Jane's Ladder and Arabesque

Today I thought I'd revisit two patterns that I've designed for the Moda Bake Shop in the past- Jane's Ladder and Arabesque. These are free patterns that feature precuts. I recently shared them on IG and had lots of questions so I figured I'd clarify. First up- Jane's Ladder! 

I called the pattern "Jane's Ladder" as it's a variation of the traditional Jacob's Ladder quilt block, but I inverted the colors in block B and alternated them for a fun diagonal design. The happy news for all of you is that even though this was made several years ago and this darling fabric line is long gone, Lella Boutique has a very similar one coming out soon. You can use Love Notes Charm Packs for the smaller size, or a Love Notes Layer Cake for a throw! 

I'm so happy she did these colors again and plan on making the big size when the fabric is out, since I sold this little crib quilt. I love that this fabric line is dedicated to her grandmother Marguerite, and one of my grandmas is Marquitta :) Actually, the one who lived on Woodberry Way! It's also my middle name. 

Image via LellaBoutique.com

IMPORTANT NOTE about links to fabric. When I link things from Etsy, they very often sell out as many shops only carry a few of any particular precut. Just use the name of the fabric line and search in the Etsy search bar, and almost always you will find another shop who carries it. Don't panic!

Crib Size (48" x 56")

2 Charm Packs (Love Notes Charm Pack)
2 Charm Packs background fabric (Moda Bella White) or 1 2/3 yds
3 yards backing fabric (pick your favorite!)
1/2 yards binding fabric

Throw Size (64" x 80")

1 Layer Cake print fabric (Love Notes Layer Cake)
1 Layer Cake background fabric (Moda Bella White) or 3 1/2 yds
5 yards backing fabric (so many good ones!)
5/8 yards binding fabric

Crib Size (48” x 56”)

Step 1: Using 1 print Charm Pack, and 1 background Charm Pack, create HSTs. Place 1 print square RST with 1 background square. Mark a line diagonally on the back side, and sew a scant 1/4” away from the line on each side. Cut along the line and press open. Trim to 4.5”. Make 84 HSTs, 2 from each of the 42 prints.

Step 2: Using 1 print Charm Pack and 1 background Charm Pack, create four-patches. Place 1 print square RST with 1 background square. Sew along two opposite edges of the squares with a 1/4” seam. Then cut the piece in half both directions (at the 2.5” mark). Press all pieces toward the print, and sew together with an alternating piece, creating a 4.5” 4-patch. Press center seam open, or whichever direction you'd like, it won’t matter here. Make 84 four-patches, 2 from each of the 42 prints.

NOTE: If you are particular about directional prints, as I usually am, you will need to decide beforehand which of your prints are going to be “A” blocks, and which are going to be “B”, as the four-patches will be oriented in opposite directions.For the HSTs, make sure you're sewing an upward line from left to right. I laid my HSTs out on the design board first in my desired color arrangement, and then when I got to a print that was directional (usually very few of them), I looked at that print on the design board to determine which way the four-patch needed to be oriented before sewing them together. If directional prints cause you no distress, carry on and disregard this portion!

Step 3: Match all the HSTs and four-patches together with their corresponding prints. Each block will need 2 HSTs and 2 four patches, all of the same print.

Divide the prints in half and make 21 “A” blocks and 21 “B” blocks as shown below. The HSTs and four patches are oriented oppositely for A and B blocks. For each block, first sew the top and bottom portions together, and press in direction of the arrows. Then sew the two rows together, and press the center seam in the direction of those arrows. Following the arrows will ensure nicely nesting seams and matching points.

Block A-

Block B-

Step 4: Sew the A blocks and B blocks alternately in a 6 by 7 grid. Press rows alternating directions.

Row 1- A, B, A, B, A, B

Row 2- B, A, B, A, B, A

Row 3- A, B, A, B, A, B

Etc., for 7 rows. Press rows and voila! You have a beautiful, fast, easy quilt top. Back, baste, quilt and bind as desired.

Full disclosure statement! Often when using precuts, such as in this case, I find there are a couple of prints that are so low volume, they won't really show up at all against the background fabric. When this happens, a few of the blocks look "blank" when looking at the quilt as a whole. Some people like the variation, it's a matter of personal preference. Since I don't like it, I set them aside in my LV collection and substitute them with something else a little darker. In this case I took out 5 of the lightest whites and replaced them with coordinating colors and prints. Some are from other Lella Boutique lines and some are blenders or basics from other designers. If you noticed the imposter prints, you have a very keen eye!

I quilted mine with a wavy zig zag on my Husqvarna Opal 650 (stitch 2/5) and a walking foot.

Throw Size Directions (64” x 80”)-

Cut Layer Cakes into (4) 5" squares each.

Step 1: Using 2 print 5" squares, and 2 background 5" squares, create HSTs. Place 1 print square RST with 1 background square. Mark a line diagonally on the back side, and sew a scant 1/4” away from the line on each side. Cut along the line and press open. Trim to 4.5”. Make 160 HSTs, 4 from each of the 40 prints. (You will be omitting 2 prints from the quilt.)

Step 2: Using 2 print 5" squares, and 2 background 5" squares, create four-patches. Place 1 print square RST with 1 background square. Sew along two opposite edges of the squares with a 1/4” seam. Then cut the piece in half both directions (at the 2.5” mark). Press all pieces toward the print, and sew together with an alternating piece, creating a 4.5” 4-patch. Press center seam open, or whichever direction you'd like, it won’t matter here. Make 160 four-patches, 4 from each of the 40 prints.

Step 3: Match all the HSTs and four-patches together with their corresponding prints. Each block will need 2 HSTs and 2 four patches, all of the same print. For this size, you will be able to make 2 blocks from each print.

Divide the prints in half and make 40 “A” blocks and 40 “B” blocks as shown below. The HSTs and four patches are oriented oppositely for A and B blocks. For each block, first sew the top and bottom portions together, and press in direction of the arrows. Then sew the two rows together, and press the center seam in the direction of those arrows. Following the arrows will ensure nicely nesting seams and matching points.

Follow the block assembly instructions above, included in the crib size portion. 

Step 4: Sew the A block and B blocks alternately in an 8 by 10 grid. Press rows alternating directions.

Row 1- A, B, A, B, A, B, A, B

Row 2- B, A, B, A, B, A, B, A

Row 3- A, B, A, B, A, B, A, B

Etc., for 10 rows. Press rows and voila! Back, baste, quilt and bind as desired.

The other pattern that I did for them is called Arabesque. It was actually the very first pattern that I had published anywhere, in 2016. It was kind of my practice round before getting brave enough to list my designs for sale. 

I used a Layer Cake of Bonnie and Camille's latest line "Vintage Picnic", with Moda Bella Solid 97. It's backed in the grey floral from that line, and the binding is aqua with polka dots. These are probably hard to find now, but Early Bird has really similar colors, as do many of their other lines. You can't go wrong with Bonnie and Camille!

You can see the full instructions for this quilt at the Moda Bake Shop- Arabesque. While I absolutely love the look of this quilt, I find it a bit of a pain to put together. I prefer block-based quilts, and this one is done row by row, with lots of HSTs. You definitely want a Bloc Loc ruler for this one! It will save your sanity and make all the points perfect. 

I did make this pattern again a few years later at the request of my sister Jo. She chose the backing for this quilt (which is sadly out of print), and I took coordinating Kona solids for the front, and I think it turned out brilliantly. 

This one was quilted by Kaitlyn at Knot and Thread Designs! She has so many great designs to choose from. 

Konas for this were: Shell (peach background), Snow (inner white), Flame, Corn Yellow, Jade Green, Candy Blue, Pacific, and Woodrose. There is a shop local to me that carries all the Konas, and they ship anywhere! 

I think that covers all the questions on these two quilts, let me know if I missed anything!