A Paper Pieced Garden

I have a long list of things I want to sew and quilt when I can get back to my machine. Some paper piecing is near the top of that list!

I gave paper piecing a go last year. It is not a skill that comes naturally to me and I made lots of mistakes, but I really enjoyed and I loved the results.

I was excited to get a copy of A Paper Pieced Garden by Maaike Bakker and Francoise Maarse. 

 It has great instructions for how to paper piece at the start. Each step is explained and accompanied by clear photos. Most of the blocks are the same size so you can mix and match the blocks you want in a quilt. There are a couple of smaller sized one which you could easily add borders to make them the same  size as the larger ones.
The daffodils are just out in my garden so I would love to give the daffodil block a go in some modern fabrics.

The quilts in the book use applique as well as paper piecing. Templates for the applique are included at the back of the book and instructions are given for fusible machine applique.
Not all the blocks are flowers. There are all sorts of things you would find in a garden including a squirrel, birds and cherries.
I love this quilt with mushrooms and leaves.

I was a little worried that I wouldn't be able to open the book wide enough and get it flat enough to copy the patterns, but there is a wide enough border around each pattern and I have pressed my book really flat without the spine cracking or falling apart so I don't think it will be a problem.

I'd love to make a sampler quilt that represented my garden and I think the blocks would be perfect to use for smaller projects like oven mitts or in a bag.

Full Disclosure: I received a copy of the book from Martingale free of charge. All opinions are my own.