Leftover Block Snack Bowl - Going Green!

 I'm excited about the project today! It fits all my criteria for a great project - it's easy, it's fast, it uses up leftover blocks or fabrics, it's useful, and it's environmentally responsible!


 This little snack bowl won't hold a serving of beans or mashed potatoes, but it's perfect for a sandwich, chips, veggies, or anything else that's fairly dry. It can be brushed off and reused or washed between usings. Keep those paper or plastic plates out of the landfill and make your children happy at the same time! You can make these little bowls out of blocks you have lying around and in any size you want. You can line them with holiday fabrics. You could even cut up those inexpensive flannel backed tablecloths to use on one side!!!

1. Do you remember this pumpkin snowball tutorial? You may see the little pumpkin peeking out from under that food above. I used this little block for this project because I didn't have time to make more blocks for a quilt (at least before pumpkin season!). Use any block you want (if it doesn't have about a 2" border, add one for the sides of your bowl.)  Layer it with batting and a backing and quilt it as the first step.Do not quilt in the border!  Don't bind it yet. (Sorry there's no picture of this step, but it's pretty straightforward. Cut a square of batting and a square of backing just a little larger than the square you have chosen to make into a bowl. Quilt it enough to hold it all together.)

2. Pinch each corner together and line up the two adjoining sides. Then sew from straight above where the slant ends as shown. This will form the straight sides of your bowl. Do not sew the backing in this.

3. Sew all four corners in this way.

4. Now do the same thing with each corner of the backing. Be sure you put RIGHT sides together to do this.

5. Trim the excess fabric from all corners on the bowl and the backing.

6. Turn up the backing.

7. Cut a strip of binding fabric that is 2" wide. (Length will depend on the size block you use. I just cut across one end of a length of fabric (selvage to selvage) and that was more than enough for my bowl.

8. Place raw edges of binding against raw edges of the top of the bowl and sew all the way around the bowl using a 1/4" seam. Do not miter the corners. 

9. Turn the binding over the edge and hand sew it down. I gave mine a nice press with an iron.

 That's it! This could be folded and placed in a lunch bag. Wouldn't it be fun on a picnic? Or just place it on the table with the appropriate lunch or snack. Any block that comes out square would work. In fact, it would also work with rectangular blocks. You would just have a rectangular bowl (with a more oval top) when you finish!
I might do this the next time I win blocks at my quilt guild!
You can see other pumpkin  block ideas by going to FavQuilts, 12 Free Pumpkin Patterns. 

 Drought update:  Thank you for all the prayers going up for those of us here in Texas suffering from drought and resulting wildfires. Look what we got this weekend! (You can see all the brown grass in the background!)