I found myself collecting needle minders (I can not help it, they are just so cute!) and had been wanting to find a way to store and display them while they are not in use.  This sweet wall banner is what I came up with.  It is the perfect pattern to use an orphan block or your favorite quilt block, along with some scraps and/or a fat quarter or two. The finished size is 16 1/2″ x 18 1/2″.

I belong to an online quilt club called The Art of Home Club run by quilt designer, Jacquelynne Steves. We recently had a “Block Swap” for those who wished to participate. The center block was made by my swap partner, Lisa R. from Oregon, and measured a perfect 12 ½” x 12 ½” square. I embellished it a bit with some applique and embroidery (both of which are patterns from The Art of Home Club).  For the backing, I pulled a pretty floral fat quarter from my stash.

Putting this banner together was quick and easy – I was able to finish it and have it hanging in less than 10 hours.  If you’re interested in making one for yourself, you can find the free pattern here.  I did include a template for making the rounded edge, but you can use a dinner plate, a bowl, a lid, the end of an oval platter, etc., to change the shape. Just be mindful that if you want a longer bottom for the banner, you will need to adjust the bottom fabric measurement accordingly (don’t forget the seam allowance). Alternatively, you can just leave the bottom of the banner rectangular.

A note about bias binding, if you need a tutorial for making bias binding, I suggest doing an internet search for “continuous bias binding” to get the most binding from a single fat quarter.  I actually did not have a full FQ of the fabric I wanted to use for binding – I had a 15” square. But by using the continuous bias binding method, cutting the width at 2 ¼” wide, I was able to get 84” of binding out of that 15″ square, which is more than enough for this project.

You can add a hanging sleeve or tabs, if you like; or do like me, I like to put up a curtain rod under a shelf and use curtain clips to hang my quilts. That is on my “to do” list now.

Here are some of my needle minders on display. (Yes, I said “some.”  I have more.)

I just love how this banner turned out!