Bella Pillow {a finished project!}

Okay, so I'll state the obvious and admit that I've been a bit on a "solids" kick of late.  And this post will just add fuel to that fire :) Have you ever bought or received one of Moda's new mini-charm packs?  They are pre-cut 2 1/2" squares.  I'll be honest, I've had some since they first came out and have had no idea what I would do with them.  Each pack has 42 squares, so it's not a lot of fabric!  Well, I had an idea that turned out pretty fantastic if you ask me.

I finally opened up a couple of the mini charm packs (these were Moda Bella solids) and set them next to my sewing machine with the plan to piece 2 squares together whenever I need a "leader" or "ender".  For those of you that I lost with those terms, leaders/enders are small scraps of fabric that quilters often use when piecing to start their stitching or end it.  It's like chain piecing with a scrap at the beginning and end.

Well, I don't just want to continue to stitch on scrap fabrics, so instead I'll be piecing squares together to make fun new projects...YAY!!

This is my first project with the mini-charms and let me tell you, it didn't take long at all to have enough square "pairs" to then piece together for this pillow front.

The Bella pillow finishes at 16", so you will need a total of 64 2" squares for the top.

For the back I used my new favorite pillow zipper tutorial, only this time I did not quilt the back.  The fabric is Gabbie by Maude Asbury for Blend fabrics.  It's been in my stash for awhile and I was so happy to that I saved it because I think it's perfect on the back of this pillow.

Check out that zipper cover...it looks so professional.  I don't think I'll ever make an envelope pillow closure again!

For the quilting, I did a simple 1" cross-hatch using Aurifil 50wt  #2479.

And here Bella is in her new spot in the corner of my sewing room with a couple of my other favorite items :)

I've already decided what my next project will be with these mini-charm "leaders/enders"...a postage quilt made with these happy squares...

I will obviously have to cut the white charm squares into mini-charms, but I can't wait to see this one come together!  I have made a promise to myself to only piece on this as a leader or ender and not to stray from any current WIP to try and finish it up.

So, have you made anything with the mini-charms yet?  I'd love to get other ideas.

Linking up with Sew Cute Tuesday, Fabric Tuesday and Needle and Thread Thursday.

Thanks for stopping by,