Project Quilting has kicked off its eighth season! This is my first year to play along with the weekly challenges.

The first challenge was to make something with the number 8. Then, it is wide open after that.

I knew I wanted to make 8 Flying Geese blocks, and I knew I wanted them 3-D. The rest is made up along the way. I did take pictures and make notes, though. Here’s how I made my Flying Geese Mini Quilt.

• Cut 16 squares 1-1/2″ x 1-1/2″ for the background
• Cut 8 rectangles 1-1/2 x 2-1/2″ for the geese

Each geese block uses two background squares and one rectangle.

Fold the rectangle in half, matching wrong sides. Lay it on a the background square with the folded edge 1/4″ from the top. (see below)

Can you see the fold along the top edge?

Next, lay the remaining background square on top, matching right sides. Pin.

Sew along the pinned edge from the top to the bottom, using a 1/4″ seam allowance.

Open the background square. Press. Press it just like it is pictured above, with the white geese fabric still folded on the left.

See the “folded flap” of white?

Use the pressed fold line to align the new triangle shape with the center seam.

You can pin the right and left edges of the triangle, super press/starch them, baste along the lower edge, or simply press them & set them aside. (Y’all know I went with the last option!)

Chain piece the remaining 7 geese.

This cool chain piece cutter was an exchange gift this past Christmas. Holy smokes, I love this thing. Forget the scissors! I was using the thread cutter on my sewing machine to snip through the chains. Not anymore.

Once the pieces are cut apart, press each one, and create the triangle shapes.

This is going to sound crazy, but I thought the regular 2 x 4 layout looked to plain. I wanted to mix it up with two odd numbers, 5 and 3.

Next, using the background fabric, I added a blank end piece so my two rows would be equal sizes.

• The end piece is cut 2-1/2″ x 3-1/2″. Then I added a center strip cut 1-1/2″ x length.

Hum, that seems good. I added a whole background border around the geese.

• Cut the background fabric borders: 1-1/2″ x length needed.

It is coming together. It is a narrow little white border cut from the same geese fabrics.

• The next border is cut 1″ wide x length needed.
• I finished with a grey border, cut 3″ x length needed.

In the Project Quilting directions, each quilt needs to be finished in one week’s time. (Code- I’m going to make a few small things first.) I wanted to try out my new metallic Sulky thread. I haven’t used metallic thread since college. This stuff has come a LONG way. It didn’t break at all. It was pretty great.

Awesome! And it is sooooo shimmery.

I finished the quilting with a tiny bit of free motion squiggle lines in the blue background.

Baste around the outside edge and trim.

All that is left now is to add the narrow binding. I cut my binding for this project at 2-1/8″. I wanted it to be thin, but I was also working with fabric scraps from a previous project.

There you have it. I used metallic thread and my new cutter and fabric scraps and made 3-D geese and I finished in an evening and I rocked this run-on sentence! Wahooo!!

The finished piece is about 14″ square.

I’m excited to see what the next challenge will be!

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