Holiday 2015: French braid patchwork

French Braid patchwork technique in "Mistletoe Lane" by Bunny Hill Designs for Moda.

This fall I bought a jelly-roll of "Mistletoe Lane" fabric line by Bunny Hill Designs for Moda. The fabric was a half-price, Daily Deal from Missouri Star Quilt Co. I wanted to try the tricky French Braid patchwork design that Susan showed me how to make when she was here in August. (The directions linked here from Quilter's Cache are simple and clear.)

I cut each 2.5-inch strip from the jelly-roll in half and alternated dark and light until I had a piece of patchwork about 27-inches wide and a yard long, after trimming. I used about half of the jelly-roll, or 46 2.5 x 22-inch strips of fabric.

I made a tote front from half of the patchwork, and a standard-size pillow sham from the rest. I machine quilted the sham using my new Sew Steady table made especially for my old Jenome machine, a teflon mat, and top-feed, quilting foot.

Patchwork tote in "Mistletoe Lane" by Bunny Hill Designs for Moda

Patchwork sham in "Mistletoe Lane" by Bunny Hill Designs for Moda

Three-inch, tiny tote made with indigo dyed fabric by Kokka of Japan

I couldn't resist pulling up the tiny totes how-to to make favors for a holiday party. I used indigo-dyed fabric by Kokka imported from Japan for this cutie. The finished tote measures 3-inches square and makes a nice holiday ornament, or gift-card holder, or a great doll tote.

Microwave mitts made with "Garden Project" fabric designed by Tim & Beck for Moda

I also made these handy gifts: insulated mitts to use in the microwave. The how-to make these mitts is at "Microwave bowl mitts".

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