PNW Quilt Adventure of The Year!

🌲🧵 THE PACIFIC NORTHWEST QUILT ADVENTURE OF THE YEAR 🧵🌲

Oregon • Washington • Idaho — it’s time for the All Pacific Northwest Shop Hop 2026, and this year it’s BIGGER than ever! 🚗✨

For two months, quilters will be traveling across the PNW visiting 126 incredible quilt shops, collecting exclusive patterns, prizes, and inspiration at every stop. 🎁

But here’s the real magic…

This isn’t just a shop hop — it’s a COMMUNITY experience. ❤️
Road trips with quilty friends.
Discovering hidden gem shops.
Finding fabrics you didn’t even know you needed.
Making memories that last long after the hop ends.

I’ll be sharing my journey, favorite finds, tips for planning your route, and behind-the-scenes inspiration all along the way — so make sure you’re following so you don’t miss a single stop. 🗺️✨

👇 TELL ME 👇
Which state are you hopping from — Oregon, Washington, or Idaho?

Be sure to get by your local quilt shop to pick up a copy of the All Pacific Northwest Shop Hop Magazine for 2026, just like I did! Here in Idaho Falls, you can get your copy at Day Dreams Quilt N. Sew located at 802 Pancheri Drive. Don't delay, they are going fast. The magazine contains your passport to all the shops, maps for you to plan with, 5 FREE quilt patterns and a complete list of all the prizes that could be yours. You are not going to want to miss it one! 

If you’re new here, I’m Karen — pattern designer, quilt maker, and your guide to building a creative quilting life. Welcome to the adventure. 💚

#PNWShopHop #QuiltCommunity #QuiltAdventure #QuiltersOfInstagram #ShopHop2026 #OregonQuilters #WashingtonQuilters #IdahoQuilters #SisterOfTheDivide

Precision, Patience, and Paper Piecing — A Winning Block Story

After more than five decades of quilting, I still feel a quiet thrill walking into a quilt show. This year, I was deeply honored to receive First Place in the Block Contest, at the North Bingham County District Library Annual Quilt Show — the fourth time I’ve been awarded this recognition there.

The block I entered is from a pattern by renowned paper-piecing designer Carol Doak, whose work has influenced generations of quilters. While the structure of the design is hers, the fabric selection and placement allowed me to bring my own voice to the piece — a conversation between designer and maker that I’ve always loved about quilting.

The block contest starts out with a focus fabric that you pick up at the library for a small donation of $1.00. You must then use that fabric in any way you choose to create a block that measures 12.5" square.

For this block, I chose fabrics that balanced bold contrast with a vintage sensibility, carefully considering how color movement would guide the eye around the star. Precision piecing was essential; every point meeting cleanly was part of honoring the integrity of the design. The light blue floral fabric was the focus fabric for this block. In thinking about the fabric pull I opted to focus on a patriotic theme since this is the 250th Anniversary year for our country. I made a template for each of the paper piecing sections and cut and labeled my fabrics for easy in assembly.

Quilting has been part of my life for over 50 years. It has seen me through seasons of change, growth, and creativity, and it continues to challenge and inspire me. Awards are lovely, but the true reward has always been the process — the quiet rhythm of stitching and the satisfaction of bringing something beautiful into the world.

One of the things I treasure most about the North Bingham County District Library Quilt Block Contest is that it’s a blind competition.

Visitors to the show vote for the block they love most — without knowing who made any of them. Names are only revealed at the very end.

So this First Place Honor means something especially meaningful to me. 🏆
It was chosen purely on the work itself.

Here are some photos of the Pieced Blocks portion of the Block Contest, So many talented contributions! All of the blocks are then raffled off and given to the winner of that raffle!

If you’re interested in more of my work, original designs, patterns, and curated vintage fabrics, you can find them here at Sister of The Divide as well as on our Facebook Page and YouTube Channel.

St. Paddy's Field Quilt Along - Step 1 The HST Units

✂️ Half Square Triangle Unit for St. Paddy's Field Quilt Along 

4.5" Finished

Method: 2-at-a-Time HST   PDF Instructions

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🔢 Quilt Requirement

You will need:

64 finished Half Square Triangle (HST) blocks

Each pair of 5" squares yields 2 HST units.

