INDEX

	Fabric Requirements
	Cutting Requirements
	First Things First, HST
	Stripping!
	Sewing Strips
	Finishing the Quilt!

      Mystery Quilt 17 is going to be an easy one that has a theme of fall or Halloween (or if you are not one to celebrate Halloween, perhaps take a look at Mystery Quilt 16, which has a Christmas theme.  Or if you are one that does not celebrate either of those, then Mystery Quilt 18 (coming soon) is a simple fall wallhanging).  

     MQ 17 is going to be short and sweet!  There are going to be several options, all of which I hope you choose to include in your finished quilt.  These options will give your wallhanging the little extra pizzazz that makes a person look at it twice and think, "WOW".  The final measurements for this wallhanging are going to be approximately 31" x 34".  And, as you may have guessed, it is extremely similar to MQ 16, so if you're making one... might as well make two?

     And, as usual, please share a photograph with me when you finish it so that I can display it in our gallery!

 FABRIC REQUIREMENTS:

     There are four (4) basic fabrics in this wallhanging.  Since it is of an autumn and/or Halloween theme, the fabric families should include these colors:  Oranges, Green, White (or Cream), and Brown.   

     Here are my fabric color selections: 

     As you may have guessed from the image above, the small bit of green on the end is the color I chose for my binding. 

     AMOUNTS:

	1/2 yard of Light background - In my example, I used a white with a fine print on it.  This needs to be light in color and have a sharp contrast against the other three (3) colors.  You can even choose cream, if you prefer it over white.  If you do use one that has a fine print in it, make sure it uses autumn colors.
	1/2 yard of a border print - This should be orange/yellows/golds/autumn fabrics.  In my example above, it is the orange mottled print.  Well, it's the only orange up there you can actually see.  :)
	3/8 yard of a "body" print - By "body", I mean the interior of the wallhanging.  This "body" is, for now, a mystery.  In my example above, the orange print is included in my "body".  This is where you can be creative.  You do not have to use the same orange print for all of the "body".  In fact, the more different orange prints you have, the more interesting it will look.  If, however, you cannot afford to purchase a zillion orange Halloween/autumn prints, then I highly suggest that you choose one print that is large and busy, so that when it is cut up into smaller pieces, the pieces look as though they came from different fabrics.  This is also a good time to go stash-diving, if you have a good selection of autumn or Halloween prints!
	1/8 yard of a brown fabric - The brown fabric I show in my example above is a darkish brown.  You need a darkish brown that will contrast well against the light background and the "body" prints.
	1/3 yard of a green fabric - This is for your binding.
	1 yard of your choice of fabric - This is for your backing.

     Go shopping!

CUTTING REQUIREMENTS:

     Time to do some simple cutting!

Light Background	4 - 4.5" x 4.5" squares 44 - 3" x 3" squares
Orange(s) or Autumn(s) for the "Body"	4 - 4" x 4" squares 37 - 3" x 3" squares
Brown	1 - 3" x 3" square

FIRST THINGS FIRST, HST!

 

WHAT YOU NEED
4	4" x 4" Light Background squares
4	4" x 4" Orange/Autumn(s)

     This project consists of eight (8) half-square triangle (HST) pieces.  To make these, use your favorite method to make HST using four (4) of the 4" x 4" light background squares and four (4) of the 4" x 4" orange/autumns(s) from the "body".  Once these HST are made, cut them down to a perfect 3" x 3".  They should look similar to the illustration below.

  A HST Tutorial is provided if you do not have a favorite method of making them.  This tutorial is simple to use and understand and the end results are HST that are the perfect size!

STRIPPING!

     This project consists of 10 strips, each containing nine (9) squares, for a total of 90 squares.  In this section, we are making all of the 10 strips. 

 

WHAT YOU NEED
8	3" x 3" Orange/light background HST, sewn in the previous section
44	3" x 3" Light Background squares
37	3" x 3" Orange(s)
1	3" x 3" Green

     We are going to sew together 90 (10 strips of 9 squares) squares, eight (8) of which are the 3" HST made in the section above.  In addition to the eight (8) HST, you now need 36 of the 3" light background squares and 37 of the 3" red "body" squares.

1. Sew nine (9) light background squares together to form a strip, as shown below.
   

2. Repeat step 1, so that you now have two (2) strips of light background, each containing nine (9) squares. 

3. Sew a strip of nine (9) squares in this order (L indicates "light background" and O indicates "orange or autumn body"): 
   L O O O O O O O L, as shown below.
   

4. Repeat step 3 two (2) more times, so that you end up with three (3) strips that are L O O O O O O O L. 

5. Sew a strip of nine (9) squares in this order (H indicates HST):  L L H O O O H L L.  Refer to the illustration below to see the directional placement of the HSTs in the strip.  It is extremely important that the HST be placed in the correct direction!
   

6. Repeat step 5, so that you end up with two (2) strips that are L L H O O O H L L. 

7. Sew a strip of nine (9) squares in this order:  L H O O O O O H L.  Refer to the illustration below to see the directional placement of the HSTs in this strip.    It is extremely important that the HST be placed in the correct direction!
   

8. Repeat step 7, so that you end up with two (2) strips that are L H O O O O O H L. 

9. Sew a strip of nine (9) squares in this order, where G indicates "green", L L L L G L L L L, as shown below:
   

At this point, you should have sewn together 10 full strips of nine (9) squares each, as shown below.

