I've always been fascinated by miniatures. When I was a child in Albany, California there was an amazing toy store called Ms. McPhizz that sold, among other things, lots of dollhouse furniture. One entire wall of the store was taken up by small cubbies, each set up like a tiny little room. One was a bedroom with itsy bitsy bunk beds and a bureau with real working drawers. Another a kitchen full of diminutive pies and microscopic cloth napkins. Each of these Lilliputian rooms was inhabited by a family of small stuffed mice and I spent hours imagining I was one of them.

I've carried this fascination with all things small with me into my adult life but for some reason I'd never thought of making a miniature quilt. I think this might be because I like the things I sew to be practical.

Recently we decided that we wanted to make pincushions for The Purl Bee. Joelle, Page, Whitney and I all brainstormed on how to make them but nothing was working. Then one day as I was cutting some fabric to try again I realized I could make a miniature quilt using tiny little pieces. I was amazed at how quickly they came together and how satisfying they were to make. I could make a whole "quilt" in about an hour! The small size of the pieces was so freeing. If I messed up it was really no big deal to start over again. Best of all when they were done they were both beautiful and totally useful.

I used one of our exclusive Spectrum Fat Quarter Bundles in a sunny array of orange, gold, and yellow which made the project even speedier since I didn't have to pick out the fabrics individually. I backed and trimmed them with some lovely natural colored Essex, a sturdy linen cotton blend from Robert Kaufman. As a very practical addition I stuffed them with a fine grade steel wool wrapped in cotton to keep the pins and needles they hold very sharp.

I think these little pincushions are the perfect gift for any quilter friends because they will recognize the log cabin, nine patch and stacked coins patterns.  If you'd like to make your own set please visit my Miniature Patchwork Pincushions Project Journal. Happy (miniature) sewing!-- Molly