Wild Olive: project // felt quilt block pins

Show your love of quilting with these sweet felt quilt block pins! March is National Quilt Month, so I thought it would be fun to use my Cozy Quilt Block felt ornament pattern to make something a little different. Instead of making quilt ornaments, today we're making pins. AND, you'll see how you can make some extra quilt block designs!

Last fall I released the ornament pattern in my shop and it shows how to make 12 quilt blocks using the templates included. Here's what those look like:

Each of the quilt blocks measure about 1.75 inches (the non-square ones are different)...the perfect size for super cute pins!

I mean, just look at this 8-point quilt star in a rainbow of felt colors. I didn't make it a full quilt block, but it still has quilt vibes.

But now look at how I made blocks that aren't in my original pattern, but still use those pieces. This first one is a Courthouse Steps block, but made using the Log Cabin ornament templates.

The orange and pink block is a quilt pattern called Solitaire, and it's made using the largest and smallest triangles from the 4x4 grid. (In the Cozy Quilt Block pattern, I talk about the different grids and how the pieces fit this way.)

I chose these blocks because I thought they were fun to play with and make. But also because you can see how it's not too hard to find designs that you can make using the very same pieces. And you can, of course, create different ornament designs too.

To make this project extra quick, I even skipped stitching (other than the faces). So are you ready to make some easy felt quilt block pins?

Here's what you need:

Cozy Quilt Block felt ornament pattern (available in my Etsy shop)
Felt scraps (Wool or wool blend felt is best - I use Benzie Felt *affiliate link*)
White felt - two 2-inch squares for each pin
Freezer paper
Pencil
Scissors
Craft glue
Black embroidery floss
Needle
Pin back

Because I save my felt scraps, I used those for my quilt pieces as much as possible. I also planned out which pieces I would need for the different blocks I was making.

Trace or print the patterns onto freezer paper because I promise you it makes cutting the tiny shapes so much better. These pieces need to fit together with some precision, so it matters. At the end of the ornament pattern, there are pages that are designed for easy printing, and if you've never printed on freezer paper before, I have a video that talks about it.

Iron the freezer paper onto the felt.

Cut out the felt pieces, then peel off the freezer paper. Follow the same process for any block you're making.

This is the Courthouse Steps block that I made using the Log Cabin templates. I used the center square, two of the smallest rectangles, four of the rectangles from the top of the Log Cabin, and two of the largest rectangles.

The 8-point star is just eight colors of felt all cut using the 8-point star templates, but skipping the the extra squares and triangles to fill in the spaces around the points.

For a Solitaire block, the four corners are the largest triangle in the 4x4 grid section of the Cozy Quilt Block pattern templates. All the rest of the pieces are the smallest triangles. I cut four of them from the same light orange color for the center. The bands of coral include six small triangles each of two similar felt colors, which I alternated.

Cut two 2-inch squares from white felt. I used a rotary cutter and ruler for this, but as long as they are square, you can do this any way you like!

Start gluing the quilt pieces to one of the squares. There will be a small edge of white felt showing, so it helps to use that as a guide for centering an edge piece or two on your quilt block.

Be sure to spread the glue evenly over the back of each piece.

On this one, I glued down the corners to make sure the edges were even, then I spread glue in the center and fit the pieces in like a puzzle!

After the glue dries you can add faces if you'd like. Because the glue stiffens the felt, you'll need a good sharp needle for this. I made my faces with the basic French knot eyes and a scallop smile, but you can use the other faces styles in the pattern too.

Grab the second felt square and evenly spread glue on one side. Place the quilt block square on top and press it to flatten the squares.

Glue a pin back to the back of your quilt block. Stitching this onto the second felt square before you glue the layers is a more secure way to do this, but remember my goal of making this easy!

Once the glue is all dry you can wear your new pin or share them with friends! How fun would these be to make at a craft gathering or even to trade them with all your quilting pals?