The Alder pattern is a PDF only, not a printed pattern.
It's free, and you download it from the Alder pattern page. This kit is the fabric for that quilt.
What a precut-friendly kit is
A precut-friendly kit is built around precuts, fabric already cut to standard sizes, counted for one specific quilt. You don't choose fabrics or work out yardage, and most of the cutting is done. It isn't a fully precut kit, though: the pattern still has its own cuts. In Alder there's one, and you make it after the sewing.
What's included
- 5 packs of Patchwork Carnival 2.5" x 10" mini strips, 40 to a pack (200 strips). The top takes 152 and the binding 38 more, which leaves 10 spare.
- 2 packs of White Supreme 5" squares, 42 to a pack (84 squares). The top takes 75, which leaves 9 spare.
- The Alder pattern as a free PDF, on the pattern page above.
What's not included
- Backing. The pattern uses 2 1/8 yards of 108" wide fabric, 70 1/2" x 75 1/2", with no seam.
- Batting, cut to the same size as the backing.
- Thread.
The quilt
Alder finishes at 62 1/2" x 67 1/2". It is one unit laid on its side and repeated seventy-five times: four mini strips sewn together, cut once down the middle, with a white square on the end of each half. It is the easiest quilt in the family, and the one we suggest for a first quilt. Beginner level.
At a glance:
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Manufacturer: Patchwork Carnival strips by The Fabric Hut, our own printed cotton
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Fabric: 100% cotton
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Weight: Patchwork Carnival strips and White Supreme squares, both lightweight, 120 GSM
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Construction: Woven
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Quantity: 284 precut pieces
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Bundle contains: 7 packs
5 packs of 40 Patchwork Carnival 2.5" x 10" mini strips (200 strips)
2 packs of 42 White Supreme 5" squares (84 squares)
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Variety: 40 Patchwork Carnival prints, 5 strips of each print, plus 84 squares in one solid white
Seven packs. 284 pieces. Forty prints at full volume, and one white to keep them apart.
Forty prints that do not whisper
Patchwork Carnival is gingham checks, candy stripes, stars and polka dots in red, pink, blue, green, purple and yellow, with small ditsy florals between them. It is a loud box, and that is the point: with forty prints and no two alike, a scrappy top can run a whole row without repeating itself. The range of value is already there, from a near black spot to a pale yellow check, so sort the strips into two piles by value before you start and you have the contrast most patterns ask for.
The white is doing the opposite job, and in this collection it works harder than usual. Checks, stripes and dots at full strength will fight each other if you let them touch. A plain white gives every print a clean edge and a little space around it, which is what turns forty loud fabrics into one quilt instead of forty arguments.
Both cuts also sit on the same 2.5" grid. Cut a 5" white square in half and you get two pieces measuring 2.5" x 5". Cut a 2.5" x 10" strip in half and you get exactly the same size. So a print piece and a white piece swap in and out of a block without any extra math: prints where you want color, white where you want space, and whole 5" squares when you want a quiet setting square between busier blocks.
One note before you plan around them. The strips are short 10" cuts, not full width-of-fabric jelly roll strips. That shorter cut is what keeps the price where it is, and it suits blocks, strip patchwork and small makes rather than full-length borders or long strip sets.
Features & Benefits
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100% Cotton so that every piece is easy to press and simple to sew.
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Lightweight Weave so that the strips and the squares are easy to handle and forgiving for everyday makes (they are on the thinner, slightly sheer side, so worth keeping in mind for projects where coverage matters).
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Counted for One Quilt so that you buy once and finish, instead of running short halfway or paying for packs you do not need.
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Prints and a Solid in One Box so that you have your background ready the day you start, instead of hunting for a matching white.
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40 Patchwork Carnival Prints so that the strips carry checks, stripes, stars, dots and small florals across the whole project, with 5 strips of every print.
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84 White 5" Squares so that you can use them whole as setting squares or cut them down to 2.5" pieces for your blocks.
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One Shared 2.5" Grid so that print pieces and white pieces line up without recalculating anything.
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Precut and Ready to Sew so that you can skip the measuring and the cutting and go straight to the machine.
Great For
Scrappy blocks with a light background, strip and charm patchwork, rail fence and strip piecing, checkerboard and nine patch designs, table runners, placemats, mug rugs, cushions, mini quilts, and a first quilt that you want to finish rather than plan forever.
