Following on from last year’s popular ‘Sew Along’ we’re back with a new fun, FREE Quilt Sew Along.
Beginning today, we’ll release a FREE block pattern with detailed instructions every three weeks during the year. Nothing too hard, so if you are relatively new to quilting or would like to hone your skills then this is a fun way to build a quilt during our busy lives.
The finished quilt will measure approx. 62″ square, the perfect size for a fabulous throw. It will have a large central block with a dozen 12” sampler blocks around it, thirteen blocks in total with inner and outer borders.
In this mystery Quilt Sew Along, you’ll be making one block every three weeks and finishing instructions will be added after all the blocks have been made for the big reveal.
During our last Quilt Sew Along we had requests for fabric bundles for the blocks, so to make things simple we are offering fabric bundles this time. You can choose and use your own fabrics of course, but if you like the ones we have chosen it will make things easier. There should be enough in the kit to comfortably make each block. Bundles will be available with each block as they come out. These bundles are limited, so get them while stocks last.
So grab your rotary cutters, dust off your sewing machines and come along for the ride.
FOLDED CORNERS QUILT BLOCK
Finished Size 12″ (Unfinished 12-1/2″)
Our first block is called the Folded Corners quilt block and we are going to make it with ‘Half-Square-Triangles’ and ‘Flying Geese’ units. Both these units are commonly used in quilt making and just like many types of units can be made in more than one way. I’m going to show you how I made my Folded Corners block using techniques that will help you achieve an accurate finished block.
CUTTING
You can find our Folded Corners Fabric Bundle – HERE.
This block works well with fabric colours that have a strong light and dark contrast. Using high contrast fabrics will give the block corners a folded look, creating the illusion of a 3D shape.
A. Two 5-1/4″ x 5-1/4″ squares (white)
B. Two 5-1/4″ x 5-1/4″ squares (light blue)
C. Four 2-3/4″ x 4-3/4″ rectangles (white)
D. Eight 2-3/4″ x 2-3/4″ squares (dark blue)
E. Four 2-1/2″ x 4-1/2″ rectangles (pink)
F. One 4-1/2″ x 4-1/2″ square (dark blue)
Now is the time to choose a specific colour for the background (A & C on this block). Make sure you have plenty of background fabric as you will need it to visually tie your quilt together.
BLOCK ASSEMBLY:
- All seams are 1/4″ and I use a stitch length of 1.8.
- As a rule, you would press your fabric seams towards the dark side (darker fabric) but not always. I finger press my seams before pressing with an iron. This allows me to change the seams’ direction if needed without stretching my fabrics.
- In bulky areas press your seams open as this will help reduce thickness.
We are going to begin by making four 4-1/2″ Half-Square-Triangles (HST). I make my HST a little larger than they need to be and then trim them to the perfect size. I will be adding 3/4″ to the block size so to make a 4-1/2″ block (unfinished) I’ll cut my square to 5-1/4″. Please note that a 4-1/2″ HST will give you a 4″ finished square when sewn into your block
Draw a diagonal line on the wrong side of your 5-1/4″ x 5-1/4″ fabric square A.
Then take one of your fabric B squares and place it right sides together (RST) with fabric A and sew 1/4″ away from each side of the diagonal line.
Now cut in half along your diagonal line to make two HST, open and finger press your seams towards the light side (fabric A).
Trim your HST by placing your ruler’s 45° diagonal line along your seam line, then square your block up to 4-1/2″ and trim away the excess fabric. Using this method will give you a truly accurate 4-1/2″ block.
Repeat this method with your remaining A and B 5-1/4″ squares to make a total of four HST units.
We are now going to make flying geese units using one of the most popular methods, known as ‘stitch and flip’. Even using this method you can end up with an inaccurate block if your sewing isn’t perfect. To combat this, I’m going to make mine a little oversized by adding 1/4″ to all my block measurements, so a 2-1/2″ x 4-1/2″ fabric rectangle will be cut to 2-3/4″ x 4-3/4″. When made this will be trimmed to the perfect size. It does waste a little fabric it’s true, but knowing that my finished block will be the perfect size a little fabric loss is well worth it.
Draw a diagonal line on the wrong side of two of your fabric D squares.
Then place one of them RST on top of one of your fabric C rectangles lining up the left-hand top and side. Stitch on the line.
Next trim away the excess corner fabric leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance. Then finger press the seam to the dark side (fabric D), then press with your iron to fix.
Repeat for the right-hand corner by placing the other fabric D square RST on top of fabric C, lining up the right-hand top and side. Stitch on the line. Trim away the excess corner fabric leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance.
Now finger press your seam to the dark side, then fix with your iron.
Now it’s time to trim your Flying Geese unit to the correct size 2-1/2″ x 4-1/2″. If you have never done this before here are a few tips. Line up your ruler so that it sits 1/4″ away from your triangle point making sure your ruler is aligned as straight as possible. If you look at the picture you can see that I have used the 45° diagonal lines on my ruler to line up my block before trimming away the excess fabric. If your ruler doesn’t have 45° diagonal lines make sure your ruler is as straight as possible, use the ruler’s markings to help you. When happy trim.
Then trim away all the excess fabric so your flying geese unit measures 2-1/2″ x 4-1/2″.
Now make three more.
Now take one of your fabric E rectangles and place RST on top of your Flying geese unit.
Turn it over so the flying geese unit is on top and sew together, being careful to intersect with your sewn point (see middle image).
Then open and finger press your seam towards fabric E and fix with an iron.
Now lay out all your units to form the Folded Corner Block. Make sure that everything is in the right place.
Keeping your fabrics in order, sew them together one row at a time taking care to match your points and nest your seams as you go. Finger press your seams in the direction of the arrows before fixing with an iron.
Finally sew your rows together pressing your seams away from the centre. Don’t forget to match your points and nest your seams together as you go.
If you have sewn your block together accurately it should measure 12-1/2″ square but if you need to trim it make sure you leave 1/4″ seam allowance on all your points.
Block one, done! Now you’re on your way…