bean sprout pattern | Night Quilter

Today I am excited to release my newest foundation paper pieced (FPP) pattern, Bean Sprout. Today is arbor day, so for now I’m thinking of it as more of a tree sprout, but regardless of which species you’re growing, this block pattern is ready to roll!

To me, the bean sprout is the epitome of spring, new life, and the wonder of discovery. I have watched my children’s excitement over the first sprout of newly planted seeds, and wanted to capture that fresh promise. This block is perfect for the gardeners among you, and I can see it as a focal block in a quilt, or even turned into pillows, tote bags, wall hangings, or table runners.

You may remember my first iteration of this Bean Sprout block, which I turned into a pillow and donated to my daughter’s school for their annual fundraiser auction/raffle. Since then, I made a few tiny tweaks to the pattern to make it a bit more versatile, easier to piece, and clearer to follow. The block finishes at 8″x12″, but can easily be made into a 12″x12″ finished block by adding two side strips, which is explained in the pattern.

The pattern includes clear piecing diagrams, sewing tips, and templates for the 8″x12″ finished block, with various shading to help with accurate fabric placement. Quarter inch seam allowances are included on all pattern pieces to help ensure easy piecing, and a 1″ reference square is on every printable page so that scale can be confirmed. Full foundation paper piecing instructions are not included in the pattern, but I have a thorough paper piecing tutorial HERE. Lee Heinrich from Freshly Pieced also has a fabulous tutorial on the Bernina We All Sew blog HERE, which will ensure you will never miss corners again. Knowing all of the information in these two tutorials will help demystify FPP, or at the very least will GREATLY reduce seam ripping.

bean sprout block bring spring no matter the weather — Sew up the bean sprout block to bring spring no matter the weather!!

Bean Sprout is available for sale in my Payhip shop, at an introductory price of $2.50 through the weekend. Tuesday morning EST, it will go up to its standard price of $5.00.

I pushed spring into summer with my latest version of the block, using Cotton + Steel teals and coral that remind me of watermelon. I wanted to show the versatility of the color possibilities with this true-to-life block. While my brain initially goes to the greens and blues true to real life bean sprouts and summer sky, there are many other combinations that could work well to make the block shine! (For the avid gardeners among you, yes, I know the seedling shown is a brussel sprout plant, not a bean!)

There’s not much more exciting than seeing what others create with my patterns, so if you make this block, please use the tag #beansproutblock on social media and tag me @nightquilter. Sending an email would also work! Enjoy, spread the word, and go grow some quilts!

I’m linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts Finish it up Friday, Needle and Thread Thursday, and Let’s Bee Social.

Earth Day has always been one of my favorites days. I strive to fully embody the “Earth Day is Every Day” ideal with my day to day life, from adopting a whale in third grade and frequent stream clean ups as a child, to majoring in environmental science in college, to aiming to instill a love and respect for the earth and all its creatures and functions in my children. The earth is our home, and it is our responsibility to help nurture and care for it. Today seemed like the perfect day to share my newly finished pillow featuring my bean sprout foundation paper pieced pattern.

I’m calling this pillow “Grow” and it will be donated to a fundraiser auction/raffle at our local school. The theme for the fundraiser is “Growth & Gardening” so it fits perfectly!

I used my coveted Carolyn Friedlander bright green Architextures fabric (Robert Kaufman) for the sprout, with little leaves of lime linen leftover from a previous project and a dotty dark green that was in my stash, but has no selvedge. A light turquoise modern Indah batik by Me + You (Hoffman Fabrics) makes a perfect summer sky for the background. Alison Glass Sun Prints 2016 Sphere (Andover) as the border rounded out the pillow nicely. It’s bound in the remainder of the lime linen blend and backed in that same mystery, beautiful dark green fabric. I quilted the pillow front with coordinating 50wt Aurifil thread in 2800-Mint Ice, since it blends right in with both the background and the green bean sprout.

I was hoping to release the Bean Sprout Pattern today, too, but lo… life got in the way and it’s not quite ready yet. Soon, hopefully. The pattern finishes at 12″ square so I added 2″ borders all around to bring the pillow to 16″ square.

I also inserted my very first hidden zipper in the back of this pillow, which is SO exciting! I used a fabulous tutorial by S.O.T.A.K. handmade and it worked like a charm. I am definitely installing hidden zippers in the backs of all of my pillows from now on.

Now that this pillow is finished and photographed, it will be delivered to my daughter’s school for their annual fundraising auction/raffle. Last year’s donated project taught me a lot about the art of giving, and this year’s gift seems no less serendipitous. A quilted item was needed for a growth-themed fundraiser, right as I had tested my bean sprout pattern–perfect! I’m curious to see what next year brings, and I hope this pillow is able to raise some money for our local school!

I’m linking up with Crazy Mom Quilts, Needle and Thread Thursday, and TGIFF, since a finish ALWAYS warrants celebration! Now, off I go on a hike to celebrate this gorgeous Earth Day! Head on outside and love your mama!