Category Archives: Books

When Do You Start Planning For Christmas?

May 24, 2024book, Books, Bunny blocks, cat block, cat pattern, Christmas book, Christmas pattern, Christmas patterns, Christmas tree skirt, dog block, dog pattern, Golden Retriever Pattern, holiday dog, paper piece, paper piece dog, paper piece pattern, Paper pieced Animals, Paper Pieced Blocks, Paper Pieced Quilts, Paper Pieced Table Toppers, Paper Piecing, paper piecing book, penguins, polar bear pattern, quick & easy quilts, quilt block, quilt blocks, raccoon block, raccoon pattern, red truck pattern, retriever block, snowman block, tree skirt, truck patternChristmas book, Mary Hertel book, paper piece patterns, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing patterns, quilt block patterns, quilt patterns, quilting, quilting patternsmaryhertel

If you are like me, you usually wait til November, but then wish you had started earlier. This year, I am starting now. My newest book, SEW A WINTER WOODLAND CHRISTMAS, just arrived to help you start creating your Christmas projects today

With 20 adorable paper pieced blocks to choose from, you are going to be motivated to start sewing now.

Where else will you find a pattern for a sloth hanging from a candy cane, an ice skating polar bear, or a busy beaver cutting down his own Christmas tree. THIS BOOK has them all, and so much more.

I know how much my customers love their pets. Designing these cat and dog Christmas stockings was such fun! These treasures would make great gifts for the animal lovers in your life.

Personalize this little red truck with any photo. How cute is that?

Lots of cozy animals to choose from to decorate quilts, table runners, gift bags, and more!

This foxy tree skirt is so cute, I have to keep it for my own tree.

This lap quilt uses almost all of the blocks in the book. It looked fabulous on my sofa, and will look great on yours too!

SEW WINTER WOODLAND CHRISTMAS , order your copy now 🙂

Any Bunny Need Ideas for Easter?

March 20, 2024book, Books, Bunny blocks, Ducky blocks, Easter bunny pattern, Easter paper piece, Easter Paper Piecing, farmhouse table runner, Juvenile Quilts, paper piece, paper piece book, paper piece pattern, Paper pieced Animals, Paper Pieced Blocks, Paper Pieced Quilts, Paper Pieced Table Toppers, Paper Piecing, paper piecing book, potholder, quilt block, quilt blocksbunny block, bunny pattern, bunny quilt, Easter bunny, foundation piecing, Paper Piece Bunny, paper piece patterns, paper pieced bunny, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing patterns, quilt block patterns, quilt patterns, quilting, quilting patternsmaryhertel

Everywhere I go I’m seeing the cutest bunnies for Easter decorating. I found these at Walmart…cute and affordable.

For my front door, I made these moss bunny beauties from Dollar Tree items…

They were amazingly fun and easy to construct. I found this idea on Pinterest.

This is my fave paper pieced bunny block pattern… BUNNY WITH FLOWERS.

I’ve used this block in lots of projects. I love animals with flowers on their heads.

Here are some of my other bunny blocks…LOP EARED BUNNY

Here’s the same lop bunny with a bow… LOP BUNNY WITH BOW TIE.

EASTER TABLE RUNNER has 6 Easter blocks included in the pattern…

This bunny and pillow pattern are from my book… SEW CUTE AND CLEVER FARM AND FOREST ANIMALS. Thank you to Claudia for making this adorable sample 🙂

And this bunny burp cloth is from my book…SEW CUTE BABY ANIMALS. This book is chocked full of projects to sew for your little one.

Hope I have inspired you to do some holiday creating. Have a lovely Easter!

Koala’s Anyone?

February 19, 2024book, Books, butterfly pattern, farmhouse animals, fish blocks, fish patterns, garden gnome, gnome, gnome block, gnome pattern, gnome quilt, Jungle Animal Quilts, Juvenile Quilts, paper piece, paper piece book, paper piece butterfly, paper piece fish, paper piece pattern, Paper pieced Animals, Paper Pieced Blocks, paper pieced gnome, paper pieced gnome block, Paper Pieced Quilts, Paper Pieced Table Toppers, Paper Piecing, paper piecing book, quick & easy quilts, quilt block, quilt blocks, quilt magazines, quilting, Quilts with Animals, sea turtle, sea turtle pattern, seahorsepaper piece patterns, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing book, paper piecing patterns, quilt block patterns, quilt patterns, quilting, quilting book, quilting patternsmaryhertel

The Koala quilt from my newest book, HOME SWEET HOME PAPER PIECING, is being featured in Homespun Magazine’s February/March 2024 issue.

