Cathedral Windows And Secret Garden Tutorial

Get your thimbles out team, we are going to do some rather pretty handsewing to make Cathedral Windows and a Secret Garden needlework case.  This is going to be a great deal of fun and your constant companion will be your iron... now if you are old like me you will remember the days when you took a travelling iron with you when you went on hols and if you have one of these, now is the time you finally get to use it, after all these years.


Firstly, I thought you would like to see what you could be making which is a full sized quilt.

But we are going to make just two blocks to make our needle case.


You will need: 

• Iron and ironing board
• Mat, cutting ruler and rotary cutter
• Main fabric and contrast
• A small piece of felt
• Needle and thread
• Tape Measure or ruler

Right then we are ready to start - now these are the important bits - you must be as precise as possible with your cutting out and folding - always put the guard on your rotary cutter and finally, measure twice and cut once.

1. Cut two 7 inch squares of your main fabric.

2. With the right side of your fabric facing down, fold 

over 1/4" of fabric all the way round and press it flat.

3. Fold the fabric in half lengthwise and press, now do 
the same widthwise, where these lines bisect is your 
centre point.

4. Fold each corner into the centre - we are now 

moving into origami territory.

5. Press the fabric flat, make sure each new corner 
is a sharp point.

6. Fold the new corner points into the middle.

7. Press all the corners into the middle.

8. Catch the opposing corner points with a 

slip stitch, do not got through to the layers 

beneath, just the points.

9. Your square should now look like this.  Now 
repeat the process for your second square.

10. Join together your two squares using a 

mattress stitch which will give you an invisible 

seam.

Knot your thread securely, then bring the thread 

to the right side of your fabric, placing the knot 

on the wrong side, nestled into the fold. Bring 

the thread across the opening and go down 

through the fold. Come up through the fold 

approximately 1/4 inch from the entry point and 

cross the opening. Keep your stitches rather 

loose and open until you finish sewing, then pull taut.

11. If you look at the pic above, you will see that 

the seam is invisible when you pull the thread taut.

12. Cut two contrasting squares, which fit within 

your two squares, these will form your secret 

garden.  Slip these squares under the joined 

triangles... now you know why I told you not to 

stitch all the way through.

13. Now cut a piece of fabric which fits the 
diamond shape between the two joined squares, 
this will become your Cathedral windows.

14. Roll the edges of the square over your cut out 

diamond and slip stitch the rolled edges, at each 

corner, catch the two sides together with a little 

bar stitch.

15. This is your classic cathedral window.  

Now repeat the rolling and slip stitch around 

each of the folded triangles, this will expose your 

other contrasting fabric which forms the petals 

for your secret garden flowers.

16. You now have your cathedral window and 

secret garden blocks.  In order to make it a little 

more interesting, I have added buttons... am 

thinking about adding loop to close the needle 
case.

17.  Now cut out a felt oblong to fit inside the 

needle case, I have used pinking shears to make 

it look more attractive.  Top stitch the felt in 

place with a running stitch being careful not to 

penetrate to the right side.

18. Your case is now ready for the needles.

17. And there you have it... you can now 

do two sorts of hand quilted blocks.

I also have a method for doing this by machine... would anyone like to see it?