Category Archives: quilting

Bunny Love and More…

Its time to dust off those bunny decorations. Let me help you with that!

Here are some of my favorite paper pieced Easter patterns…

All 6 of these bunny and peeper blocks are included in one pattern: EASTER TABLE RUNNER AND POTHOLDERS. Easy peasy patterns, and a great way to use up those scraps!

HAPPY EASTER BUNNY AND DUCKY

HAPPY EASTER DUCKY and HAPPY EASTER BUNNY are fast and easy and make great gifts.

EASTER BUNNY GNOME

I sewed tiny little egg buttons in the EASTER BUNNY GNOME basket. Too cute!

LOP BUNNY

The LOP BUNNY is great for a pillow.

BABY BUNNY

BABY BUNNY without a bow, or BABY BUNNY WITH BOW.

BABY BUNNY WITH BOW
BUNNY WITH FLOWERS

My all time favorite bunny pattern to date, BUNNY WITH FLOWERS. I have this pillow in my sun room.

And here are some new designs…

HOT AIR BALLOON BLOCK

This HOT AIR BALLOON BLOCK pattern was requested for a baby’s quilt.

TRACTOR BLOCK

The TRACTOR BLOCK pattern could be added to any farm or farm animal quilt. Very cute!

Guinea Pig Block

The GUINEA PIG BLOCK pattern is my fave!

Thank you for continuing to send me photos of the adorable projects you are creating using my patterns…you inspire me 🙂

Looking to Spring?

With St. Patrick’s Day right around the corner, here are some clever paper pieced blocks for spring…

The bolster pillow was created by Ann using my LUCKY LEPRECHAUN block pattern. What a clever idea for a sofa or bench pillow.

LUCKY LEPRECHAUN MUG RUG
POT O GOLD BLOCK PATTERN
LUCK BLOCK

This is an example of a table runner using my CLOVER LEAF BLOCK with a LEPRECHAUN BLOCK.

CLOVER LEAF BLOCK PATTERN
LEPRECHAUN GNOME PATTERN

Brigitta from Austria created this adorable place mat using my LEPRECHAUN GNOME pattern.

Here are some of my new patterns. They have nothing to do with St. Pat’s, but I would love to see what you can create using them…

PAPER PIECED TRAIN PATTERN

I haven’t had time to make a small quilt or runner with these 4 TRAIN BLOCKS, but would love to see what you would make!

FARMER BOY BLOCK PATTERN

The FARMER BOY and FARMER GIRL blocks were designed to add to my FARMYARD STARS quilt pattern.

FARMER GIRL BLOCK PATTERN
FARMYARD STARS QUILT PATTERN

Or add them to any farm themed quilt you are making…

Enjoy creating something every day! I sure do 🙂

All About The Farm

Growing up in rural Wisconsin on a quaint dairy farm, has given me a love for animals which is very evident in my designing. Lately I’ve had lots of requests from customers for more farm blocks and farm quilts, specifically when they are making my FARMYARD STARS pattern.

FARMYARD STARS QUILT PATTERN

Since animal designs are a favorite of mine, this is a happy request. Here are some resent quilt blocks that I think will go great in a farm quilt.

FARMER GIRL

FARMER GIRL and FARMER BOY are sweet blocks, and of course have to have chickens are their heads. I had a pet chicken when I was young…this brings back fond memories.

FARMER BOY

These quilt blocks are all 8″ x 8″ unfinished, the same size as the blocks in the Farmyard Stars quilt.

TRACTOR BLOCK

This fun little TRACTOR is very easy to paper piece, and would be great for beginners.

HORSE #4

I’m also working on an entire collection of horse patterns such as this one, HORSE #4.

KISSING HORSES

Even KISSING HORSES! This block was actually requested by a customer 🙂

HORSE WITH FLOWERS

Or a HORSE WITH FLOWERS! As you can see, something for everyone who enjoys farm animals. What would you like to see in your farm quilt?

The Newest Doggie Patterns

If you have been looking for some new pooch patterns, here you go. My most popular dog pattern is DOGS ONLY

This popular dog quilt offers 11 block patterns for only $10. If purchased separately, the block patterns would cost $33. Such a good deal to buy the quilt pattern. Since Dogs Only is so popular , I thought it was time to design another quilt based on pooches….

My DOG LOVER QUILT has 12 block patterns and the paw print pattern for the corners. That is 13 block patterns for $15. So much cheaper than buying them separately. I had so much fun designing these cuties! PRESS HERE to watch a video with more details for this quilt.