This charming little quilt combines paper piecing and applique to create a ” juvenile jungle” for your child. This Koala is one of many adorable animal patterns in the book.

Sea turtles, hedgehogs, monkeys and much more….

I’m in love with this sweet sea turtle. All square blocks measure 8″ x 8″ unfinished, and can be used in every project in this book, as well as my previous 6 books. This means you can be super creative!

There are also rectangular blocks which measure 8″ x 15 1/2″ unfinished, like this cute and clever tote bag…

What a great tote for the beach, or even a diaper bag!

You can find this issue of Homespun to buy from news stands now, or online.

If you are new to paper piecing, HOME SWEET HOME PAPER PIECING has step by step directions to help you on your way to sewing images for lovely quilts, pillows, table runners, and more.

Farmhouse Animals with Flowers

October 6, 2023book, Books, Bunny blocks, cat block, cat pattern, Cat quilts, farmhouse animals, farmhouse table runner, horse pattern, horse quilt, paper piece horse, paper piece pattern, Paper pieced Animals, Paper Pieced Blocks, paper pieced horse, paper pieced pig, Paper Pieced Quilts, Paper Pieced Table Toppers, Paper Piecing, pattern book, pattern bundle, pig block, pig quilt, quilt block, quilt blocks, quilting, Quilts with Animalsfarm animals, horse block, paper piece patterns, paper pieced animals, paper pieced bunny, paper pieced cat, paper pieced horse, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced pig, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing patterns, quilt block patterns, quilting, quilting patternsmaryhertel

My newest table runner has 4 adorable paper pieced farm animals wearing flower wreaths.

My FARMHOUSE TABLE RUNNER pattern has all 4 animals included and the directions to make the extra long farmhouse ruffle. This table runner has no quilt batting. Instead I used fusible T-shirt interfacing to keep the table runner nice and thin and flexible.

All of the block patterns are also sold separately. BUNNY WITH FLOWERS.

These blocks also make lovely pillows…

Although the pillow directions are not included in the pattern, they are available in my book: SEW CUTE AND CLEVER FARM AND FOREST ANIMALS.

I’m always interested in hearing what paper pieced images you are looking for….please comment below with more ideas for future patterns.

Home Sweet Home…New Book…New Patterns!

August 12, 2023book, Books, butterfly block, butterfly pattern, fish blocks, fish patterns, garden gnome, gnome, gnome block, gnome pattern, gnome pillow, gnome quilt, Jungle Animal Quilts, Juvenile Quilts, paper piece, paper piece book, paper piece butterfly, paper piece fish, paper piece pattern, paper piece seahorse, Paper pieced Animals, Paper Pieced Blocks, paper pieced gnome, paper pieced gnome block, Paper Pieced Quilts, Paper Pieced Table Toppers, Paper Piecing, paper piecing book, pattern book, pillowcase pattern, quick & easy quilts, quilt block, quilt blocks, quilting, sea turtle, sea turtle pattern, seahorse, snail blockmade by marney book, Mary Hertel book, paper piece book, paper piece patterns, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing book, paper piecing patterns, paper piecing tutorial, quilt block patterns, quilt patterns, quilting, quilting patternsmaryhertel

Hi! I’m Mary Hertel. Welcome to my newest book “HOME SWEET HOME Paper Piecing“. Featuring 17 of my favorite block patterns, and 7 charming projects, this book is guaranteed to provide hours of creative fun for you.

If you are new to paper piecing, you can rely on any of my books to provide step by step directions. To give you even more assistance, visit me at madebymarney.com to watch paper piecing tutorials.

Did you know that as you paper piece, the block is created on the back of the paper pattern, and will be the opposite of the pattern? On the pattern, this sweet gnome’s flower is actually pictured on the left, but in the finished block it will be on the right.

With gnomes from spring, summer, fall, and winter, this table runner can be used all year long. The book has lots of great gift ideas. Why not start sewing those Christmas gifts right now?

Totes, floor pillows, wall hangings, pillowcases and more. Sounds like fun, doesn’t it?

And remember, all 17 blocks can be used in any of my other 6 books. What a great way to show your creativity!

