Fellow Quilters,
The past 2 months have been a whirlwind of activity for me. September started with 2 back-to-back Alaskan cruises with the Watergirl Quilt Co team (sew much fun!),
The Watergirl crew and I with Jan of Changing Tides in Juneau AK
followed immediately with a stint in the Northcott booth at the Missouri Star Birthday Bash – always a good time!
Showing our Sock Hop spirit at Missouri Star Birthday Bash
Then I was called into service to help make some quilts for Northcott’s booth at Quilt Market, the Fall trade show in Houston TX (including this FIFA2026 one)
One of my FIFA 2026 quilts
, all while designing 5 new patterns, writing instructions for several others (my favorite is
PC312Cat-tails, followed closely by PC314 Shades of Autumn) and doing 5 workshops/lectures for local guilds.
In the midst
of all that, my son asked me to make a quilt for his upcoming wedding – 4 weeks before the wedding!!! Need I mention that he’s been engaged for 2 years?!?
What with all the wedding plans these past few weeks, when the call for the November Quilt Block Mania came out, I was in full wedding mode. The theme this month is Market/shopping, so my block depicts – you guessed it – a bridal shop. 
It’s mostly pieced, with a bit of fusible applique for the bride and the wedding bells. In fact, Wedding Bells is the name of my block. You can download the pattern here.
Fourteen other designers also rose to the challenge and designed blocks for this theme – you can find the links to their blocks below:
Money Themed Quilt Block by Carolina Moore
Pet Shop by Patchwork Breeze
Quilt Shop by Crafty Staci
Santa’s Toy Shop by Inquiring Quilter
Market Bag by Scrapdash
Concession Stand by QuiltFabrication
Wedding Bells by Patti’s Patchwork
Lucky Clover Quilt Block by Brown Bird Designs
GIft Card by Tourmaline & Thyme Quilts
Flower Shop by Cristy Fincher
Pinching Pennies by Elizabeth DeCroos
Gift Bag by Oh Kaye Quilting
Ice Cream Cart by Appliques Quilts and More
Market Stall selling Gifts by Victoria Peat
Bag Lady Market Bag by Around the Bobbin
So what quilt did my son and his darling sweetheart choose? My PC145 Salt & Pepper fat-quarter pattern in the lap-size (thank goodness!), to be used as a guest book at their wedding.
Salt & Pepper quilt for the newlyweds
The guests were asked to sign the back of the quilt, so a light-colored backing was required.
Guests signed the back of the quilt
While their choice of quilt was likely unintentional, it was so appropriate – the block in this quilt has 2 opposites that come together, like 2 people in a marriage. The wedding was just a few days ago, so I’m still coming down from the buzz.
My son and his beautiful bride
I have an extra copy of PC145 Salt & Pepper to give away. This fat ¼ friendly pattern includes 4 sizes from runner to queen-size. For a chance to win a copy, please leave a comment below offering up your best advice for my newlyweds. What’s the best advice you’ve received? Or what advice do you wish you’d received? All comments entered by November 12 will go into the draw. Good luck!
Cheers,
Patti
pattispatchwork-blog.com 
Never go to bed anger at each other!
love how you used the back of the quilt for the signatures rather than on blocks for the front. Well done
congratulations on the marriage of your son to his beautiful bride. Your quilt will become a cherished keepsake.
my advice is to make date night a priority. When life gets busy it’s easy to get caught up in things that keep you from spending quality time together 💕
My eldest daughter just got married 8 days ago and my youngest is getting married in February. So many things going on!!!
Something I just shared with my daughter. When you have a disagreement don’t fight against your spouse fight for your marriage. That helps to focus on what outcome is best for them.
I love the signing the back of the quilt as a guest book. What a great idea!
You will always have a joint bank account to pay household bills but also each may have their own bank account so when you spend funds from your account it is of your choice!. As my gran-mother said to me always have your own account, you never know when you will need it most!
Remember to always “date”. Do this even when you start a family. If you don’t “date” your spouse things can get old very quickly. This can be anything from dinner, movie, walk in the park, a nice drive, or anything for just you two. Going food shopping or doing something for the kids is not a date. This has to be something that is just for you two to do together to reconnect on that level you were before you were married.
thank you. this looks so fun. oh but congrats are in order. what a lovely quilt for them.
I have been married for 41 years. And we have found that the best advice for a married couple is to always communicate. when we stopped communicating, we would assume and get into arguments. So always communicate, even if it seems small and not worth it. Communication is the key to being happy with yourself and your spouse
The best advice we received when we got married nearly 60 years ago was “ never go to bed angry” this has severed us well in our journey through life and continue on . We hope the happy couple will have many happy years together on their journey . There will be difficult times but keep this advice in mind . It will serve you well
Ann Power❤️
Never go to bed mad at each other, sort it out first.
Never go to bed angry at each other.
Wedding advice. When your spouse speaks out in anger just listen, bite your tongue and think about some way you could encourage them or build them up using words to express something you really appreciate about them.
This action will soften the anger and distract from what was upsetting them.
Lovely quilt, advice- “Care for each other like it’s the most precious thing in life.”