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    Home » Holidays

    Santa’s Hat Shop Christmas Quilt Along; Design Tips

    Updated: Nov 4, 2020 by Melissa Mortenson · This post may contain affiliate links · This blog generates income via ads · Leave a Comment

    collage image for pinterest

    Welcome to week one of the Santa’s Hat Shop Christmas quilt along! We are kicking things off by chatting a bit about design suggestions for your quilt. We will discuss fabric choices, color value, and alternate layouts. Let’s Go!

    Christmas fabrics in reds and greens in stack on white marble tabletop
    girl holding quilt outdoors
    Table of Contents
    • How to Get the Pattern
    • Christmas Quilt Along Schedule
    • Design Ideas
    • Fabric and Color Choices
    • Piecing Choices for the Quilt Blocks

    For those of you who have joined, I’m so excited to have you on this quilt along! The Santa’s Hat Shop pattern is one of those “easier than it looks” patterns since it’s made primarily from the same quilt block.

    santa hat quilt blocks on white cutting mat

    Once you get the “hang” of creating that block the rest will go quite quickly (I’ll also be sharing some suggestions to speed up your quilt piecing).

    Before we begin a little housekeeping…

    How to Get the Pattern

    The pattern is in my shop. It’s in PDF and printed format. In addition to my shop, many other quilt shops around the country are carrying the pattern, so ask at your local quilt shop!

    If you are in a VAT country you can purchase it on Etsy (they take care of the VAT issues for me).

    A few of you have asked if the pattern will be going on sale during the quilt along. It won’t. I don’t want to discount it out of respect for those that have purchased it in the past, including local quilt shops.

    Christmas Quilt Along Schedule

    Here is the schedule for the quilt along. With links to the blog posts in the series so far.

    • All About the Quilt Along
    • November 4th – Kick-Off & Design Suggestions
    • November 11th- Begin Piecing Blocks – with video tutorial
    • November 18th- Pattern for Santa’s Belt Quilt Block
    • How to Make a Bench Pillow Tutorial
    • November 25th- Catch Up Week
    • December 9th- Finishing

    Design Ideas

    All of the fabrics shown are from my Santa Claus Lane Collection.

    First, let’s chat a bit about some of the design choices you have when constructing your quilt.

    You do not need to make any of these decisions just yet, you have until the assembly steps to do that.

    Option 1: Square

    You can make your quilt in a square layout as shown. It measures 60×60 when stitched up this way.

    This quilt is made up of 36 quilt blocks in a simple grid.

    Option 2: Rectangle

    If you like, you can rearrange those 36 blocks into 7 rows of 5 instead. You will have 6 blank blocks and 29 Santa Hat Blocks.

    diagram of santa's hat quilt with green background

    Your quilt will measure 50″ x 70″ if you do it this way. Which makes it a nice “couch cuddling” quilt since it will cover your toes! As I already have one of these quilts, I’ll be making mine in the 5×7 layout.

    Adding the Santa Belt Block

    If you wish to add the Santa Belt Block, the pattern for that will be shared in an upcoming week. I would recommend waiting until you’re done sewing to see where it will look best in your quilt. Here is an idea if you decide to add that block.

    diagram of santa's hat quilt with green background

    Fabric and Color Choices

    I’ve mocked up the quilt with a few different background color choices.

    Christmas fabrics in reds and greens in stack on white marble tabletop

    You can make the quilt out of “scrappy” green fabrics as shown above.

    Another option would be to create the quilt out of the same background fabric (vs. a scrappy look in the above mockup). The fabric in the mockup is a Blossom Basic by Riley Blake Designs.

    diagram of santa's hat quilt with green background

    I love pink for Christmas and think the quilt would also be adorable with a pink background.

    Christmas fabrics in reds and pinks in stack on white marble tabletop
    diagram of santa's hat quilt with pink background

    Then there is always an aqua background as shown in my original quilt.

    Christmas fabrics in reds and blues in stack on white marble tabletop

    A few tips:

    • As you pick your background fabrics, make sure that they “stand out” from the red hat fabric and the white fabric on the pom-pom and brim. If you look closely at my aqua quilt, you may notice that there is not enough contrast between some of the aqua prints and the white.
    diagram of santa's hat quilt block in colors
    • There is no reason that your quilt has to have red hats. You can choose any fabric or color combo that you wish. A striped green fabric would make the hats look like Elf hats!
    • This quilt was designed to be scrappy. Be sure to “shop your stash” before you buy fabric for it. ¼” yard or 1 fat quarter of fabric. There are 28 Santa Hat Blocks.
    • It’s ok to “think” outside the box. Erin from House on Hill Road created my Halloween Haberdashery quilt out of a variety of colors. I love how it looks! The hats don’t all have to be red!
    Halloween Quilt Along

    Piecing Choices for the Quilt Blocks

    I know that many of you LOVE Foundation Paper Piecing! Just as many of you also seem to dislike it! This quilt pattern includes instructions for BOTH traditional piecing and foundation paper piecing of the Santa Hat Blocks.

    If you don’t want to Foundation Paper Piece this quilt, you don’t have to! The only elements in the quilt that are purely FPP are the JOY blocks. But for this quilt along we are making the version of the quilt without the JOY blocks, so you’re ok!

    That’s all for this week. If you have questions be sure to leave them in the comments section and I’ll answer them as they come in. Come back next week for piecing tips including an instructional video!

    More Projects You May Enjoy

    • DIY Splatter Paint Christmas Ornaments
    • The Heart of Hearts Quilt Along
    • How to Make a Retro Diorama Ornament
    • Mini Fabric Envelope Sewing Pattern

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    About Author

    Melissa Mortenson

    Melissa Mortenson is a blogger, designer, and content creator. She is the Polka Dot Chair blog founder and has been sharing fresh and creative ideas with readers since 2008. She is the author of “Project Teen, Handmade Gifts your Teen will Actually Love.” Her work and designs have been featured on HuffPost, TODAY, Pioneer Woman, HGTV, BuzzFeed, Better Homes & Gardens, and many other established publications. Her first fabric line, “Derby Style,” debuted in January 2015 through Riley Blake Designs.  Additional fabric collections have followed it in subsequent years. A mom of 3, she considers herself lucky to be living in Kentucky.

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    Hello! It’s nice to meet you.

    I’m Melissa. I like to design things, like fabric, printables, and projects.

    I’m also a Mom and a Maker. I am like most of you, just trying to do my best every day. Some days I succeed, many days I fail.  I find joy in creating, if you do too, then I hope that you find something here bring a little “happy” to your life.  Find out more about me here.

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