Rockin' with Rolie Polies -

Greetings fellow quilt enthusiasts! I’m Shereece Nicole with Sew Hooked on Treasures and I’m glad you’ve dropped in.

“National Jelly Roll Day” is celebrated the third Saturday in September. It’s possible that you’ve accumulated some (or many) either just for this month or as part of your stash collection. This year, I had some fun with Barbie World, Grasscloth (new as of January 2024) and Confetti Cottons for a quilt pattern {Missing You} I designed just for this special occasion.

My initial inspiration came from my kiddos several years ago. They are gone every other weekend (every other week in the summer). I wanted them to have something while we’re apart so they know I’m missing and love them so much. Also, my person and I are long distance, so he got one for the same reasons.

As I was working on their pillows, a few things crossed my mind that I thought might be helpful in working with strip piecing and with the pattern. Naturally, I had to share because our quilting community is all about helping each other learn and grow!

Stick a Pin In It

Pinning isn’t always the popular thing to do. It does help you have more precise points and blocks. On the flip side, it may add some time to your piecing process.

When working with longer strips, sometimes the ends become uneven due to shifting of the fabric. Try pinning about 1″ or so from the end of the strips to help.

If you’re a stickler on points matching, you may want to try pinning where the vertical seams meet and the diagonals of the the corners meet. They may not be exactly perfect (after all, we are human). They will stand a much better chance this way.

Seams So Flat

The X and O are constructed using the sew (or stitch) and flip method. Due to the size of the pieces, starch or starch alternative and a quilters’s clapper are recommended for the seams.

Ask for Directions

Directional fabrics can take a bit of extra thought if you want the print to all go in the same direction. Some of the prints in the Barbie World collection were directional. Because I’m me (and it’s Barbie), I wanted them “just right.”

For corner pieces with the line drawn from the top right to bottom left, the top of the print should be facing right with the wrong side up. Inversely for corner pieces where the line is drawn from the top left to bottom right, the top of the print should face to the left.

You can always double check before sewing by folding the corner square into a triangle with wrong sides together.

I hope you find this tips helpful! Learning new tips and tricks in quilting is one of my favorite things.

Is there someone you’re inspired to make this quilt for? I’d love to hear about them. You’re welcome to contact me on Instagram, Facebook or email me to share your story and photos if you have them.

Don’t forget to get your copy of the Missing You pattern. The 20″ square version can be made multiple times if you want a larger quilt. That would be super fun in a scrappy version!