Spell Out Summer with a Refreshing Popsicle Quilt in EQ8

One of my favorite parts of the Tech Know Quilters Masters program is seeing the creativity our members bring to each monthly design challenge.

For our June 2026 Challenge, members were invited to create a quilt that captured the carefree spirit of summer. Their designs celebrated everything we love about the season—sunshine, picnics, colorful flowers, butterflies, fireflies, pinwheels, popsicles, and all the little moments that make summer special.

To make the challenge even more fun, I offered bonus points to anyone who could incorporate the word "SUMMER" into their design process.

​The results were amazing!

TKQ Masters Summer Challenge Quilts

Here are four of the wonderful quilts created by Tech Know Quilters Masters members.

Dianna Carter

Terry McCaskey I have an old file called Summer Roses which was an early...pre Kari...attempt to draw improv piecing. I like many of the designs but never made the actual quilt. Here is one of them.

Julie Pedersen Here is my Summer fun quilt. I tried to create lightning bugs/fireflies using a butterfly block. I also created a jar with one that has been caught. I remember catching lightning bugs at dusk as a child. It was fun.

Curryanne Hostetler - I made this quilt from fabric intended to be individual table service. used daisy and lemon in addition for a square table runner this spring.

Every quilt has its own personality, proving once again that the same theme can inspire completely different—and equally beautiful—designs.

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My Challenge Quilt: Summer Refreshment

Of course, I couldn't resist joining the challenge myself.

Since nothing says summer quite like an ice-cold popsicle, I decided to design a simple popsicle block that would be easy to piece using either traditional rotary cutting or foundation piecing.

​The block finishes at 4" × 6" and was drafted in EasyDraw with the snaps set to:

• Horizontal: 16
• Vertical: 24
• Snapping Options: Snap to Grid

Drafting the Popsicle Block

Completed Popsicle Block

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​Adding the Word "SUMMER"

To spell out SUMMER, I used the Ribbon Alphabet found in the EQ8 Library.

Navigate to:

Foundation Pieced Library → Alphabet - Ribbon

​For each letter I needed, I selected the block and chose Add to Sketchbook.

Alphabet - Ribbon Library

Next, I combined each letter with the popsicle block using Serendipity > Merge Block.

Occasionally the merged block may appear in the wrong patch. When that happens, simply click the patch where you'd like the letter to appear. If the letter needs to change orientation, click the merged section to rotate it 90 degrees until it fits correctly.

initial Merge

Selecting the Correct Patch

Rotating the Letter

After repeating the process for each letter, I had six unique popsicle blocks—each colored in a different summer-inspired palette.

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Designing the Quilt

To assemble the quilt, I selected a Horizontal Layout using:

• 6 blocks across
• 1 block down
• Block size: 4" × 6"

​Keeping the blocks the same size as the originals allowed the word SUMMER to stretch across the quilt while each popsicle retained its proportions.
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Here is the completed quilt.

Summer Refreshment Quilts Designed in EQ8 by Kari Schell

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Fixing a Foundation Piecing Issue

While preparing the foundation patterns, I noticed something unusual.

The third section of the U block wasn't displaying correctly. Instead of a properly colored section, the Print Preview showed some very strange dotted lines.

Sections tab under Print Foundation Pattern

Original Print Preview of the U Block

Fortunately, this is an easy problem to fix.

Return to the Block Worktable and edit the merged block.

I discovered that the four boundary lines surrounding the inserted letter had not been split where they intersected the letter. Because of this, EQ8 couldn't correctly identify the foundation sections.

Using the Edit tool:

1. Select one of the surrounding lines.
2. Choose At Intersections to split the line.
3. Repeat for each of the four surrounding lines.

Splitting the Lines at Intersections

After splitting the lines, select Print Preview again. The foundation pattern should now display correctly with properly numbered sections.

Corrected Foundation Pattern for U Block

If you discover the same issue in any of the other merged blocks, simply repeat the process. Once corrected, you can print the foundations directly from the Block Worktable or replace the blocks in your quilt and print from the Quilt Worktable.

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Watch the Complete Tutorial

The video walks through the entire process—from drawing the popsicle block and merging the letters to assembling the quilt and fixing the foundation piecing issue.
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If you've never experimented with Serendipity > Merge Block, this is a fun project that demonstrates just how versatile this EQ8 feature can be.

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