Main Street of America

Description

Some quilts start with a block. This one started with a dream.

Route 66 has been on Laureen’s bucket list for years — the whole thing, Chicago to California, diner by diner, landmark by landmark. She’s a fan of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives, and more than a few of those iconic stops sit right along the Mother Road. Work travel got her to a handful of them over the years. The rest are still waiting.

In the meantime, there’s this quilt.

When Northcott introduced their Historic Route 66 collection — complete with mini panels capturing the roadside Americana of the highway — Laureen knew exactly what to do with the blocks she’d been collecting for years. Each one is named for a stop along the way: Chicago Pavement kicks off the journey in Illinois, and the road carries you through the Illinois Star, St. Louis Star, Missouri Puzzle, Ozark Mountains, Kansas Star, Road to Oklahoma, Texas, New Mexico, Santa Fe Trail, Arizona, and finally Road to California. Twelve blocks, twelve months, one unforgettable road trip — stitched in red, white, navy, and the warm French Vanilla of a sun-bleached highway.

The fussy-cut panel blocks are framed in the collection’s Word Stripe fabric and scattered throughout the quilt center, grounding the design in the nostalgia of the era. Two colorways — Version 1 in Merlot, Version 2 in Motorcycle Toss — let shops choose their own adventure. Foundation paper piecing is used for two blocks, making this a satisfying skill-builder for confident intermediate quilters.

At 59″ × 71″, it’s a generous throw — road-trip sized, as it should be.

Finished Size: 59” x 71”

Skill Level: Intermediate

Introduction: Take your own journey down Route 66 with these traditional blocks. Each one represents a stop along the way!

Fabric Requirements for Northcott’s Historic Route 66 Collection:     

* Binding included

Notions needed: Foundation Paper.