Free pattern! Three Jacks

Just in time for Halloween! A free pattern with tutorial. This is the first tutorial I have ever written, so I hope it is easy to follow. 

This is a quick wall hanging to put together. From first cut to fully pieced (not quilted), it took me about 2 1/2 hours. That includes stopping to take pictures along the way. You could definitely have a cute Halloween wall hanging in one day.

Supplies

Background - 1 Fat Quarter

Pumpkins - 4 x 11

Stems - 1 x 6 1/2

Faces - scraps

Border - 6" x Width of Fabric

Batting - 18 x 28

Backing - 18 x 28

Binding - 1/8 yard

Wonder Under - for faces

Cutting

From background fat quarter:

 1) Cut six 3 1/2" squares

2) Cut two 1 1/2" x 9 1/2" rectangles

3) Cut four 1 1/2" 4 1/2" rectangles

4) Cut two 2" squares

a) Cut on the diagonal

5) Cut two 1 1/2" x 7/8" rectangle (this is the right size, teeny!)

6) Cut twelve 3/4" squares

 Yes, more teeny tiny squares. 

From pumpkin fabric:

7) Cut three 3 1/2" squares

From stem fabric:

8) Cut two 3/4" x 2 1/4" rectangles

9) Cut one 3/4" x 1 1/2" rectangles

From face fabric:

10) Follow the instructions for Wonder Under

 (or whichever adhesive you are using)

and attach it to the back side of your scrap

11) Draw your faces on the paper side

(Draw them larger then you think;

you can always make them smaller.)

From Border fabric:

12) Cut two 2 1/2" x 16 1/2" rectangles

13) Cut two 2 1/2" x 13 1/2" rectangles

Assembling

Pumpkins

Mark your 3/4" background squares on the diagonal.

If you are confident in your sewing skills, these are certainly small enough to skip drawing the line.

You are going to sew a square to each corner of your pumpkins, following the line you drew.

After you have sewn the squares on you will press towards the square, then trim off the excess.

Line up your quarter inch line on the seam and trim that little triangle off.

 It doesn't seem like a lot, but just taking off that little bit helps with the bulk when you are putting all the pieces together.

(It all adds up, and I know my machine is not a fan of sewing through a lot of layers.)

Next we will cut out and place our faces. You could skip this part and just have pumpkins, then you could have a wall hanging that would work for November as well.

After you cut your faces out, you will peel the paper off, and place that part onto the pumpkins. Press them onto your pumpkins, making sure to put the side with the glue on the pumpkin.

Stitch the faces down now.

I like to start in the middle of the piece and not on the end. Go slowly.

Next are the stems. Using the 3/4" x 1 1/2" stem rectangle and the 1 1/2"x 7/8" background rectangles, sew a background piece to each long side of the stem.

(Sorry, I don't have a picture of this step.)

For the next two stems it's a little more difficult. Line up your pieces as so:

Yes, the triangles should be that much larger. Find the middle of each triangle and stem piece. I finger press these.

Match up the middle and pin.

Stitch and press towards stem. Do the same on the other side.

Press towards the dark. 

Next, using your 45 degree mark on your ruler, line it up with the mark going through the middle of the stem.

Make sure the corner is on the stem. Trim.

Turn the square, line up the 1 1/2" marks on the newly cut sides and trim.

Lay out your pumpkins, stems and background pieces.

Stitch a background strip to each side of the stem square. Stitch a background square to each side of the pumpkin.

Lay out the strips and pumpkins. I stitched the stem strips to the pumpkins first, then strips. 

Last add the borders. First add the side borders (2 1/2" x 16 1/2" strips).

Then top and bottom ( 2 1/2" x 13 1/2" strips).

(CUTE!)

To get it ready for quilting, layer your backing, batting and then top, I tape my backing to the mat (or floor for the large quilts), then tape the batting, and just lay the top on top. Pin, leaving no more then 4 inches in between pins. 

Quilt as you desire. I always stitch some on the side to get warmed up and make sure the tension is right.

(My bobbin wasn't threaded right, thank goodness I practiced first!)

I tend to bunch my quilt as I quilt, I don't roll it.

Gloves are so helpful in moving the piece around. I have "quilting gloves" and I have gardening gloves. As long as they have the little rubber nubs, they work. These are from my mom, perfect for quilting in October.

I quilted spider webs and spiders. 

At least I tried. My spiders look more like ticks, which my husband kindly said are scarier then spiders.

Add your binding. I cut mine at 2". And then your hanging sleeve.

Hang and enjoy.

I hope you enjoy this little pattern. I love my little Jacks!

After you make one, don't forget to add your Jacks to my flickr page. 

Happy Stitching!

Jen