Golden Lattice Quilt Along - Side Lake Stitch

The Golden Lattice Quilt Along took place in January – February 2022. You can follow this blog post with all the tips at any time to make your own quilt.

Week 1: Choose Fabric

First up, we get to play with fabric and choose what we will use for our quilts. If you haven’t bought fabric, make sure you check your weekly email for coupons. Get the pattern below if you haven’t yet!

Here is what I am using. It’s Northern Waters by Art Gallery Fabrics for the background and a few naturally dyed fabrics. The naturally dyed fabrics are all very similar in color. I’m hoping that tiny bit of difference in shade will add a special touch.

I have really noticed in making mock ups with this pattern that it looks very different between a light and dark background. Take this example of classic black and white. When I switch the colors, the design changes so much to my eye. In the image with the black background, the center diamonds really stand out to me with the overall pattern of the lattice diminished. The white background has a more subtle look and design. This is something you will want to consider before you start. How much do you want the accent fabrics to stand out?

You’ll also want to consider how much variety you want in your quilt. Here is an example of a mock-up with multiple colors for the accent colors. I love how multiple colors can make your eyes dance across the quilt. It is more engaging.

If you are really enjoying the mock ups with multiple colors (more below) instead of one color for the accent, consider finding 4-5 colors that go well together. One way to do this is to find a fabric in your stash or a picture on pinterest that is very appealing to you. Pick out the colors you love in this image and use these colors for your quilt.

I have to share this quilt that a pattern tester made last year. Stephanie @ hillside.stitches decided to go with a scrappy background. She sorts her scraps into colored baskets when she sews. So, for this quilt, she took her red/orange/pink scraps to make a very interesting background. This is a great way to change up the background fabric. If someone is feeling very brave, an ombre background would look amazing!

Another fun idea with this pattern is to use the diamond in the square to show off a fun print or color. Here is an example from Olivia @ thesuitcasecreative. She fussy cut the diamonds so each one showed an adorable picture of an animal. I love this idea, and it can add something special to a quilt that is mostly two-tone.

Before I leave you with a bunch of mock-ups, I also want to share my tools for the sew along. I am a quilter who does not like an excess of rulers and cutting tools, so I try to stick to the basics. I will be using my cutting mat, 6″ x 24″ ruler, rotary cutter, and a square 6.5″ cutting ruler. If you do not have a small square ruler, I would highly recommend it. This is what I use for trimming half square triangles. It is easy to move around, and the diagonal line is really helpful for getting the half square triangles perfect.

Mock-Ups

Here are some of my favorite mock ups I came up with. Some of these are classics for two-tones, and some are a bit more spunky. I hope they offer some inspiration.

Week 2 – Cutting Fabric

Now that you have your lovely fabric all ready, we get to cut this week. I know some people dread all the cutting, but I always find this part to be really exciting.

This blog is short and sweet. I’m going to give you my best tips for getting straight cuts without all the funkiness.

1. Make sure you have ironed your fabric to get the big wrinkles out.

2. Fold your fabric in half and match up the raw edge. Make sure that these are aligned and smooth out your fabric so it is flat.

3. This is the most important part. When you place the fabric on your cutting board, align the folded edge with a line on your cutting board. The top of your fabric likely is not straight across a measuring line at this point. You can see the top of my fabric is on the left side in the picture below. Cut your top so it is straight. Make sure that your ruler is aligned along the folded edge and then cut straight along a line on your cutting board or ruler to make the top straight.

This is going to help you cut along the grain. You may find after making several cuts, you will need to repeat this step to make the top straight again.

4. Once everything is lined up and the top is straight, start cutting. Below, you will see the top is straight. I have my ruler set for my first cut so that the folded line is lined up with my ruler and I have aligned the top of my fabric with a line on my ruler. Think of this as making a perfect 90 degree angle. This ensures a straight cut.

I usually find some sort of basket, Tupperware, or plate around my house to put all my pieces in. This way, I can quickly pull out what I need when it is time to sew and know I have all my pieces in one place. Luckily, this quilt isn’t too complex with many different pieces.

Now time to cut, cut, cut.

Week 3 – Make diamonds in a square block

This week, we get to actually sew something!

The goal of this week is to sew the diamond in the square with the border pieces. In the pattern, these are steps 4-6. You will do these steps for all of the pieced blocks in your quilt. I am making a large throw, so I will be making 21 of these blocks this week. I’m going to share some tips followed by a step-by-step in pictures.