Here are some of my newest dog blocks; designed by request, but now also available to you.

BRUSSELS GRIFFIN DOG BLOCK PATTERN…$3

MALTI-POO DOG BLOCK PATTERN…$3

PORTUGESE PODENGO PEQUENO DOG BLOCK PATTERN…$3

PUG/FRENCH BULLDOG BLOCK PATTERN…$3

DANDIE DINMONT TERRIER BLOCK PATTERN…$3

DOGGIE PAW PRINT BLOCK PATTERN…$3

PRESS HERE to shop over 100 different breeds. Do you need one that you can’t find? Email me directly at maryannhertel@gmail.com

For the Horse Lover in Your Life…

Giddy yup! I have 6 new horse paper pieced patterns. Previously all of my horse patterns were close-up face only block patterns, similar to all the horses in HAY GIRL.

HAY GIRL PATTERN

But I’ve been busy creating some full body horse patterns…

For the Horse Lover in Your Life…

Everyone loves horses…

What could be cuter than kissing horses…

Use them for pillows and other projects…

Or use them all to make a quilt…

For all of you horse lover’s, these blocks are enough to make a quilt if repeated. Let me see what you can do with them! Please email finished photos to maryannhertel@gmail.com. I would love to share them on a future post…

All 6 blocks together make a sweet quilt!

This child’s quilt was created by Christina using my FREE HORSE pattern. Although, the pattern is free, Etsy will charge a 20 cent restocking fee. Why can’t anything be JUST FREE!

I designed this FREE pattern for you horse lovers because I love you!

Anita assembled this gorgeous version in blues and browns, one of my favorite color combos. I would love to see what you can do. I’m also always curious about what images are popular and in the mainstream. I get the best feedback from you, my customers.

Love ya!

Marney

New and Adorable Paper Pieced Puppies

I’ve been busy designing paper pieced dog blocks and quilts for my friends and customers. It’s been exciting putting together a collection of blocks for one specific breed. These are some of my recent collections…

Inspired by my friend’s beloved Cavalier King Charles, all 4 of these blocks were used in a quilt and some pillows for an auction. Thanks to Sara for providing this photo. You can find these Cavaliers in my ETSY SHOP. I currently have 160 dog blocks to choose from.

My niece Mandy has a Doberman which inspired this lap quilt for a Christmas gift.

The lap quilt pattern is made with “minky” to make it soft and cozy. It’s designed for a human, but it looks like her doberman is enjoying a comfy moment, too!

Doberman Lap Quilt Pattern is HERE. Isn’t she cute?

My nephew has a lovely Golden Retriever named Maggie. This is the quilt I made, but I found I loved designing Goldens so much, that I ended up with many more blocks than I needed. You can see them all HERE.

Here’s a tip for quilting over a paper pieced image. My “go to” method is to mark horizontal lines about an inch apart with a Frixion pen. Using a transparent thread, quilt over each line. Make sure you are using a thread that is a mono-filament and will not melt when ironed or laundered.

My favorites are YLI Monofilament and Superior Threads MonoPoly. Slow down when using an invisible thread to reduce breaking.

I’d love to see some quilts that you have made using any of my dog patterns. You can email the photos to me at: maryannhertel@gmail.com

Koala’s Anyone?

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

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.

HORSE WITH FLOWERS
CAT WITH FLOWERS
PIG 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!

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.

A DOG FOR ALL SEASONS

Everyone knows how much I love to design animal patterns. Here is my newest paper pieced pattern, A DOG FOR ALL SEASONS.

A DOG FOR ALL SEASONS

This adorable pattern includes all 4 blocks, LABRADOR WITH BUTTERFLY (spring); BEAGLE WITH FLOWER (summer); RETRIEVER WITH PUMPKIN (autumn); FRENCH BULLDOG WITH SCARF (winter). Use them to create pillows, potholders, or a lovely table runner for the dog lover in your life. You can keep these projects out all year!

LABRADOR WITH BUTTERFLY

Although they are all super cute, I am partial to this LABRADOR! He’s my fave. All of the block patterns are also available separately.

BEAGLE WITH FLOWER
RETRIEVER WITH PUMPKIN
FRENCH BULLDOG WITH SCARF

Which dog is your favorite? Any of these cuties would look super in my DOGS ONLY QUILT, too!

DOGS ONLY QUILT PATTERN