Happy Wednesday! Today I want to chat about my newest pattern, the Expanse Quilt Pattern.

I've been playing around with super-sized block quilts since 2011 when I made my Giant Vintage Star Quilt. I still love that quilt and I've continued to revisit the idea through other quilts and tutorials (like this one) and the Vast quilt that's in my book, Patchwork Essentials: The Half-Square Triangle.

You can find the new pattern for sale here: Expanse Quilt Pattern


Nearly every big-block quilt I've made has been a square throw size. This has resulted in many emails over the years asking for help to make larger quilts. This has led me to finally release the Expanse Quilt Pattern, which has five different size quilts made with super-sized half-square triangle blocks!

This big block quilt is the perfect project to show off those fabrics you can’t bear to cut up. It comes together super quick, making it great for last minute gifting! Choose between two style options: using all print fabrics or pairing prints with a background fabric.


As I mentioned there are FIVE quilt sizes to choose from, hooray! Here are the included sizes: Baby (34"x34"), Small Throw (51"x68"), Square Throw (68"x68"), Large (68"x85"), Extra Large (85"x102").

In addition to instructions for making half-square triangle blocks and making your quilt, you'll also find coloring pages at the back of the pattern to help you plan out your quilt.


I always thought it would be fun to make a baby quilt with this design. If you don't spend a ton of time picking fabrics (you only need a few), and choose a relatively simple quilting design, I think you could pull this baby quilt together in an afternoon. Sometimes you need a last minute baby quilt, and I think this is a great option. Here is the baby quilt I made! I picked all the fabrics around the Leah Duncan fabric that I used for the backing. I love how it turned out!


There are so many different color/fabric directions you could use for this quilt. I love making quilts that have no background fabric and this design works so well this way. Sometimes it's hard to choose a background fabric, or you just don't have enough on hand! This one was made with brushed cottons and double gauze fabrics by Nani Iro. I used wool batting and brushed cotton on the back, so it's incredibly cozy.

Read more about this quilt here: Nani Iro Brushed Cotton Expanse Quilt


Going in a totally different direction, one of the options in this pattern is to use a background fabric along with prints. This really has a ton of options in terms of design. You can decide how many different colored prints you want to use and arrange the blocks however you'd like. So many different possibilities. Here is a quilt I made using this gorgeous teal shot cotton as the background fabric. The whole quilt is centered around the orange unicorn print. The quilt ends up looking like one giant quilt block!

Read more about this quilt here: Super-sized Unicorn Half-square Triangle Quilt



You can find the new pattern for sale here: Expanse Quilt Pattern

Happy Quilting!

Super-sized Unicorn Half-square Triangle Quilt

Happy Tuesday! It's time to share a newly finished quilt!


I finished this quilt the day before we left for our holiday traveling back in December. I was determined to get it bound so that I could take photos of it on our trip! It was also my last finish of 2018, so that's fun too!

This quilt top has been waiting to be finished up for a while! I have a pattern for this quilt that can be found here: Expanse Quilt Pattern


For the background of this quilt I used a beautiful teal shot cotton. I know it's a Kaffe Fassett shot cotton*, but I'm not sure exactly which color (I bought it almost 4 years ago)! The rest of the prints are quilting cottons from my stash.


I used Quilter's Dream Orient Batting* to make this quilt extra lightweight. To give this quilt even more lightness I backed it in the firefly voile print from my Curiosities* collection. It's so silky smooth! The combination of shot cotton, batting and voile makes it super summery.


For quilting I sent this quilt to Melissa Kelley of Sew Shabby Quilting. I chose the Tickle design, which is a nice mix of feathers and swirls. The thread is actually a light orange which really makes the quilting pop!


For the binding I used this funky sparrow print from Honor Roll* by Anna Maria Horner.


It feels good to finally finish up this quilt. I only have two quilt tops left now, and one is already basted and ready to be quilted! I am so determined to get them all finished up this year!

Pattern: Expanse Quilt Pattern

Happy Quilting!

*Note: Any links marked with an asterisk in this post are affiliate links. This means if you click through and buy something, I make a small commission, at no extra cost to you.

Nani Iro Brushed Cotton Expanse Quilt

Happy Tuesday! I'm excited to share a finished quilt today. This one has been in use all winter, and I finally finished getting photos of it during a recent snowfall (yesterday!).


In the Fall of 2015, I picked up two Nani Iro by Naomi Ito bundles from Quilt Market. One was a bundle of double gauze prints, the other was a bundle of brushed cotton (flannel). I split both bundles with Jacey. I used most of the double gauze bundle for my Nani Iro Dreams Quilt, but a few made it into this quilt too. Shortly after finishing my double gauze quilt, I cut into the brushed cotton!

I used the same techniques for treating and sewing with brushed cotton as I do with double gauze. For more info on sewing with double gauze, and where to buy Nani Iro, see this post.


I didn't want to cut up the beautiful prints too much, so I decided to make the a super sized half-square triangle quilt using my Expanse Quilt Pattern. Not only does it come together fast, it is great for showcasing favorite prints.


I was able to stitch up the quilt top at summer sewing retreat, and snatched a few photos of it. I love that I got one with the sheep in it!


Just like my all double gauze quilt, I wanted this quilt to be super cozy and snuggly. I used some of the darker double gauze prints in addition to the brushed cotton to stretch an extra row of triangles in (I like big quilts!). They mixed together really nicely.


I wasn't prepared to wrestle this quilt on my machine, so I sent it off to Melissa of Sew Shabby Quilting. I chose this fun popcorn quilting pattern for it.


To up the cozy factor, this quilt has brushed cotton on the back too. The batting is Quilter's Dream Wool, so it's nice and fluffy. It's bound up in a light gray voile.


I've been test driving it for the last few months, and it's been a great couch quilt. Warm, but not overly so. Ultimate snuggle quilt!


This was another just because quilt. I have been trying to use precious fabrics, instead of hoarding them. It has been a real indulgence, and I'm hoping to make it a habit. It gets easier with each cut!


Happy Quilting!