You Bring The Summer Quilt Block

You-Bring-The-Summer-Quilt-Block

You know those songs that immediately transport you back to a place in time? Well this song, this album, sends me back to 1966. And even though I technically wasn’t alive until 20 years later, this groovy summertime music most definitely contains the magical power of time travel.

For me, it started with a funny comment from my mom, was catalyzed by a mysterious Tweet by Ricky Gervais, and then completely solidified by the repeat button on Spotify. The Monkees Good Times is my album of the summer. Give it a listen, and it will most likely become yours too.

When the beat rolls in on Love To Love, the corners of your mouth will tweak upward. Before a full-blown smiles cracks, the foot will start. Start tap’n. Then. The shoulders start to bob. First just the right, but soon the left is swaying. And at that point, you realize dancing in the living room is inevitable. Sashay those hips. Wag that finger. Grab a wooden spoon and sing along!​

 

You EMBRACE IT! And by the time She Makes Me Laugh jams on, you’ve already broken a sweat and can pat yourself on the back for creating an actual legitimate excuse to skip Zumba class again! Good Times! Am I right??​

You Bring The Summer

I pulled this block from a new quilt design I’m releasing later this summer. The entire quilt has a fun, warm weather vibe, but this block in particular feels notably...hot. I originally thought about calling it something steamy like Desert Rose or Bluebell Sunrise. (that second one is laughably not true. If you ever see that I’ve named a quilt block Bluebell Sunrise, I’ve either been overtaken by cruel and sappy aliens or have secretly hit my head and am hemorrhaging from the brain. No matter the reason – call an ambulance.)

Trending patterns!

But, once you’ve heard this 8 to 25 times...

 

I'll bring the chips and the dips and root beer,
Even though dark rain purple clouds are near.
When you come around, you bring the summer.

 

...the brain begins to melt into a bowl of dip...and then you realize...ALIENS HAVE TAKEN OVER MY BODY! And the aliens are 70 year old mean misspelling the word “Monkeys” for no obvious reason!!

Two paths then lay before you – resist and fail, or, accept the constant shoulder swaying and begin naming all of your quilt blocks after Good Times songs.

 

Obviously I’ve chosen the latter, and will thus commence with the latest design - You Bring The Summer: A Quilt Block Story of Addiction, Lip-Syncing and the Dangers of Root Beer.

 

Block Instructions

This block is made up of only two simple units – half square triangles and squares. The instructions below give measurements for a 14” finished block, however, because of the simplicity of the units, it can easily be sized up or down. Take a look at this blog post on half square triangles to see measurement conversion charts.

Free-Quilt-Block-Tutorial

Fabric​

  • Gold: 3 – 5 ¾” squares, 1 – 2 ½” square
  • White: 3 – 5 ¾” squares
  • Dark Navy: 12 – 2 ½” squares
  • Indigo: 8 – 2 ½” squares
  • Denim: 4 – 2 ½” squares

Block Assembly

  1. Place each 5 ¾” White square on top of each 5 ¾” Gold square, right sides together.
  2. On the light square, draw two lines diagonally, one horizontally and one vertically.
  3. Sew a ¼” from the guidelines.
  4. Cut along guidelines.
  5. Press seams toward the dark fabric and trim dog ears. Fig.1
  6. Assemble the Gold/White half square triangles and squares into rows as seen in Fig.2.
  7. Press the seams in each row the opposite direction as the row beside it. This will help the seams nestle into each other and alleviate bulk.
  8. Pin and sew rows together.
FREE-Summer-Quilt-Block-Tutorial

Ta-da! And now you’ve done it so let’s sing about it!

6 thoughts on “You Bring The Summer Quilt Block

  1. Dette says:

    Hey Suzy ,I have just found your blog via Instagram and have spent half an hour back pedalling through your posts. So enjoyable and stimulating too. Love your quilts too , inspires me to start sewing again. Thank you ???? Dette

  2. Ruth says:

    This so funny and cute! I LOVE the Monkees! I was just a kid at the time, but they are my #2 band after The Beatles! I never heard of this song, so fun with the block!

  3. Libby says:

    Love the block. Going to make a donation quilt using this block and “recycle” some of my crazier fabric purchases! Love the Monkees too.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *