Merchantable Goods, May 22, 1863

It has dawned on me that Nancy Elly Moore's diary entry was written 148 years ago.  This week's block is called 'Merchantable Goods'.  Nancy Elly Moore writes about needing rain and about two rebel women who went to the McGoodwin store to purchase dresses. 

I find it interesting that we will be observing the 150th anniversary of the Civil War this year and many stories have been forgotten.  It is easy to google 'Civil War Diary" and not only will you find info on Rosemary's books, but when you dig around, you will find actual diary entries.  Both by soldiers and family members... they are very interesting to read and I feel bring the human condition during the Civil War to life.

So let's get started on the next block, "Merchantable Goods"...

I selected colors similar to what is presented in the Civil War Diary book, although my fabrics are a bit on the lighter side.  Shown here also is the foundation paper that I printed up with the companion CD.  I have decided instead of using the foundation paper, I would construct the block using a rotary cut, sewing method.

Cut 6  2 1/4" squares from the pink fabric and 6  2 1/4" squares from the green fabric.
Then cut 1   3 1/2" square out of the cream fabric and 1    3 1/2" square from the green fabric.
Pair 1 pink 2 1/4" squares with 1 green 2 1/4" square, right sides together, you will have 6 sets.
Pair the cream and green 3 1/2" square together, right sides together. You will have 1 pair.

I love this handy dandy tool.  I use it to draw my 1/4" seam lines. 

It's hard to see in this picture since I used a pencil, but I have drawn my seam lines to follow to form my triangle pieces for this block.  On the 3 1/2" pair, draw a single line corner to corner, you will sew on this, trim it up, iron.  Voila, the center triangle piece. 

On the 2 1/4" square pairs, draw a line corner to corner, sew a scant 1/4" seam on each side of the line, cut apart, iron.  You will have 12 triangle squares to go around your center square.  (In the picture I used my handy dandy tool to draw my seam lines on each side of the line that runs corner to corner.)

Sewing my seam on my 3 1/2" square....

Sewing my seams on the 2 1/4" squares...

Here my 6 squares are cut into two after sewing.  The sections are all ready to be ironed.

The sections are ready to be sewn together to form the block...

Sewing....

sewing the sections.... remember scant 1/4" seams....

"Merchantable Goods"

Remember to post your progress on the Civil War Diary Quilt Group on Flickr


Next Saturday, May 28th, I will be working on the next block titled 'Bad Box'  from the Civil War Dairy Quilt Book by Rosemary Youngs.  
Hope that you're able to join me in my journey. Feel free to email me any time if you have questions or comments.

Happy quilting and perfect stitches to you!