Sewing Tips

1. Start by sewing just one block and measuring it. The diamond in the square before you add the border pieces (B and C) should measure 4.5″. This does not allow for too much wiggle room. If you are measuring under, try using a scant 1/4″ seam allowance instead.

2. Don’t tug and distort piece A after you have cut it on the diagonal. When sewing it with your diamond, do not pull on it. Press your seams, but do not iron them. Ironing your seams means you are moving the iron back and forth and stretching the fabric. Just press. This will keep your square from getting all out of shape.

3. Pin your triangles onto the square. You want the fabric hanging over each corner to be the same. You will see below, that when I place one triangle on and flip to the back, there is the same amount of my background fabric on each side of the diamond. Get this amount correct and then pin.

4. Once you have just the diamond in the square without your border, measure and trim. When trimming, you want to align your ruler over your piece so the line for 2.25″ goes through the points of your diamond. Match this line up on your diamond vertically and horizontally. This ensures that your diamond is centered and straight in your square. Trim off dog ears and any excess.

5. If you measure under 4.5″ on your diamond in the square, adjust to use a scant 1/4″ on your next one. For this one that is small, use a scant 1/4″ when sewing on your border pieces (B and C).

Ok! Those are my tips for this week. Make sure you check your email for weekly coupons, prizes, and the prompt for sharing. Please keep sharing your progress on social media or directly with me; I love seeing these!

Below, you can follow my step by step process for making the blocks for this week.

Week 4 – Make Half Square Triangles

This week is probably the most time-intensive week. Sharpen those rotary blades, change your needle, grab some coffee, and let’s get started!

The goal this week is to sew all of your half square triangles (HSTs), trim them, and sew the HSTs into strips so they are ready for block construction next week. Trimming HSTs can be quite tedious. I like to sew the lines on all of my squares first then put on a good podcast or audio book to cut apart the HSTs and trim them up. Below, I start with tips for making great HSTs followed by a sequence of photos for this week.

Sewing Tips

1. I prefer to mark the diagonal lines in my large squares (E and F) with my iron. You can do this by folding your square in half diagonally, pressing and then folding it in half again to make a new diagonal line and pressing.

2. Line up your HSTs when trimming. This is where the square ruler comes in handy. You want to line up the diagonal (45 degree) line on your square ruler with the diagonal line on your HST. Then trim two sides of the HST and rotate 180 degrees. Again, line up that 45 degree line with the diagonal line on your HST and trim the two remaining sides. This should help you get perfect points in those triangles, though, I never worry over a few imperfect points in my quilts.

3. When it is time to sew the HSTs together with piece D, I recommend using a scant 1/4″seam allowance. However, if you are not sure about using a scant 1/4″ seam allowance over the regular 1/4″, test out one full block. Put the entire block together, and see if your seams line up. If not, change back to a 1/4″ seam allowance.

That’s it for this week! We all have a lot of sewing, pressing, and trimming ahead of use, so I better finish mine!

Week 5 – Assemble Blocks

Whew, that was a lot of half square triangles! I think I don’t need to trim anymore of those for at least a couple weeks now.

You may be exhausted from all those HSTs, but this week, we get to see our blocks come together. Let the fun begin!

The goal of this week is to piece your blocks together. Take the diamonds in a square from week 3 and the half square triangle strips from week 4, sew them all together, and you’ve got yourself a block. There’s a little bit more information in the pattern, but I think you’ve all got this part. Remember that half of the squares in your quilt are just plain background blocks. If you haven’t cut those yet, make sure to do that for next week. Next week, we will sew all of our blocks together into a finished quilt!

I only have one tip for you this week. Before I get to that, just a reminder, to check your emails and take advantage of the longarm quilting discounts the next couple weeks. I can’t wait to see all of your finished blocks. Some of you are ahead of us, and your blocks are amazing!

Sewing Tips

1. My only tip this week is to nest your seams. Nesting your seams just means that when you have two seams that you want to match perfectly, the seam on one piece will go one direction while the other seam goes the opposite. When you sew on your first HST strips to your middle square, press the seam toward the square. Before you sew the longer HST strips to your piece, press the seam between your HSTs and square on the end toward the end square. This way, when you go to match up the corners on your HSTs, the seams will nest and give you perfect alignment.

Week 6 – Assemble Quilt Top

This week, you will just need to sew your blocks into rows and then sew your rows together – easy, peasy. I am using week 6 to display some of the finished quilt tops! If you have any questions as you work this quilt along, please email me at sidelakestitch@gmail.com.

This week I am sharing some of the wonderful finished quilt tops made by myself and other quilters. I have identified each quilt by the quilter’s Instagram handle.