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| Woodland Block |
The Woodland Block, designed by Anne Sutton of Bunny Hill Designs at Fat Quarter Shop is a delightful appliqué block to add to your quilting collection that is sure to be charming and nature inspired. Known for her whimsical, cozy designs, Anne Sutton's retro chic addition to this block would work well for seasonal wall hangings, scrap quilts or cozy baby quilts.
Peek into the Woodland Pattern Details
The pattern features a traditional appliqué with enough space to experiment with different fabrics, color placement, and stitches. Below are some technical points of the official template that can help you prepare your project:
- Sizing & Trim Dimensions: Sizes & trim for the block are derived from a 6” x 7 ½” Background Rectangle and a 2” x 7 ½” Bottom Rectangle. You then attach these two foundation pieces, and open up the seam, then position appliqué elements as directed on the placement diagram. Finally, when all your appliqués are in place, your block is cut to a very specific size – 6 ½” – to make a 6” finished square when sewn to your project.
- Appliqué Template Setup: There is a charming 1″ guide included on page 1 of the template to help your printer scale the shapes at 100% as accurately as possible. The shapes are drawn to scale, including seam widths, with no seam allowances and are perfect for needle-turn and/or standard raw-edge fusible web appliqué (be sure to add turn-under allowances if turning).
- The design includes multiple sections or components, each contributing to the overall visual effect, adding depth and character to the image. The template layout has individual snippets of cut wood (Make 1 shapes) to form a whole woodland scene.
Laying Out Your Fabric and Palette
The final size of the block is 6" x 6", making it a perfect size to cut from fabric scraps or good pre-cuts from your stash.
To make the soft and old fashioned look of Bunny Hill Designs:
- Background Contrast: Use a light or subtle tone-on-tone cream or linen texture for the top rectangle of the background and a slightly darker color/contrast for the bottom rectangle (warm brown, leafy green, or bark texture) to help ground the scene.
- Motif Selection: For the main components, use small-scale prints, heathered cottons or reproduction fabrics that are rich in patterns so that the patterns don't overpower the small template shapes.
- Appliqué Method: For crisp lines and quick construction, use double sided fusible web with a machine blanket stitch or a very small zig-zag. In traditional, soft finishes, the hand needle-turn appliqué shows the organic qualities of Anne Sutton's work.
Final Thought
A nice reminder why small appliqué projects are so satisfying, with the Woodland Block. It lets you "try out" color combination and take your time doing it, and can be used to slow down and pay attention to detail before committing to a large quilt top. Stitch a single block into a framed accent piece in your sewing room or create a collection of blocks to make a whole forest quilt to introduce a bit of quiet nature in your sewing room.
Full Pattern: Woodland Block Free PDF Pattern 🎁
