

Give a contemporary spin to a classic Double Nine-Patch block using solids and mottled fabrics in a limited color palette.Get this free quilt pattern here.

Holiday Double Nine-Patch Quilt

Instead of solids and mottled fabrics, quilt tester Laura Boehnke used an array of small-scale prints from the Holidays At Home collection by Faye Burgos for Marcus Fabrics to create Double Nine-Patch blocks for a scrappy-looking Urban Amish throw quilt. By adding a novelty bird print in some of the blocks, she subtly re-created the asymmetrical look of the original. Laura cut a stripe on the diagonal to create an inner border with plenty of movement.

Go to the free quilt pattern.

Double Nine-Patch Journal Cover

A reusable fabric cover for a standard composition notebook is a gift that keeps on giving. For the journal cover, design director Nancy Wiles used Jennifer Paganelli's Poodle collection for FreeSpirit to piece two Double Nine-Patch blocks, two setting triangles, and four corner triangles into a rectangle.

Clusters of small squares and raw-edge appliqués form the centerpiece of a flower-patch-inspired quilt.

Lollipop Flowers Wall Hanging

For a whimsical wall hanging, quilt tester Laura Boehnke pieced one middle border row of the original, sewed a pink print 13x33-1/2" rectangle to the top, then added four corner blocks. She made longer bias stems and embellished the lollipop-style blooms with rickrack and buttons. Fabrics are from the Berkshire collection by Jeannine Bach for Blue Hill Fabrics.

Go to the free wall hanging quilt pattern.

Appliquéd Tea Towel

For a quick gift, embellish a purchased tea towel with appliquéd flowers and hand embroidery in coordinating colors. Editor Jill Mead used Kaffe Fassett's Shot Cottons collection for the flower appliqués and cut a bottom border from his Ombre collection. Both Fassett collections are from Westminster Fabrics.

Whimsical holly appliqués and prairie points in an array of prints give this festive table topper seasonal cheer.Get this free quilt pattern here.

Assistant editor Jody Sanders and quilt tester Laura Boehnke demonstrate how Happy Holidays can take on two different looks.

Autumn Prairie Points Table Topper

Laura used the Harvest Reflections collection from Benartex for a decidedly autumn-inspired wall hanging (left) fit for a nature lover. The prairie points mimic the fern fronds in the predominant print.

Go to the free Autumn Prairie Points Table Topper pattern.

Reproduction-Print Table Topper

Jody gathered fabrics from her stash of reproduction prints and skipped the prairie points and holly appliqués to create a scrappy quilt (right) with a multicolor palette that allows for year-round display.

Go to the free Reproduction-Print Table Topper pattern.

Handmade Gift Bag

Make the presentation as fun as what's inside! Senior graphic designer Elizabeth Stumbo used the holly leaf patterns and a trio of buttons to add adorable appliqué to a lunch sack gift bag. Before sewing the bag lining to the outer body, she added prairie points between the layers to create festive fringe.

Get this free pattern here.

Take your time and utilize your stash to create an heirloom Courthouse Steps quilt from 1"-wide strips.Buy this quilt pattern here.

Batik Courthouse Steps

Small Steps is stunning made in purple batiks from the Artisan Batiks: Blossom 2, Elementals: Botanical, and Elementals: Lots of Dots collections by Lunn Studios for Robert Kaufman. For more striking contrast between blocks, quilt tester Laura Boehnke used dark strips for all sides of the B blocks. "I like how the resulting pattern resembles ikat," she says.

Go to the free quilt pattern.

Pincushion Cube

Executive editor Jennifer Keltner created a supersize pincushion using fabrics from the Golden Afternoon collection from Connecting Threads. She joined the edges of four Courthouse Steps blocks, stopping and starting seams 1/4" from the corners, to make a tube. She added blocks to the open edges of the pieced tube, leaving an opening along a bottom edge, to make a cube. After turning the cube right side out, she added fiberfill and a pouch filled with crushed walnut shells for weight, then slip-stitched the opening closed.