Making a 4-Patch Pin Cushion - Something for Newbies and Oldies

I made my samples from my stash of "Starters and Stoppers".  Follow the link to learn about starters and stoppers.  Anyway, that's why the samples in the pictures are all different.  I was making up samples for a presentation at our quilt guild and wanted the pieces to show at each stage of the project.

Stuff you need, beside your sewing machine:

Scissors

Sewing Needle

Pins

Thread

Rotary Cutter

Thimble

Knitting Needle

Poly-Fill

Ruler

8 – 2 ½” Squares, 4 Lights and 4 Darks

Cutting Mat

Lay out your squares the way you would like them to be for the top and the bottom of the pin cushion.  Pick them up in the order you want to sew them, right sides together with the side to be sewn to the right.   You don't need to pin these.  After you sew the singles together, you will be ready to sew the pairs to pairs.  All seams are ¼”.  Check the setting of your sewing machine needle and foot to be sure it will stitch ¼” from the edge of the fabric.

Make the seams interlocking.  You can feel with your fingers when you have them just right.

Pick them up in order and chain piece them on the sewing machine.  Here, I've cut off the end starters and stoppers but left one in the middle.  I'll clip these apart, tossing the blue patch into the stash for future use.

Pin the seams.  Sew slowly, removing pins as you go.  Don’t sew over pins.

When you press, flatten, don’t pull or stretch.  (In garment sewing, we press seams open; in quilt sewing, press seams to the side to avoid bearding.)  Press the seams to the dark side, then stitch the additional pair of squares to the bottoms of each pair to make two blocks.  

Press the seams in opposite directions, side to side.

Square your blocks by trimming the edges to be square and straight.  Notice the block is straight along the "7" line and a small bit of the white patch is showing at the bottom, ready to be cut off with the rotary cutter.

Place the blocks right sides together and stitch all around, leaving about 2” open in the middle of one side. Back stitch at the start and finish because the opening is a stress point.   Press it.

Clip the corners and turn the piece right side out, poking out the corners, 

GENTLY, with the knitting needle point.  Press it.  Now stuff it with poly-fill or batting...anything you like.  Someone suggested unraveled wool yarn or raw, washed sheep's wool.  They said it will keep your pins and needles clean and sharp.  I'll have to try that one.

Voila!  You're almost all done.  I mean, you may want to add a "fuzzie" velcro to the bottom of it to stick to the "hookie" velcro patches you have around.....I have them on the top of my machines and by my ironing board so I can save pins and needles easily, one-handed.

Or, tack a loop of ribbon to one corner and and hang it up.  You can stab a pin or needle into it very easily so it's a great cushion for catching pins you remove as you sew.

"Starters and Stoppers" Quilt

One of the problems with my Singer and my Bernina sewing machines is that they can "eat" small patches of fabric right at the start of the stitching of them.  The wide slot in the throat plate, that allows for the zig-zag stitch on these machines, is a great place for the old needle to stuff all kinds of little quilt patches when it doesn't easily pierce the stuff on the first stitch.  Consequently, I have always used "starters and stoppers" when chain-piecing and sewing small pieces.

What are "Starters and Stoppers", or, S&S's?

They can be any small scrap of any shape which you use, doubled, to make a smooth transition between one piece and another.  I have often used any old piece of fabric lying around and stitched over it again and again, then, thrown it away.  Then, my friend, Joyce, told me she was using her S&S's to make a quilt, while making a quilt.  I bet you're more confused than ever, now.

Joyce showed me how she rotary-cut 2 1/2" squares of light and dark fabric from scraps, and stacked them, alternating colors and shades, beside her machine when she was quilting.  When making a series of units for a block, she would, first, sew onto a pair of the 2 1/2" squares (right sides together), 1/4" from the edge, ending about 1/2" from the corner of the side.  Then, she would lay the first patches to be pieced in front of the presser foot, start the machine, sew off of the S&S and right onto the patch; and continue on, chain piecing the patches.  At the end, she would sew off on another, new pair of S&S's, stop the machine near the edge and snip the patches out from behind the presser foot.  The presser foot would remain down on the S&S, ready to begin a new chain.  In the course of sewing just 12 blocks for a quilt, Joyce could produce quite a stack of S&S's.

When she had quite a few of them, she made them into Four Patch blocks.

When she had quite a few of the Four Patch blocks, she added sashings and borders and VOILA!  A quilt!

So, I started using the 2 1/2" S&S's a couple of years ago.  As a matter of habit, I just kept cutting up my scraps and using them as I pieced quilts.  Last winter, I noticed I had quite a few of them, so put together a little quilt for my grandson, Cole:

A "Starters and Stoppers" Quilt made for my grandson, Cole.


After I made the quilt, I noticed I still had a lot of S&S's, so I made a quilt as a donation for our local women's shelter.  And I still had quite a few left.  So I made two more quilts for grandsons, Dylan and Carsen.  I literally had enough of the little blocks to make four single-bed quilts!  Easy as pie, too, and the boys love them.

You can do this, too.  It becomes a habit that can garner some real benefits.  Hugs for your children and grandchildren and all your loved ones can be given with quilts.  Life is grand.


Sunbonnet Sue is alive and well at Prairie Cottage Corner.  Please visit and see our new quilt patterns and selections.  There's a SALE going on now, too, in our catalog store.  Visit often, please, and tell us about your latest adventures in quilting with Sunbonnet Sue, quilting, applique and other needle adventures.