Stacked Hearts for Valentine's Day

I've made a lot of quilts with hearts. In fact, the very first quilt I made was a kit I bought from Family Circle magazine that featured hearts and 9 patches. Do you remember those kits that were advertised in the back of the magazines? I think I paid almost $50 for this kit back in the early 1980s! I was choking on the price, and then I saw how easy it would have been for me to have gone to the store to buy the little bits of fabric! NEVER AGAIN HAVE I BOUGHT A KIT!!!

My first quilt from a kit (and last quilt from a kit!)

I hand quilted it and I still own it. Faded but well loved. Here's a recent quilt block I made using a pattern from 2012. I pulled some Kaffe Fassett prints and supplemented with some blenders. The center Stacked Hearts block (the rectangle) is raw edge appliqué.

Stacked Hearts mini: 21" x 21"

Here is the first one I made (the original pattern was digital and in my 2012 desktop calendar).

Stacked Hearts: 21" x 21"

Let me show you some of the steps in making the blue one above. The cutting of that directional print is a MUST SEE, so stick around for that. First is the freezer paper template. I had used it before so it was already cut. Ironed to fabric that has fusible webbing on the wrong side.

Freezer paper template ironed to front of fabric

Then I cut it out and carefully removed the template. Lovely, huh?

Stacked Hearts template measures about 7-1/2" x 9-1/2"

Then I auditioned thread. It's important that the bobbin thread matches, too.

Auditioning thread

And how does it look on the back after stitching? Just a lowly zigzag gets the job done! I made sure my stitching was ALL on the red fabric and none showing on the light blue background.

Here's how it looks from the wrong side

It was easy to set the rectangle on point (directions and photos are in the pattern). But, I knew I would be in trouble if I cut those outside setting triangles without any forethought. There is a KEY to cutting fabric for triangles IF you want the directional print to run ALL THE SAME way! (Ask me how I know?!!)

I cut my squares as stated in the pattern. Then I put them side by side. I cut them as shown in what I call a "mountain" cut. The left square is cut from bottom left to top right corner. The right square is cut from top left to bottom right corner.

• The left square will provide the top left and bottom right setting triangles around my block.
• The right square will provide the top right and bottom left setting triangles around my block.
• Can you see it?

The key to cutting outside/setting triangles using a directional print

Let's see the block again and I think it will all come together and make sense.

Stacked Hearts block with directional setting triangles

And one more way that I used this appliqué - I used it as the basis for a whole cloth quilting pattern. I like to share this with my machine quilting classes. I had ironed the freezer paper template to the pink fabric and stitched around it, peeled the template off and then quilted inside the space with loops and then what I call "flames" outside. I love this little mini!

Stacked Hearts mini with whole cloth quilting

There are so many fun ways with hearts. I hope you enjoyed seeing what I did with a stack of them!