Christmas Village Play Time

The Programs Committee has introduced a fun “Block of the Month” challenge for 2023 that reinforces the President’s theme for this year: “Joy in the Journey.”

Buttons, beads, and rick-rack add “dimension” to Connie’s sample block.

What you need to know…

We will receive instructions/pattern for a new block each month, for a total of 9 different designs. Make as many or as few of the designs as you wish. The intention is not perfection but fun! Here is a link to a handout distributed at our January meeting clarifying “what you need to know.”

Printed instructions and the pattern for each block will be available at the monthly Guild meeting. Members can download them from the Guild’s online files (in the Programs & Workshops folder). The PDF for each block will also be linked to this page. Just click the block name in the list below (or other highlighted notes).

At our monthly Sew Day (on the first Wednesday of most months), members of the Programs Committee will be available to answer our questions. Have fun making your blocks!

Month

Block Name or Theme

1-January

2-February

3-March

4-April

5-May

6-June

7-August

8-September

9-October

10-November

Quilt Shop

Pet Shop – p 1 & p 2

Shoe Store

Book Store

Chapel – p 1 & p 2

Sweet Shop – p1 & p2

Post Office

Santa’s Workshop

North Pole Square

Suggestions for setting blocks and finishing

January’s *SAMPLE BLOCK –* “Connie’s Quilts” – illustrates the Quilt Shop block.

*February’s SAMPLE BLOCK – “North Pole Pets” –* uses images from APQG’s stash of “I Spy” fabrics.

SAMPLE BLOCK #4: “What the Dickens! Book Shop” (Connie has quite the sense of humor!)

A Note About Supplies

The Guild has a shared bin of “I Spy” fabrics with lots of cute images of animals. Also, one of our newer members, Susan H2, has a half dozen or so spools of trims that she has offered to us as possible decorative additions for our blocks.

Further Resources

Connie’s original designs in this BOM challenge are inspired by those found in the pattern book, “Welcome to the North Pole: Santa’s Village in Applique,” by Becky Goldsmith and Linda Jenkins of Piece O’ Cake Designs. A glance at the book cover (below) is enough to get your creative juices flowing, too! Do an online search of keywords like “Christmas Village” plus “quilt” to find even more whimsical images that may spark your own creativity.

NOTE: Do not purchase the book for APQG’s “block of the month” series! (Our patterns will not be taken directly from the book!) Connie is planning for all 9 of our blocks to be 10 x 10 inch squares – which will allow us flexibility to put them together as we choose. (As you can see on the cover below, the book’s blocks are all sizes and shapes!)

Do you remember playing with paper dolls?
Connie G., APQG Programs Chair, January 18, 2023