2 of these

3 of these

2 of these

2 of these

1 of these

     There should not be any cut squares remaining.

STRIP SEWING:

     It is time to begin sewing your strips together.  This section sews all of the strips, except for two (2).  This should take you no time at all to complete!

     Pressing tip:  As you add each row, press all of the squares to one direction, then the row that you sew on next, press in the opposite direction.  This way, they will "snug" together when you're sewing the rows together.  Alternate pressing back and forth from row to row throughout the entire top.  I have found that, by using this method of pressing, I have no need of pinning.  The opposing seams imitate pinning themselves by snugging up against each other.

1. Sew the rows together in this order, being careful that the HST are going in the right direction!  Refer to the following illustration:
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
    

2. Press the rows all in one (1) direction, either all going up or all going down.  Not much of a mystery now, is it?

     At this point, you should only have the entire center of the quilt top finished.  It should resemble a pumpkin!  Now, if this were close to Halloween, you could add buttons here and there to form a face. 

     Also, if this is too plain for you, then try adding some decorative stitching to the surface of the top.  Or even appliqué items that represents autumn, like leaves, pumpkins, etc.

     Of the last three (3) mysteries (15, 16, 17), this one is by far the simplest.  All we lack is adding the rest of the top, then quilting. 

     Happy sewing!!! 

FINISHING THE TOP:

     It is time to cut the borders, corner squares, and then finish the top!

 

WHAT YOU NEED
First	2	4.5" x length of the top.  Measure the quilt top from top to bottom, then cut two (2) 4.5" strips for the side borders.  This can be from your orange stash, or any other color of your choosing.
Second	2	4.5" x width of the top side of the quilt top.  Measure from one side of the top to the other, then cut two (2) 4.5" strips for the top and bottom (Measure the bottom, also, to make sure it is the same length as the top) borders.  This can be from your orange stash, or any other color of your choosing.  You probably want to match what you cut for the side borders.  But then again, you don't have to!  In fact, all four (4) of the borders can be different prints and/or colors!
Third	4	4.5" x 4.5" Light background squares.  You can simply use these as plain squares, or you may choose to appliqué inside these squares.  If you choose to appliqué, then you need to cut them a little larger (4.75" x 4.75"), then once you finish the appliqué, trim them down to 4.5" x 4.5".  You can also choose an optional pattern to place in the four corners of this quilt top.  Refer to "Fourth" below for other options.
Fourth	1 to 4	OPTIONS.  Instead of putting four (4) plain squares in the corners, you can opt to use the smallest leaf (or leaves) and/or pumpkin in this pattern to add a little pizzazz to this quilted wallhanging.  Use any combination of this pattern in 1, 2, 3, or all 4 corners!  Or try this pumpkin appliqué (this appliqué prints out correctly with my settings, however you may need to enlarge it on a copy machine.  You will know when the size is correct when the A square prints at 4.5" x 4.5".  It says 4.75" square due to "shrinkage" for the appliqué, however, for printing/copying purposes, the A square should measure 4.5" square from the dashed to the dashed lines or 4" square on the dark interior line of the square.) for the corners!   If you have difficulty in getting the correct size for the pumpkin appliqué, then send a SASE to the address listed on the contact page and I will send you a printed copy. Here is the finished illustration of the pumpkin appliqué.  Click on the image for the full size.  The full set of instructions for putting this pumpkin appliqué together are also on this Web site.

     Now, it is time to sew!

1. First, sew each of the two (2) side borders on.  Press the seams toward the border and not toward the strips of squares.  Here is an illustration of what this should resemble at this point:
   
   
    
2. Next, using two (2) of the corner squares cut in the chart above, sew a single square to each end of the top.  Of course, these corner squares are whatever you chose to do above; whether plain, appliquéd, or paper-pieced.  Press the sewn corner block seams toward the border strip and NOT toward the squares.  The quilt top should now resemble this (of course, the corner squares may be different, according to your selection of options):
   
   
    
3. Repeat step 2 for the bottom border.  It will resemble the same illustration as shown in step 2 above.
4. Next, carefully pin one of the top/bottom border strips to the top of the quilt.  Since you pressed the seams from the corner squares in the opposite direction than the seams were pressed in the side borders, you should find that aligning the corner squares to the side borders is much easier, as they now should "snug" together.  Once pinned, then sew the top border onto to the quilt top.  Press this sewn seam toward the border.  The top should now resemble this illustration:
   
   
    
5. Repeat step 4 for the bottom border.  The top should resemble this illustration now:
   
   
    
6. Layer the quilt with batting and backing and quilt as desired.
7. Bind the quilt and don't forget to add a label to the bottom left corner of the back!
   
   or

     If you wish, you can add buttons to the pumpkin to form a face, or even appliqué other pieces onto it, like a big bat, a little bat or a cat, such as Wilma, MI, has done!  You might note that Wilma also sewed two (2) smaller squares onto the top corners of the stem of the pumpkin!

     Another wonderful quilt was made by Freida; check out all of her appliqués!  Be sure to check the Gallery for close-up details on this one!

     I would love to showcase photographs of quilts made using this pattern, so if you have one, please e-mail it and I'll add it to this page and/or the gallery!

     I hope you enjoyed this simple mystery.  Happy quilting!

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