Disappearing Nine-Patch Full-Size Quilt in Meadow

On my design wall today are the disappearing 9-patch blocks in Meadow by Blackbird Designs  With borders added, it will be a full size.  I wish you could come on over and see it; it is much prettier in person! This quilt top is a gift for a friend whose life has been turned upside down as she has had to seek shelter outside of the family home.  I let her go through my stash and pick out any fabric she wanted, and she chose Meadow because it is beautiful, yet with subtle designs and colors to not overwhelm her tiny, tiny studio apartment.   If you have a good man in your life, give thanks to the Lord today; many women do not, and those of us with good men in our lives most likely have no idea what it is like for these women and the amount of courage it takes for them to step out and build a new life on their own.
In the past I have struggled with making disappearing 9-patch blocks because they seemed so ... messy.  This picture in Jennifer Paganelli's book, Happy Home, convinced me otherwise!  What helped me get over my aversion to the jumbled disappearing 9-patch pattern are the HUGE blocks.  They are 12" squares!  The large squares are so pleasing to the eye.  It is also really nice to not chop up beautiful prints into such small pieces.  I used 9" squares in my quilt top because that size is a very efficient use of fabric as you get two strips of them from a half yard or fat quarter. And by the way, this quilt in Happy Home is not called the Disappearing 9-Patch, nor is it cut or sewn as a D9P is.  Believe it or not, the instructions say to cut out the three different-sized pieces and then sew them together separately ... SERIOUSLY?  Hmmph.   {For those of you who do not know what a Disappearing 9-Patch block is ... sew 9 equal-sized squares together in a 3x3 design.  Cut down the middle from top to bottom.  Then, without moving the pieces, cut down the middle from side to side.  Rearrange the blocks how you like them and re-sew them together.  Easy Peasy.} The book redeems itself, however, because of its adorable-ness.
And that leads me to my birthday present - a TrueCut Ruler and Cutter!  They were delivered today, and I love them already!  The cutter has a tab that fits over the edge of the ruler, so it cuts a straight line because it won't allow the cutting edge to move away from the ruler.  This tab also prevents the cutter from gouging the mat when you press too hard, so it will last longer.  They are currently on sale at Connecting Threads!