Please visit me at www.madebymarney.com for more paper piecing ideas.

HOME SWEET HOME PAPER PIECING

July 21, 2023book, Books, butterfly block, butterfly pattern, fish blocks, fish patterns, garden gnome, gnome, gnome block, gnome pattern, gnome quilt, Jungle Animal Quilts, Juvenile Quilts, paper piece book, paper piece butterfly, paper piece fish, paper piece pattern, Paper pieced Animals, Paper Pieced Blocks, paper pieced gnome, paper pieced gnome block, Paper Pieced Quilts, paper pieced snail, Paper Pieced Table Toppers, Paper Piecing, paper piecing book, pattern book, penguins, pillowcase pattern, Pillowcases, quick & easy quilts, quilt block, quilt blocks, quilting, Quilts with Animals, sea turtle, sea turtle pattern, seahorse, snail blockfoundation paper piecing, foundation piecing book, paper piece book, paper piece patterns, paper pieced animals, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing book, paper piecing patterns, quilt block patterns, quilt patterns, quilting, quilting patternsmaryhertel

My newest book, HOME SWEET HOME PAPER PIECING, is ready for you to enjoy.

This book features 17 of my FAVORITE BLOCK PATTERNS, and I want to share them with you. Koalas, monkeys, sea turtles, gnomes, and so much more.

This is just a sampling of the adorable blocks, and there are 10 more!

Remember…all of my blocks will fit not only in the 7 projects in this book, but will also fit into the projects in my past 6 books. That helps you achieve soooo much creativity in your sewing.

Here’s an example…

This super cute HEDGEHOG PILLOWCASE pattern comes with the book, but here is a baby penguin quilt pattern from my SEW CUTE BABY ANIMALS book.

Using this same pattern, I am substituting the Hedgehog blocks instead of the Penguins. How sweet is that! Here is my finished HEDGEHOG BABY QUILT. You will find everything you need to create this baby quilt in my books, as well as a paper piecing tutorial. I am using minky fabric for the background. So soft and cuddly.

Wrap it up with a stuffed hedgehog and you will RULE at the baby shower!

Order your copy of HOME SWEET HOME today!

Sew Cute Baby Animals Book

May 1, 2022book, Books, Bunny blocks, cat block, cat pattern, Cat quilts, dog block, dog pattern, Dog Quilts, Ducky blocks, horse block, horse pattern, horse quilt, Jungle Animal Quilts, paper piece book, paper piece dog, paper piece horse, paper piece pattern, Paper pieced Animals, paper pieced horse, paper pieced pig, Paper Pieced Quilts, Paper Piecing, pattern book, quick & easy quilts, quilt block, quilt blocks, quilting, Quilts with Animalsbaby animal patterns, baby animals, paper piece baby animals, paper piece book, paper piece patterns, paper piece tutorial, paper pieced, paper pieced animals, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing book, paper piecing directions, paper piecing patterns, quilt block patterns, quilt blocks, quilt patterns, quilting, quilting book, quilting patterns, quiltsmaryhertel

Is there a special child in your life? Mine too! Actually, quite a few of them, and I love to sew cute gifts for all of them! That’s why I created my newest book, SEW CUTE BABY ANIMALS.

With 17 adorable mix and match baby animal images and 6 fun projects, this book will provide you lots of reasons to be creative.

Patterns for baby quilts, a diaper tote, catch-all container, bib, and burp cloth are all included.

Here are just a few of the cutest baby animals ever…all paper pieced, but using NO buttons for the eyes. Everything is fabric, so no chokeables for baby.

You will find farm animals and pets…

Jungle animals…

And more…

I hope you LOVE this book as much as I do!

Don’t forget that these 17 blocks will fit into the patterns from my other books, as well. SEW CUTE BABY ANIMALS book can be found in my ETSY SHOP today!

Foxy Valentine

February 8, 2021book, Books, dog block, dog pattern, Dog Quilts, magazine patterns, paper piece, paper piece baseball, paper piece book, paper piece dog, Paper pieced Animals, Paper Pieced Blocks, paper pieced heart, Paper Pieced Quilts, Paper Pieced Table Toppers, Paper Piecing, pattern book, quilt block, quilt blocks, quilt magazines, quilting, Quilts with Animals, truck pattern, Valentine's Patternsheart block, paper piece patterns, paper pieced, paper pieced animals, paper pieced dogs, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing patterns, paperpieceddogs, quilt block patterns, quilt blocks, quilt patterns, quilting, quilting patterns, quilts, valentine block, valentine patternmaryhertel

My Foxy Valentine paper pieced block is featured in the January/February issue of QUILTMAKER magazine.

