Fatquartershop Sewcialites Block 9: New Plus Old

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Hello everyone! I am pleased to be part of the Fatquartershop Sewcialites 2022 Sampler. Today I am the designer of the week and proudly present

Block 9 "New Plus Old"

As the designer of Zen Chic, I represent the modern area of quilting. But I also highly regard the experience and history that goes into our centuries-old quilting tradition.

So for this sampler project, I wanted to contribute a block that would look wonderful in both a modern and traditional quilt.

If you've been following me for a while, you may have noticed that I have a bit of a soft spot for plus blocks. They keep popping up in my projects and quilt patterns...

So what could be more natural than to contribute a plus block? The most simple and modern option would have been a simple, bold plus sign. Make it a bit slimmer in proportions and put another square-in-a-square unit in the center - this also gives us a block that looks wonderful in a traditional quilt.

So here is my block 9: "NEW PLUS OLD". It's super easy to sew, so I sewed it in all three sizes right away.

The one on the far left is the smallest, 3" square, and sewn from small scraps of my SPOTTED and PAPER series. Fresh and crisp, this block fits well in a modern, light, and bright space.

The middle one measures 6" square and the red and white prints are from the LAZY AFTERNOON series. The look would also go well with a country or shabby chic style. And as you can see, it can also be used in a Christmas quilt.

Sewcialites 2022 Sampler Block 9 by Zen Chic: New Plus Old, Fabrics are Lazy Afternoon by Moda. The free sampler project is hosted at Fatquartershop

The very large one on the right, 9" square also uses low volumes from the PAPER series, and the black prints are from the CELESTIAL collection, while the rust square is from SPOTTED again. I like this look for an industrial-style quilt.

You know what? If you find fun with this block - you can also bring in all your pretty scraps and sew a little mini quilt out of it. Here I have a picture for you that shows you how the block would look in a mini quilt with on-point setting. Somehow my fingers are itching again to sew with the beautiful leftovers from my scrap-box. Do you feel the same way?

Make and quick and easy mini-quilt from your scraps - nine of the “NEW PLUS OLD” blocks in an on-point setting are perfect to make for a fun, bright and decorative wall hanger. This one uses the collections SPOTTED and PAPER by Zen Chic and the block and it’s instructions are downloadable in Fatquartershop’s Sewcialites Sampler 2022 (Block 9)

I hope you enjoy making this block! Be sure to check out Fat Quarter Shop’s Jolly Jabber blog post and make sure to find the NEW PLUS OLD pattern download here!

Be sure to also follow me on my blog here as well as ourZen Chic Youtube Channel and Instagram @zenchicmoda.