FREE Woodland Mushroom Quilt Block :: Fabric.com Fall Block Party

It’s Week #2 of the 9-week Fabric.com Fall Block Party and I’m ready to take you into the deep woods…  I just love this season with the air getting crisp, the foliage changing colors, and the weather is cool enough for a good long hike.  It’s so much fun to explore the wilderness, especially with my young boys.  We find so many little critters, unique leaves, and lots of different plant-life.  Our own discoveries made me think of the quintessential Woodland Mushroom.

For this design, I wanted a fun scrappy mushroom to go along with all the different colors and textures we see out in nature.  The 12.5″ x 12.5″ (unfinished) block is based mainly on half-square triangles and you will love how just a little rearraging can give your block a new look.

For the Woodland Mushroom, I stuck to the Kona party theme found here, but prints are my key to scrappiness 🙂  These are the fabrics I selected (from top to bottom):

As I was making the block I was thinking of all the ways I could the mushroom as decor….because my house need some help!  I thought of all the fabric signs we see in big box stores with witty sayings all bound together with living picture frames (just a piece of wood at the top and bottom.)  Then it dawned on me to use pant hangers!  I know a lot of you already use them to display blocks, but I thought I would turn it up a notch and refinish a few.

I found these two pant hangers for a total of $0.60 at my local thrift shops.  Both were blonde wood with the same nickel finish on the wire.  With a little fine sandpaper, I took the shine off the entire hanger and used materials I had around the house to refinish it.  A watered down brown acrylic craft paint gave me the “stain” and I happened to have this gorgeous hammered bronze spray paint leftover from another forgotten DIY project.  A few layers of clear coat topped it off to protect the fabric against any paint which may rub off.

The hanger makeover really makes the piece more modern with an industrial rustic feel.  It works well with this fall palette and displays my Woodland Mushroom mini perfectly!  It will be easy to change out mini’s over time and through the different seasons.

Here is the mini displayed with some upcycled “ribbon” cut from a burlap coffee bag and leftover lace from my sister’s wedding.  It is displayed on a mantle with a wreath hanger and helps to bring the random decor I had around the house together.

And if mantle or table-scapes aren’t your thing, the pant hanger make it easy to display a mini quilt on your front door.  I think quilts should be the “new” wreaths, don’t you think?  We should get on that movement!

I hope you enjoyed our walk in the woods!  To make your own Woodland Mushroom block, visit Fabric.com’s blog here.


Don’t forget to keep sewing along and follow the rest of these amazing designers and their Fall #fabricdotcomblock party patterns!

Sept 12 – Fall Geese

Kristi Schroeder – Initial K Studio – @initialkstudio

Sept 19 – Woodland Mushroom

Cristy Stuhldreher – Love You Sew – @loveyousew_ (You are here!)

Sept 26 – Mod Tartan

Jenn Rossotti – Ginger Peach Studio – @jennrossotti

Oct 3 – Time Lapse

Christopher Thompson – The Tattooed Quilter – @thetattooedquilter

Oct 10 – Double Windmill

Haley Anderson – Happiness in the Making – @happinessinthemaking

Oct 17 – Antlers

Lisa Hofmann-Maurer – Sew What You Love – @sewwhatyoulove

Oct 24 – Gather

Elise Baek – Elise & Emelie – @eliseandemelie

Oct 31 – Forest Floor

Sarah Thomas – Sariditty -@sariditty

Nov 7 – Flutter By

Nicole Young – Lillyella – @lillyellasworld

 

Happy Foraging!

Cristy

 

***This post was sponsored by Fabric.com and there are affiliate links.  The block design, instructions and post are my own original work with my own opinions.

Padded Laptop Tutorial by Love You Sew

Padded Laptop Case Tutorial

LaptopCaseTitle

Today, I’m going to share my own pattern for a padded laptop case.  Every time I’ve had to travel, I’ve thought of how much I needed a cover for my MacBook.  But with our recent trip to the lake, I actually made one…the night before we left…in true procrastinator style.  How many times have you done something like that???

