Welcome Sew-Along Friends, we get to sew this week! Today I have the pattern pieces, cutting list and tutorial so you can finish your first Quiet Book page. I remember feeling a great sense of excitment, accomplishment and beginning when I finished my first page and I hope you will feel the same once we are finished this page. It’s all going to proceed a lot faster now and we’ll be finishing up a page every 2 or 3 weeks!

Here is my finished Sew-Along page, beside the original quiet book page for comparison. Ready? Let’s go!

You will need:

  • 1 Small Safety Pin
  • Thread: 4 colours that match your cloud, sun, house and grass fabric
  • your normal sewing gear, including a ruler and iron
  • House Page Pattern Pieces (click to download the pdf)
Before we begin/Important Notes:
  • Download and print the pattern pieces pdf on letter size (8.5″ x 11″) or A4 paper. Important:Make sure scaling is set to ”None” or “Actual Size” when printing. Once you have printed the page, measure the 1″ test square (it should measure 1″ in both directions) to ensure the pattern pieces will be the correct size.
  • When you are sewing this book it is good to remember that some of the edges will be covered after the book is completed and sewn together. 1/2″ on the top edge of your page and 3/4″ on each side edge will not show in the final project. The illustration below shows these edges.
  • Remember to use your iron liberally when you are sewing this book. It is going to be a work of art when you are done! Since it is thick and some of the pages will not be iron-able once you are finished with them it is advisable to take all of the care you can to remove wrinkles so they are not accidentally permanent in your final book.
Cutting Your Fabric:
  • Check your printed pattern page for a cutting list of all pieces you will need to complete this page.
  • Pre-wash (if possible, a baby might be chewing on this book!) and iron your fabric well before beginning.
  • If you are cutting the cloud shape out of fur it is easiest to trace the pattern piece on the back of your fur fabric and then cut it out. BE SURE to trace the pattern piece upside down so it is facing the correct direction when it is turned over.
  • Cut your pieces according to the list on the pattern page. If possible, cut the pieces that require fusible web/interfacing together with the webbing/interfacing. This will make them exactly the same size and it will be easier to iron them later.
Here we go:
Door Prep: (1) Press the interfacing onto the back of your door fabric. (2) Fold the door in half across the 4″ side, so it is 2″ wide. (3) Stitch across each short end with a 1/4″ seam. (4) Trim your corners and edges if desired. (5) Turn, press well, set aside.
Sky Prep: (6) Lay your sky pieces together in the order you would like. (Note: If you are only using 1 piece for the sky skip to step 12.) (7) Place the top sky piece on top of the middle piece right sides together. Stitch across the top of these pieces with a 1/4″ seam. (8) Iron the seam open. (9) Place the bottom sky piece right sides together with the middle piece. Stitch across the bottom of these pieces with a 1/4″ seam. (10) Iron your seam open. (11) See photo below for a front and back view of your finished sky.
Fuse the Sun: (12) Follow the directions on your fusible web to iron your sun in the top right corner of the sky.
Fuse the House, Peek-A-Boo Fabric and Door: (13) Place the house and cloud fabric (both are backed with fusible web) on your sky where you would like them. Make sure the bottom of the house lines up with the bottom of the sky. (14) Carefully lift the bottom of the house and slip the peek-a-boo fabric (backed with fusible web) into its place under the door. 1/4″ on the sides and top of this piece will be covered by the house shape. (15) Place the door in its place with the open edge to the left. The top and right edges fit into the door shape in your house. 1/4″ on the left side will be covered by the house shape. There will be a 1/4″ between the bottom of the door and the bottom of the sky. (16) Remove the cloud fabric temporarily to avoid melting it. Iron the fusible web, try not to move your pieces by accident. You will be ironing the house, peek-a-boo fabric and the left side of the door. It helps to open the door so you can properly fuse the fabric underneath.
Attach the Grass: (17) Place the grass fabric right sides together along the bottom of your sky/house piece. Stitch along the bottom with a 1/4″ seam. Do not sew over the bottom of the door! You will be sewing right below it. (18) Open up your fabric and iron your seam open. If the door is too high stitch this seam again with a more generous seam allowance until you are happy with the door placement.
Interfacing your Page: (19) Turn your fabric over so the wrong side is facing up. (20) Centre the 9″ square of interfacing you cut over the back and fuse it to your page. Make sure there are no obvious large wrinkles before you fuse everything together, they are hard to get out later!
Attach the Cloud: (21) Place your cloud where you’d like and lightly iron to fuse it to your page. Iron from the BACK of the page, or use a press cloth over the cloud. Be careful not to melt your fleece or fur! (22) Use a close, wide zig-zag (satin stitch) with matching thread, to attach the cloud permanently to your page. If you are using fur, brush the fur to the centre before beginning so you stitch over it as little as possible. You do not need to stitch along the line where the house and cloud meet, we will do this later. (23)  See photo below to see the finished cloud applique.

Applique the Sun: (24) Change your thread to match the sun fabric and use the same satin stitch to finish the rounded edge of the sun.

Applique the House: (25) Change your thread to match your house. Begin stitching around the house in the centre of the right side of the roof. (26) Continue stitching around the house shape until you reach the top of the door. Open the door to avoid stitching over it by accident. (27) Make sure to stitch as close as you can get to the door without stitching over it. (28) Raise your presser foot with the needle in the fabric and close the door. (29)  Turn the corner as usual and continue stitching down the left side of the door and around the house until you reach where you started. (30) Brush the cloud fur (if using) to one side while stitching next to it. See the photo below for a finished view of the house applique.

Satin Stitch the Grass: (31) Change your thread to match the grass. Satin stitch along the edge between the grass and the sky. Stop and re-start stitching to avoid the areas where the house and the grass are already satin stitched together. You will need to open the door to stitch that area. (32) See the photo below for a finished view of the grass stitching.

Apply the Cap Snap: (33/34) Choose the location for your snap carefully and apply it following your manufacturer’s directions. I generally place mine on the far right, centred top to bottom so it looks like a door knob. Please take care when attaching the snap. If it is not attached properly and a child is chewing on the page it may become loose and create a choking hazard.

Finish with the Ribbon: (35) Use your small safety pin to attach the ribbon to your finished page. Since this is a long Sew-Along you would hate to lose it!

Finished! How do you feel?! Put your page somewhere safe or leave it out for a while where you can see it. I’m keeping all of my Quiet Book things together in one of my many handmade bags that doesn’t get nearly enough use. It’s really handy to have it all together.

See you again next week!