64 ÷ 2 = 32 pairs needed

✂️ Cutting Instructions

• Cut 32 green 5" × 5" squares
• Cut 32 background 5" × 5" squares

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✨ Additional Supplies

• Sewing machine & coordinating thread
• Fabric marking pencil or pen
• Quilting ruler with 45° diagonal line
• Rotary cutter & cutting mat
• Iron & pressing surface

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🧵 Instructions

1. Mark

On the wrong side of each background square, draw a diagonal line from one corner to the opposite corner.

2. Layer

Place one green square and one background square right sides together. Align edges and pin if desired.

3. Sew

Sew a scant ¼" seam on each side of the drawn diagonal line.
(A scant ¼" seam is slightly less than a full ¼" to account for fabric and pressing.)

4. Cut

Cut directly on the drawn diagonal line to create two triangle units.

5. Press

Open each unit and press the seam toward the green fabric.

6. Square Up

Using the 45° diagonal line on your ruler, square up each HST unit to measure 4.5" × 4.5".

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C 2026 Sister of The Divide. All rights reserved. This pattern and its instructions are protected by copyright law. No part of this pattern may be reproduced, redistributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the designer. You may sell items made from this pattern on a home-based, small-scale basis and may use for charity purposes. Mass production is prohibited. Please credit the design to Sister of The Divide.

St. Paddy's Field - Cutting Instructions

St. Paddy’s Field Quilt Along

Cutting Instructions

Quilt Block size 8.5” will finish in the quilt at 8”

Quilt Finish Size 64.5” x 64.5”

PDF LinkYardage requirements:

Main color: 2.78 yards (buy 3 yards)

Secondary color: 3/8 yard

Background color: 3 ¾ yards

Binding: ½ yard

You will need:

 a rotary cutting mat

 a rotary cutter

 a quilting ruler

For ease of instruction we will assume the following, you can substitute with any color you wish or use scraps

Main Color – Dark Green

Secondary color – Light Green

Background – White or Neutral

WOF = width of fabric = minimum 40”

If you are making your quilt using yardage you will cut as follows:

From your Main color cut:

4 strips measuring 5” x WOF

     Sub cut into 32 - 5” squares

32 strips measuring 2.5” x WOF

From your Secondary color cut:

4 Strips measuring 2.5” x WOF

From your Background color cut:

4 Strips measuring 5” x WOF

     Sub Cut into 32 – 5” squares

44 strips measuring 2.5” x WOF

Binding cut:

7 Strips 2.5” by WOF

 

If you are cutting scrappy, you will want to have enough fabric to equal the above measures.

 C 2026 Sister of The Divide. All rights reserved.

This pattern and its instructions are protected by copyright law. No part of this pattern may be reproduced, redistributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means without prior written permission from the designer. You may sell items made from this pattern on a home-based, small-scale basis and may use for charity purposes. Mass production is prohibited. Please credit the design to Sister of The Divide.

Come Quilt Along - St. Paddy's Field

Let's Skip though St. Paddy's Field together! In this quilt along we will be making the quilt shown in the picture above. Beginner Friendly! Honest!

This year's Kona Cotton Color for 2026 is called Wander. It is a calm, confident Green that invites curiosity and open ended possibility! You do not have to make this quilt in Green. I will be making two colorways as we move through this quilt. It lends itself to scrappy (which I love). Fabric requirements will be listed here today to give you time to gather your bits and bobs.

The quilt will finish at 64.5" x 64.5". You can elect to make a table runner, a baby quilt, a larger quilt by simply increasing or decreasing the number of blocks you make. Your choice! This quilt is very suitable for a beginner quilter and will also provide a base for a more advanced quilter who may wish to experiment a bit.

Okay! Let's get down to business here. You will need the following fabrics:

For a scrappy look you will need:

11 Fat Quarters of low volume for your backgrounds

9 Fat Quarters of your main color (the dark green in the photo)

3 Fat Quarters of your secondary color (the light green in the photo)

You can also use your scraps in any combination that will equal those quantities listed above.

If you are using Yardage, you will need:

3 3/4 yards of your background fabric

3 yards of your main color

3/8 yard of your secondary color

1/2 yard of binding color

So Gather your fabrics, mark your calendars, we will meet here again on February 19th for cutting  instructions. 

This quilt will be chain pieced and will go quickly. We should have fun!

Sunday, February 15, I will post up some fat quarter bundles in our Etsy Shop if you are needing a selection. They will be $2.00/fat quarter in a bundle of 5 for $10.00 and as always, if you order $30. or more your shipping will be free! 

Contact me at SisterofTheDivide@gmail.com if you have questions.