I had a lovely snow day yesterday. I ironically used it to stitch up “Three Breeze,” a new quilt pattern I recently designed. The pattern features the new Seas & Greetings collection, by Hoffman California Fabrics, of course. The collection features a panel with a delightful vista of a sandy beach, complete with surf boards and palm trees. Ahh! I can almost feel the warm breeze. The prints that accompany the panel, featuring snowmen on the beach, seashells and more palm trees are just plain fun, and of course, well done. While it was super easy to stitch up, I’m always thinking of a few tips that might make you or your customers more successful.
The first tip is included in the pattern, complete with a little picture of how to use a triangle square up ruler to make those dreaded quarter-square triangles easy and perfect! It all comes down to using a tiny speck of water-soluble glue at the seam corners of your untrimmed half-square triangles before you sew the next step. See the arrow?
I like to use Quilt in a Day’s Triangle Square Up ruler (my favorite tool next to Elmer’s Clear School Glue–more on that later) to square up to the size you need. Place the base line of the ruler on the horizontal seam, and center the vertical line where the seams nest. Trim. TaDa! That tiny dot of glue will have kept the seams together and you’ll have perfect quarter-square triangles.
While I’m at it, allow me to share one more tip. If you know me, you know that I’m always harping about sewing an ⅛” around the outside of the quilt top with a longer stay stitch. But did you know it is also really helpful to do the same around the interior blocks of the quilt before you add the borders? Turn the quilt top over and stitch with the seam side up. Your quick little trip around the edge will keep all the seams in place, and also stabilize the outer edge, eliminating any stretching as you add the borders. And speaking of borders, you of course measured through the center of the quilt top to get the correct length, right?
I now have to fall on my sword and admit my shortcomings. In the pattern, I mistakenly said to make five “B” four-patch blocks. You only need to make three. I understand this error will put some into a tizzy, and I apologize. There is enough fabric to cut a few more squares for blocks you won’t need, but it does create a moment of panic. Or a sinking feeling in the pit of your stomach, which frankly put a damper on my beach bliss. Again, I’m sorry! The error is noted on the pattern corrections page of my Quilt Boss Design website.
If you need a little more inspiration, check out the Boardwalk pattern by Tourmaline & Thyme Quilts. What a great use of the border print to make a quick and fitting frame for the panel.
Seas & Greetings will begin shipping in June 2026.
Please leave a comment to let me know you’re here! I’d love to hear your thoughts.
Karen