Mod Mountains Quilt Sew Along: Week 2

Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.

Welcome to the Mod Mountains quilt sew along! Click here to get your Mod Mountains quilt pattern and scroll to the bottom of this post for this week's prize details. If you are just hearing about this sew along for the first time, I encourage you to read this introductory blog post on all of the details, prizes and schedule. If you would prefer a shorter, bulleted list, check out the Mod Mountains Week 1 recap.

Mod Mountains Sew Along Schedule

  • Week 1, April 10: Pick fabric and gather supplies. If you would like to change the layout of the mountains, finalize your altered layout.
  • Week 2, April 17: Extra time to gather fabric and supplies
  • Week 3, April 24: Cut fabric
  • Week 4, May 1: Sew Color 2 triangles
  • Week 5, May 8: Sew Color 3 triangles
  • Week 6, May 15: Sew 5 triangle rows together
  • Week 7, May 22: Sew the remaining 5 triangle rows together
  • Week 8, May 29: Sew all rows together and add the borders
Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles. | Suzy Quilts

During Week 1 of this sew along we picked our fabric and gathered any extra supplies. If you missed it, be sure to backtrack and give it a skim. There's a great list of supplies along with a tutorial on how to cut triangles with a regular straight ruler. I also uploaded our Facebook LIVE video to the post. In that video we chat more about fabric, fraying, using starch and cutting while I bounce baby Desi. So much multitasking!

Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.

In Week 2 we are still gathering fabric and supplies. However, if you're all set on that front and itching to get cutting, don't let me hold you back! Cutting will most likely take longer than picking fabric, so feel free to jump ahead and spend more time on that.

I have a few specific tips this week to cover that I think you'll find helpful.

Tip #1: Alternative Cutting Chart for Color 4 Fabric that is Not Reversible

Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.

Below is an alternative cutting chart for Color 4 fabric if you are using a print or fabric that is NOT reversible. (Solid fabrics are reversible, while prints are usually not.) As you can see above, the chambray that I will be using for Color 4 is not reversible.

If using fabric like that, half of your Template B pieces need to mirror the other half. This happens naturally on the cutting charts for all of the quilts except 3 pieces on the Baby and 2 pieces on the Throw. This does not change your fabric requirements (even if you already cut everything, you will still have enough extra).

Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community.

Tip #2: When to Starch Your Fabric

Starch is a beautiful thing. It sprays on like water, tames flowing fabric and smells great to boot! I have a blog post about starch if you would like to read in more detail.

Here's how I like to use starch:

  1. Whether you are prewashing your fabric or not, before cutting you should iron it. During that initial ironing session is when I spray my fabric with starch. Why, you ask? Because this will make the fabric evenly stiff so it sews with nice even tension. It also sets you up beautifully for step #2...
  2. After starching, cutting and sewing, I use a Tailor's Clapper with regular steam to get incredibly flat seams. If you haven't used one of these, prepare to be amazed.

Tip #3: Using a Flat-Top 60-degree Triangle Ruler

The Mod Mountains pattern provides you with a 6 3/4" high 60-degree triangle template – Template A. That template can easily be substituted for a triangle ruler. I personally use this Clearview Ruler. As you can see, my ruler has a pointy top. 

Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.

Using a ruler like mine means that you need to trim dog ears. As seen in the pattern, you cut 6 3/4" x WOF strips. Then, using Template A, you sub-cut. If you stack the WOF strips, you'll cut multiple pieces as a time. A total time saver! (Just don't stack too many. For me, 3 is usually enough.)

Below is how you would sub-cut your WOF strips with the templates from the pattern.

Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.

If you have a flat-top triangle ruler, similar to this Creative Grids ruler, everything works the same except since your ruler has eliminated the 1/4" dog ear tip, which means you need to eliminate it from your strips too. Instead of cutting 6 3/4" x WOF strips, cut 6 1/2" x WOF strips. As seen in the chart below, this also effects Template B – a 1/4" gets shaved off of that too.

Line up the narrow portion of Template B and let the base of the template hang off 1/4". The chart below shows what I'm talking about.

Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.

Below is a quick video showing you how to cut your fabric with both kinds of triangle rulers.

If all of this is too confusing, and you'd rather avoid triangle rulers altogether, below is a tutorial showing how to use a straight ruler with a 60-degree guide. 

The Mod Mountains quilt pattern is fat quarter friendly and great for using fabric scraps from your stash. Video tutorials show step by step how to cut templates and sew triangles.

Next week we officially start cutting, so if you're still ordering supplies and fabric, you're not behind. You're right on schedule. This is a do-what-you-can kind of sew along. I have a two-month old baby, so there's a 50/50 chance I don't actually finish sewing this quilt during the allotted time. 😉

If you have questions about anything Mod Mountains related, ask them here in the comments.

Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.
Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.

The Week 2 Prize

With a last minute change to the schedule, Week 2 is giving away a different prize to 2 different winners! That's right folks, Week 2 has 2 winners. Your chances of winning just DOUBLED!

Our first prize is from the newly formed, highly elite and already loved Ruby Star Society. One fortunate winner will get the FQ bundle Social by Melody Miller, which includes her first collection for RSS and her first basic collection Spark (21 FQs total). This fabric is not available to the public until July! So not only is it free, it's exclusive!!

Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.
Join the Mod Mountains quilt pattern sew along! Learn new quilting skills and win weekly prizes as an online sewing community. Together we cover sewing with linen and different kinds of fabric, cutting with templates and sewing triangles.

Our second winner this week will get the April Modern Quilter's Box. This box will include one SQ pattern, 8-9 Fat Quarters, a notion and a mystery block pattern.

How to Win the Week 2 Prize:

  • Photo prompt for Instagram: Post a picture of either 1. your fabric, layout and/or supplies OR 2. an introduction photo telling us about yourself OR 3. anything Mod Mountains related. Use #ModMountainsSA.
  • You must have a public Instagram profile to participate.
  • Each photo posted is an entry and you can enter as many times as you want in a single week. Once the week is over, those posts do not count in the next week's giveaway. Every week we start fresh.
  • Your photo must be posted between 12:00 a.m. CT on Wednesday, April 17, 2019 and 1:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday, April 23, 2019.
  • These prizes are not open to international contestants. 
  • The winners will be picked randomly from all qualifying posts and announced on Instagram at approximately 4:00 p.m. CT on Tuesday, April 23, 2019.

Sew Along Discounts

Lady Belle Quilting is currently offering 20% off edge-to-edge longarm quilting services on one quilt if you mention this Suzy Quilts promotion in the special notes section of your order. This offer expires June 30, 2019.

Finch Knitting and Sewing Studio is offering 15% off online and in person purchases with coupon code MODMTS15 during the duration of the Mod Mountains sew along. This is a one time offer valid on your entire order. Cannot be combined with other sales or coupons. Expires at the end of the Mod Mountains sew along, June 4, 2019.

Oliso irons are always 20% off with code suzyquilts20. This is an ongoing thing, but just thought you should know 😉

25 thoughts on “Mod Mountains Quilt Sew Along: Week 2

  1. Beverly Seffrin says:

    Hi Suzy! I jumped the gun on cutting out my triangles with the Creative Grids triangle ruler and I cut them to 6 3/4″. I have read your directions for that ruler. What would you suggest going forward?

  2. Bev Gunn says:

    I met the girls from Ruby Star Society at QuiltCon several months ago. The fabric is wonderful and so luxurious! Can’t wait to be able to get the yardage!

  3. Monique says:

    Hi Suzy! A lot of us Canadians have mailing addresses in the USA – would that make us eligible for this weeks prizes?

    • Terri Gortemaker says:

      The templates are labeled 6 3/4” tall but are actually 6 1/2” tall. Full triangle template is pointed and half triangle template is flat top. Instructions say cut from 6 3/4” strips but triangles are 6 1/2”. Please clear my confusion, thanks.

      • Suzy Quilts says:

        Hi Terri, have you measured the 1″ square in the top left corner of the template page? When that square is exactly 1″, your triangle will be 6 3/4″ high. It sounds like if your Template A is measuring 6 1/2″ tall, your printer is scaling to fit rather than printing at 100%. You actually don’t even need to mess with your printer, you can just use your triangle ruler and follow the cutting instructions based on the ruler you own – flat top or pointy top.

  4. lahoefer says:

    Suzy….working with linen, are you going to take a bigger seam allowance? Or use the scant 1/4” standard seam allowance?

    • Suzy Quilts says:

      I’m going to keep the 1/4″ seam allowance to stay true to the pattern. I’m counting on the bias edges not fraying and helping my 1/4″ seams stay intact and secure.

    • Suzy Quilts says:

      Not at all! We don’t even starting cutting fabric until Week 3, so you haven’t missed much. There’s no official signup, but the best way to get involved is to join the Suzy Quilts Patterns Facebook group and follow along on Instagram through #ModMountainsSA. I’ll be posting weekly here on the blog with what I’m working on and tips.

  5. Abby says:

    Starch questions!
    Do you use water spray bottle in conjunction with spray starch before ironing fabric?
    How much starch should I use? Light mist? Get the fabric pretty damp?
    Thank you!

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