Lemon Bars

Designer: Roseann Meeham Kermes

• 5⁄8 yard cream print (blocks)
• 3⁄4 yard blue floral (blocks, inner and outer borders)
• 1-1⁄8 yards yellow floral (blocks, outer border)
• 3⁄8 yard blue print (binding)
• 2-1⁄2 yards backing fabric
• 44" square batting

Finished quilt: 37-1⁄2" square

Finished block: 4-1⁄2" square

Quantities are for 44⁄45"-wide, 100% cotton fabrics. Measurements include 1⁄4" seam allowances. Sew with right sides together unless otherwise stated.

Cut pieces in the order that follows.

From cream print, cut:

• 5--2×42" strips
• 72--2" squares

From blue floral, cut:

• 4--2×42" strips
• 4--2×27-1⁄2" inner border strips
• 2--4-3⁄8" squares, cutting each in half diagonally to make 4 large triangles
• 2--2-3⁄8" squares, cutting each in half diagonally to make 4 small triangles

From yellow floral, cut:

• 3--2×42" strips
• 4--4×30-1⁄2" outer border strips
• 36--2×5" rectangles
• 2--4-3⁄8" squares, cutting each in half diagonally to make 4 large triangles
• 2--2-3⁄8" squares, cutting each in half diagonally to make 4 small triangles

From blue print, cut:

• 4--2-1⁄2 ×42" binding strips

1.     Referring to Diagram 1, sew together two blue floral 2×42" strips and a yellow floral 2×42" strip to make Strip Set A. Press seams toward blue floral strips. Cut strip set into eighteen 2"-wide A segments.

2.     Referring to Diagram 2, sew together two cream print 2×42" strips and a blue floral 2×42" strip to make Strip Set B. Press seams toward blue floral strip. Repeat to make a second Strip Set B. Cut strip sets into thirty-six 2"-wide B segments.

3.     Referring to Diagram 3, sew together one A segment and two B segments to make a Nine-Patch block. Press seams toward B segments. The block should be 5" square including seam allowances. Repeat to make 18 Nine-Patch blocks total.

1.     Referring to Diagram 4, sew together two yellow floral 2×42" strips and a cream print 2×42" strip to make Strip Set C. Press seams toward yellow floral strips. Cut strip set into eighteen 2"-wide C segments.

2.     Use a quilter's pencil to mark a diagonal line on wrong side of 72 cream print 2" squares. (To prevent the fabric from stretching as you draw the lines, place 220-grit sandpaper under the squares.)

3.     Align marked cream print 2" squares atop ends of a yellow floral 2×5" rectangle (Diagram 5, noting direction of marked lines). Stitch on marked lines; trim excess fabric, leaving 1⁄4" seam allowances. Press attached triangles open to make a pieced rectangle. Repeat to make 36 pieced rectangles total.

4.     Referring to Diagram 6, sew two pieced rectangles to long edges of one C segment to make a Snowball block. Press seams toward C segment. The block should be 5" square including seam allowances. Repeat to make 18 Snowball blocks total.

1.     Referring to Quilt Assembly Diagram for placement, lay out 18 Nine-Patch blocks and 18 Snowball blocks in six horizontal rows. Sew together blocks in each row. Press seams in one direction, alternating direction with each row.

2.     Join rows to make quilt center. Press seams open to reduce bulk in seam allowances. The quilt center should be 27-1⁄2" square including seam allowances.

1.     Sew together one blue floral small triangle and one yellow floral small triangle to make a small triangle-square (Diagram 7). Press seam toward blue floral triangle. The triangle-square should be 2" square including seam allowances. Repeat to make four small triangle-squares total.

2.     Sew blue floral inner border strips to opposite edges of pieced quilt center. Press seams toward border.

3.     Referring to Quilt Assembly Diagram, add a small triangle-square to each end of remaining blue floral inner border strips to make two pieced inner border strips. Sew pieced inner border strips to remaining edges of quilt center. Press seams toward border.

4.     Sew together one blue floral large triangle and one yellow floral large triangle to make a large triangle-square (Diagram 8). Press seam toward blue floral triangle. The triangle-square should be 4" square including seam allowances. Repeat to make four large triangle-squares.

5.     Sew yellow floral outer border strips to opposite edges of quilt center. Press seams toward border.

6.     Referring to Quilt Assembly Diagram, add a large triangle-square to each end of remaining yellow floral outer border strips to make two outer border strips. Sew outer border strips to remaining edges of quilt center to complete quilt top. Press seams toward border.

1.     Layer quilt top, batting, and backing.

2.     Quilt as desired. Patti Trygg machine-quilted meandering leaves in the quilt center and a daisy chain in the inner border. Lemon and leaf designs dance around the quilt center in the outer border.

3.     Use blue print binding strips to bind quilt.