It feels, to me, to be a little late in the season to post a Christmas tree in need of decorating, but I have known a few people who don't put the tree up until Christmas Eve. In my family, the tree goes up the day after Thanksgiving, and because it's kind of depressing to take it down, we wait until New Year's Eve. That way, I'm not so much admitting that Christmas is over, as I am preparing for the new year.

This blocks finishes at 6" x 6" or 12" x 12"

This tree block is constructed in an easy "Stitch and Flip" style, traditionally used for Flying Geese units.  Each of the six rows will have one green strip, between two white strips.

Lay a white strip on the right end of the green strip, and draw a line from the upper left corner of the white strip to the lower right corner of the green strip. Sew on the line, trim away the corner 1/4" from the seam, and press open.

Repeat on the other end of the green strip, this time drawing your seam line from the upper right corner of the white strip to the lower left corner of the green strip.

You're going to repeat this process to make five rows. With each row, the green strip will get longer, and the white strips will get shorter.

Sew rows 1-6 together in order to complete your Christmas Tree block. Once your Countdown to Christmas quilt has been quilted, you can decorate your tree with buttons or other trimmings. Note: If you're making a baby quilt, forget the trimmings and just use a green fabric with small prints instead.

As I was typing this post, it occurred to me that this could be a fun block to use for a group project for a guild challenge. Have each guild member download the pattern an make the block as a small wallhanging, trimming the tree any way they like!  Have a special Show and Tell at your guild Christmas party.

Anne Wiens

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