*Please read through all steps before starting.  Cutting dimensions are based on a 13″ Apple Macbook Pro (approx. 12.75″L x 9″W x  0.75″H)

Supplies:

  • 1/2 yd of Exterior Fabric
  • 1/2 yd of Lining Fabric
  • 1/2 yd of Pellon Flex-Foam or Annie’s Soft & Stable
  • 1/4 yd of Mid to Heavyweight Interfacing
  • 1 set of Magnetic Snaps
  • 3 sets of KAM Snaps
  • Coordinating Thread
  • Rotary Cutter and Cutting Board
  • Fabric Scissors

01LaptopFabricPull

If you follow me on IG, I made my personal one with Alison Glass‘s Geometry in Sunset (as shown) but with Mercury in blue as the pocket and the Historical Fiction in Gold print for the lining.  Luckily, my niece saw what I made and wanted one for her very own.  How did she know I also wanted to write a tutorial? She selected Geometry and I had a bunch of Historical Fiction in Strawberry in my stash to match. I love this vibrant combination.

 

 

Cutting Requirements:

02LaptopPatternCut*Please note all measurements are for a 13″ Apple Macbook Pro.

  • Cut from Exterior Fabric (L x W):
    • Front – 15.75″ x 10.75″
    • Back – 15.75″ x 16.25″
    • Pocket – 17.75″ x 18.75″
  • Lining – 15.75″ x 26.5″
  • Interfacing  – 17.25″ x 9″
  • Flex-Foam 15.25″ x 26″ (not pictured)

Instructions:

03InterfacingonPocket

Lay Pocket right-side facing down (17.75″ at the top) and fuse the interfacing to the bottom half according to the manufacturer’s instructions.  There should be a 1/4″ seam allowance all around the interfacing.

 

04PocketCloseup

Fold the pocket in half, wrong sides together, so the interfacing is sandwiched in between the Pocket fabric.  Press with iron and sew a 1/2″ seam along the fold to keep all pieces in place. Set aside.

 

05NotchFlap1

Take the Exterior Back fabric and hold it with the 15.75″ side along the top.  Measure 3″ in from both of the top corners and mark.

 

07NotchFlap3

Connect the two marks and cut off each corner.

 

09NotchFlap5

Repeat for the lining and Flex-Foam.

 

13Basting

Center the Lining (wrong side) on top of Flex-Foam and baste the two layers together.  Set aside.  TIP: Baste from the center out toward the edges. This helps pull the lining taut.

 

16PocketBasting

Center the pocket on the right-side of the Exterior Back.  Take the over-hang fabric and make a pleat approximately 1″ in (so it doesn’t get sewn into the lining later on.) [Edited to add: Repeat on other side.] Baste the pocket onto the Exterior Back with a 1/4″ seam allowance.

 

17AddFront
Sew the Exterior Front to the Exterior Back/Pocket right sides together on the short side creating the entire exterior cover.

 

18ExteriorComplete

Open and press seam open.  Exterior should look like picture above.

 

Mark Snap

From the top of the Lining, fold the sides together to find the center.  Mark down 1.25″ and attach the magnetic snap according to the manufacturer’s instructions.

 

19AttachLining

 

On the bottom of the Completed Exterior, find the center.  Mark down 2.5″ from that point to attach the other half of the snap set.  TIP: Fuse a piece of scrap interfacing on the wrong side of the fabric where you will attach the snap.  This helps provide a layer of durability.

With right sides together, sew the Exterior to the Lining with 3/8″ seam allowance leaving approximately 5″ opening to turn.  Notch the corners. Remove basting threads.

Turn the Laptop cover out and push out the corners.  Press well.

 

24Complete

Sew a square around the magnetic snaps with about 1/4″ clearance all around.  This helps secure the snap into place.

Sew a 1/4″ seam along the bottom edge of the laptop case.

Fold the front of the cover up along the sewn seam and clip into place.  Starting from one bottom corner, sew all around the case with 1/8″ seam allowance to create the main compartment for the laptop.

20 SideSnap

Follow the pleat on the pocket and finger press the fabric to mark where you will attach the KAM snaps.  The female and male ends will be right next to each other.

 

21SideSnapTogether

This will secure the pleat but gives the pocket more room to hold your cords and other goodies.  Repeat on the other pleat.

23BackwSnaps

 

Find the center of the pocket and add one more snap about 1/2″ down from the opening.  Find where the snap meets the body of the case, mark and add the other snap.  The pocket opening should lie completely flat when all snaps are fastened.

22CompletewLaptop

And there you have it – a beautiful cushioned case for your baby to travel!

Please let me know if you have any questions (I’m new to pattern writing) and please tag me on Instagram if you make one. #loveyousewlaptopcase  #loveyousewpatterns

 

Happy Sewing!

Cristy

 

This post may contain affiliate links for which I do receive a small compensation…It helps me keep this site running 🙂