Timeless Beauty Table Topper

Inspired by: Get Together from designer Diane Tomlinson

Quilt tester: Diane Tomlinson

Yardages and cutting instructions are based on 42" of usable fabric width.

• 1 yard solid red (Nine-Patch units, blocks, Square-in-a-Square unit, Flying Geese units, border)
• 1 yard solid white (Nine-Patch units, blocks, Square-in-a-Square unit, Flying Geese units, sashing rectangles)
• 3/8 yard binding fabric
• 1-1/4 yards backing fabric
• 42"-square batting
• Lightweight tracing paper or other foundation material of your choice

Finished quilt: 33-1/2" square

Finished block: 9" square

Cut pieces in the following order.

From solid red, cut:

• 2—3-1/2×33-1/2" border strips
• 2—3-1/2×27-1/2" border strips
• 1—2 -3/4" square
• 13—1-1/2×21" strips
• 36—1-1/2×3-1/2" rectangles

From solid white, cut:

• 8—3-1/2×9-1/2" sashing rectangles
• 16—3-1/2" squares
• 2—2-3/4" squares, cutting each in half diagonally for 4 triangles total
• 11—1-1/2×21" strips
• 72—1-1/2×2-1/2" rectangles

From binding fabric, cut:

• 4—2-1/2×42" binding strips

Measurements include 1/4" seam allowances. Sew with right sides together unless otherwise stated.

Press seams in directions indicated by arrows on diagrams. If no direction is specified, press seam toward darker fabric.

1. Referring to Diagram 1, sew together two solid red 1-1/2×21" strips and a solid white 1-1/2×21" strip to make Strip Set A. Repeat to make five A strip sets total. Cut strip sets into fifty-six 1-1/2"-wide A segments.

2. Sew together two solid white 1-1/2×21" strips and a solid red 1-1/2×21" strip to make Strip Set B (Diagram 2). Repeat to make three B strip sets total. Cut strip sets into twenty-eight 1-1/2"-wide B segments.

3. Sew together two A segments and one B segment to make a Nine-Patch unit (Diagram 3). The unit should be 3-1/2" square including seam allowances. Repeat to make 28 Nine-Patch units total.

1. Referring to Diagram 4, lay out five Nine-Patch units and four solid white 3-1/2" squares in three rows. Sew together pieces in rows. Join rows to make a block. The block should be 9-1/2" square including seam allowances.

2. Repeat Step 1 to make four blocks total.

Click on "Download this Project" above for the Square-in-a-Square Foundation Piecing Pattern.

Foundation-piecing involves stitching fabric pieces to a foundation paper with the marked side of the paper facing up and fabric pieces layered underneath. The resulting pieced unit is a mirror image of the foundation pattern.

1. Use a pencil to trace the Square-in-a-Square Foundation Piecing Pattern once onto lightweight tracing paper (or other foundation material of your choice), tracing all lines and numbers. (Or print page 5 of the download once onto foundation paper.) Cut out traced foundation pattern roughly 1/4" outside dashed lines.

2. With right sides together, layer a solid white triangle atop solid red 2 -3/4" square; align edges. Top with a foundation paper. Sew on stitching line between positions 1 and 2. Repeat to add solid white triangles to remaining edges of solid red square (Diagram 5) to make a Square-in-a-Square unit. The unit should be 3-1/2" square including seam allowances.

Click on "Download this Project" above for the Flying Geese Unit Foundation Piecing Pattern.

1. Gather nine solid red 1-1/2×3-1/2" rectangles (for positions 1, 4, 7, 10, 13, 16, 19, 22, and 25) and 18 solid white 1-1/2×2-1/2" rectangles (for remaining positions). Working in numerical order and following the same process as Square-in-a-Square unit, foundation-piece a Flying Geese unit (Diagram 6). The unit should be 3-1/2×9-1/2" including seam allowances.

2. Repeat Step 1 to make four Flying Geese units total.

1. Referring to Quilt Assembly Diagram, lay out blocks, remaining Nine-Patch units, solid white 3-1/2×9-1/2" sashing rectangles, Square-in-a-Square unit, and Flying Geese units in five rows. Sew together pieces in rows. Press seams toward sashing rectangles and Flying Geese units.

2. Join rows to make quilt center. Press seams toward block rows. The quilt center should be 27-1/2" square including seam allowances.

3. Sew solid red 3-1/2×27-1/2" border strips to opposite edges of quilt center. Add solid red 3-1/2×33-1/2" border strips to remaining edges to complete quilt top. Press all seams toward border.

4. Remove foundation papers with tweezers or blunt edge of a seam ripper.

1. Layer quilt top, batting, and backing; baste. Quilt as desired.

2. Bind with binding strips.