Happy Town Tutorial

Be sure to click here and enter our giveaway . . . then you can come right back and check out the tutorial!

Remember this?

This is the top of the Happy Town quilt that we are making for the Quilts for Kids effort. 

This has been so much fun . . . I want to show you how I put this together:

The middle, of course, is that cute panel from Jacquelynne Steve's line, Happy Town. 

See this print with the stripes of happy little houses and trees and cars? 

I know, I know, it's a little bitty picture . . . but here is what it looks like when I sliced it up a little!

Aren't those vehicles adorable? Here's a closer look at those happy houses. (I'm starting to sound like Bob Ross with his happy little trees, aren't I? Haha! I love those videos!)  

I trimmed the slice of vehicles leaving a quarter inch on the edge that was green -- the next color in was the same red as the edge of the panel. 
I figured (crafty, aren't I?) that you wouldn't be able to tell if I stitched a little crooked that way. 
Check this out:

I did the same thing with the row of houses across what would be the top of the playmat:

By using those lines on the fabric, I made it nice and straight! 

Now, if you would like to make one of these, and you like my letters and my "heavy equipment" you are in luck! I'm listing the links on my "Tutorials" page, and all you have to do is click on them and you'll have immediate access to the Lilypad filing cabinet --- you can print out the patterns for the letters, and for the truck and the dozer, too!

Be sure to trace the letters IN REVERSE on the Steam a Seam if you use that wunnerful product . . . . . don't ask, OK? Just do it. You can say a little frog told you. (Grin) 
Then you can apply it to the wrong side of your fabric and cut the letters out. All that is left is to blanket stitch them to your background, like these:

The little red heart can perch there on top of the letter "H". . . 
 

Here is a close up so that you can see how to overlap the hook from the tow truck, and make the truck be hoisting the letter H into place:

I stitched around all of the parts of the heavy equipment, so that this can be ready for rugged use and lots of washings!
Here is the power portion of the 'dozer:

 
I'll be adding just a little more stitching to show the treads on that bad boy, and then he's ready to roll.
Some stem stitching made the strings for the balloons and the tow lines on the truck:

 
As soon as I finish those last embellishments on the dozer, this playquilt will be ready to sandwich, quilt and bind!

Now, if you are still reading this far, congratulations! 'Cos I'm going to give you one more way to enter our giveaway! Jacquelynne Steves has a new Facebook page, and you know how it is when you do that....you can't take your buddies with you! So go and like her new page, and then leave me a comment here --- I'll add these comments to the ones on the giveaway post, and you'll have yet another chance to win!
Yay!!!

Happy Sewing!  Don't forget to enter the Happy Town contest!!

Love,