Santa in a Snowglobe

Before you begin:

• All seam allowances are 1/4" unless otherwise stated.
• Press all seams after sewing.

Let's get started!

1. Print out this pattern. Make sure you choose "Print Actual Size" in your Print Dialog box so that the pattern doesn't shrink. There are four sections - tape them together to make one block. The base of the snow globe is sewn separately from the main section, so cut them apart with at least 1/2" of seam allowance left. *You can print on any kind of paper, but my favorite is Carol Doak's Newsprint Foundation Paper.
2. Cut the fabrics. Sam finds that making generous pre-cuts for paper-piecing minimizes fabric waste and makes for faster and easier construction. *You can either cut and label each piece or cut it and stack with the section it belongs to. Labeling helps you get the right pieces to the right place.
3. Set up your machine for paper piecing. Use a Straight Stitch A or Satin Stitch Foot F, needle set to center and a stitch length of 1.8. Your stitches should be just big enough to wiggle a seam ripper into, but no bigger. This also makes the paper tear off easily too.
4. Paper piece each section, trimming threads and excess from the seams as you go. Be sure to extend your seams into the seam allowance for strong construction. Press each section once finished.
5. Trim each section, leaving a 1/4" seam all the way around the solid outline (there are words along the edges to remind you).
6. Sew the top and bottom together to complete the block. Tear the paper from only the seam and press the seam open.
7. Peel the paper from the entire block and press well. If the block feels a bit wiggly, lightly starch it.
8. Layer the block, batting and backing, and pin baste or lightly spray baste them together. 
9. Quilt as desired! Sam used the walking foot to do simple straight line work on the snow globe base and to outline all of the parts of the Santa. She switched to free motion quilting for the wavy lines of the bear and snow and a moderate stipple for the background. She left the gray area of the globe un-quilted so as not to interfere with the embellishments.
10. Once the quilting is done, trim the excess batting and backing to square it to 15 1/2" x 15 1/2"
11. Cut enough 2 1/2" strips of red fabric to make the binding (you'll need about 65"). Add the binding and finish it in your favorite technique. (Sam machines down the front and hand-finish the back.)
12. Embellish as desired

• Sam used about 100 glue-on crystals to create a sparkly snow throughout the globe and across the Santa.
• Sam did simple French knots with embroidery floss for the eye (six strands) and nose (two strands). She used a little bit of blush powder on the end of the cotton swab for rosy cheeks.