This Foxy block pattern is only available in the Quiltmaker magazine at this time.

I’ve included a pillow pattern in the magazine, too. I have my Foxy Valentine pillow on my sofa this month.

Here are some other cute Valentine patterns.

These 2 block patterns are in my newest book PAPER PIECING ALL YEAR ROUND. I’m using them in my hanging towels. This project is included in the book, as well as many more home decor patterns.

LOAD OF LOVE is an adorable block. Surprise your favorite “truck lover” with this special valentine.

The EYE LOVE U PUPPY block is cute as can be! I’d love to see the projects you make from this block.

Here’s a sweet puppy holding a valentine, BE MINE PUPPY. Valentine’s Day is right around the corner… what will you create?

What’s New For Winter?

January 12, 2021book, Books, gnome pattern, gnome quilt, paper piece, paper piece book, paper piece snowman, paper pieced gnome, paper pieced gnome block, Paper Pieced Quilts, Paper Pieced Table Toppers, Paper Piecing, pattern book, pillowcase pattern, Pillowcases, quilt block, quilt blocks, quilting, snowman blockpaper piece book, paper piece patterns, paper pieced, paper pieced animals, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing patterns, quilt block patterns, quilt blocks, quilt patterns, quilting, quilting book, quilting patterns, quiltsmaryhertel

January is always a tough month for me…getting through 5 weeks of winter can be grueling. I stay in Wisconsin, and take advantage of the snow with some cross country skiing and snow shoeing. AND I decorate with paper pieced snowmen. They can stay in place until Valentine’s Day or beyond, so it’s an easy decorating theme.

Snowmen from PAPER PIECING ALL YEAR ROUND

These 2 cuties are from my newest book, PAPER PIECING ALL YEAR ROUND. With 24 block patterns and lots of cute projects, this book is a good bargain.

I have my SNOWMAN TABLE RUNNER on my dining table this month. And wouldn’t it be adorable with this GNOME SNOWMAN used for the blocks? He has been one of my hottest sellers this month.

Just in time for the Super Bowl, I have a FOOTBALL GNOME!

This block pattern includes an entire applique alphabet for the flag and even numbers. You can customize your FOOTBALL GNOME with any team letters or numbers!

Football Gnomes would make adorable potholders, pillows, or quilts. Here’s a pillowcase pattern that would make your sports lover sleep better…

Is it obvious who I watch on Sundays? Well, I’m not prejudiced, so here are some of the many other football pillowcase patterns that I offer on ETSY.

I can’t show them all here. You’ll have to search my shop on ETSY if you are looking for your favorite team.

If you are looking for more snowman or football paper piecing patterns, and have a great suggestion, please email me at: maryannhertel@gmail.com

I LOVE to hear from you!

Facebook Live Free Tutorial

September 6, 2020book, Books, free tutorial, paper piece book, paper piece seahorse, Paper Pieced Blocks, pattern book, seahorse, sew magicalbook, paper piece patterns, paper pieced, paper pieced pattern, paper pieced quilt patterns, paper pieced quilts, paper piecing, paper piecing patterns, quilt block patterns, quilt blocks, quilt books, quilt patterns, quilting patterns, quilts, seahorse, seahorse blockmaryhertel

Wednesday, September 9, join me on C & T Facebook Live. At 2:00 pm CST I will be demonstrating how to paper piece the SEAHORSE BLOCK from my newest book: SEW MAGICAL. If you want to paper piece along with me, purchase the book now, so you will have a copy of the pattern.

I love this book soooo much…

This is the Seahorse Block that I will be creating on Facebook Live. The book also has visual step by step directions for paper piecing. If we don’t get the entire block done together on Facebook, it will be easy to use the book to finish the block later, on your own. To sew along with me, have some scraps of three different colored fabrics ready, similar to what you see above. For the background fabric, you will need approximately a Fat Eighth of fabric. That’s a piece that is 9″ by 21″. For the fin, a directional fabric is fine, and I will give you some tips as how to add a directional fabric to your paper pieced block.