I’m excited to bring you textile artist Annette Frye’s newest quilt pattern series, Mighty Magnus. The 6 downloadable PDF patterns were inspired by her great nephew. Little Magnus was born with a genetic disorder. He fought a mighty fight but in the end, Magnus lost his battle when he was just 2 years old. Designing these adorable and joyful dinosaur quilt patterns was Annette’s way of honoring her precious nephew. We hope that you’ll find joy in creating these critters. We think they’ll delight any little person who is entranced by dinosaurs.
Each month, we’ll dive into 2 new patterns and learn 2 ways to piece them. The “fast piecing” technique uses freezer paper as your templates. If you can sew 2 pieces of fabric right sides together with a quarter-inch seam allowance, you can make these patterns! The 2nd technique — or “slow technique” — is English paper piecing. This is a wonderful way to create these blocks by hand, using C&T Publishing’s new product English Paper Piecing Specialty Papers. (Click here to learn more about the entire series and supplies.) If you haven’t already, be sure to register for the free Sew-Along so you won’t miss any emails over the next 3 months!
Our 1st Dinosaur Quilt Pattern: Tyrannosaurus Rex
This handsome guy launches our series. To piece this fierce-but-kind dino, you’ll print out the 4 quadrants onto freezer paper. CLICK HERE or the button below to purchase the individual pattern. You can also purchase all 6 as a set when you CLICK HERE. This week I introduce you to the “fast piecing” technique: freezer paper piecing. This is the technique I’ve used for over 25 years to create my giant gem quilts.
I’ve created several short instructional videos demonstrating the following:
- Supplies
- Cutting Apart the Freezer Paper Pattern
- Ironing the Freezer Paper To the Fabric
- Cutting Your Fabric Pieces
- Assembling Your Fabric Pieces
- Adding Teeth and Eye
Enjoy the adventure!
T-Rex Video #1: Supplies
Annette provides a full list of supplies to make this handsome guy on page 2 of the pattern. This video provides an overview of my favorite tools, where to source them, and how to use them.
T-Rex Video #2: Cutting Apart The Freezer Paper Pattern
The key to cutting apart your dinosaur quilt pattern is using a rotary cutter and a ruler for consistently straight and even edges on your freezer paper pieces.
T-Rex Video #3: Ironing the Freezer Paper to Fabric
Let’s play with all that delicious fabric you have selected for your T-Rex! In this short video, I share some tips about how to ensure success when ironing your freezer paper to the RIGHT side of the fabric. The key is to pay attention to the spacing between your pieces and supporting the longest edges by placing them on the straight of grain.
T-Rex Video #4: Cutting Pieces From Your Fabric
Using your favorite ruler with a quarter-inch measurement and a rotary cutter, slice out your pieces with a quarter-inch seam allowance around every edge. Take your time to ensure accuracy. You’ll be glad you did when you get to the next step.
T-Rex Video #5: Assembling Your Fabric Pieces
Once you have your fabric pieces laid out in your “piece plan”, you’re ready to sew. The freezer paper pieces will be on the INSIDE of the fabric sandwich. As such, you’ll ever-so-slightly adjust your pair of facets to the left of the quarter-inch seam guide on your throat plate, thereby moving the needle slightly off the freezer paper line. But if you end up with gaps or tucks, no big deal, there are ways to fix that!
T-Rex Video #6: Adding Teeth & Eye
In this short video I’ll show you how to use Heat & Bong Lite to add teeth and an eyeball to your T-Rex dinosaur quilt block. Annette Frye (the pattern designer) has provided great instructions on page 11 of the pattern.
