Zig Zag Path Block Tutorial

I select quilt blocks and color palettes for the charity quilts that the Knoxville Modern Quilt Guild makes as a group, and I chose this traditional Zig Zag Path block for our next group quilt. I found a tutorial online already, but it was short on details and didn't give much room for error in the HSTs, so I've created a new tutorial here. The block is 12.5 inches unfinished.

Cutting List

Background (gray in photo)

• Three 5-x-5" squares

Color A (dark in photo)

• Two 5-x-5" squares
• One 4.5" square (set this aside until the final assembly)

Color B (light in photo)

• Three 5-x-5" squares

Piecing

1. Draw a diagonal line from one corner to the other on the 3 background squares and 1 Color A square. 
2. Pair up the squares as follows:
• two gray + two Color B
• one gray + one Color A
• one Color A + one Color B
3. Sew 1/4" away from both sides of the diagonal line on each block pair.
4. Cut on the line and press toward the darker fabric. You should have 8 half-square triangles.
5. Trim each HST to 4.5-x-4.5".
6. Arrange the HSTs and the remaining Color A square according to the photo above.
7. Assemble blocks into rows, pressing the seams in opposite directions on each row so that they will nest together.
8. Sew the rows together, and press seams open.
9. The block should be 12.5-x-12.5".

Multiple blocks arranged together create a spiraling effect.

Picket Fence Block Tutorial

I select quilt blocks and color palettes for the charity quilts that the Knoxville Modern Quilt Guild makes as a group, and I recently found a tutorial for this Picket Fence block. Unfortunately, when I tested the instructions, I found some errors, so rather than just share a link, I'm creating a new tutorial here.

Cutting List

White fabric

• Two 3 1/2" x 6 1/2" strips
• Two 3 1/2" x 3 1/2" squares
• Two 6 7/8" x 6 7/8" squares

Color A

• One 6 7/8" x 6 7/8" square
• One 3 7/8" x 3 7/8" square

Color B

• One 6 7/8" x 6 7/8" square
• One 3 7/8" x 3 7/8" square

Piecing (use a scant 1/4" seam allowance throughout)

1. Draw a diagonal line on one of the colored 3 7/8" squares. Put it with the other small colored square, and sew 1/4" away from each side of the line. Cut on the line, and press to the darker side. You should have two 2-color half-square triangles. Square them up to 3 1/2".
2. Draw a diagonal line on each of the colored 6 7/8" squares. Put each one with a 6 7/8" white square, and sew 1/4" away from the each side of the line. Cut on the line, and press to the colored side. Square them up to 6 1/2". You should have four white/color half-square triangles. You will only use one of each in the final block.
3. Arrange your block components to make sure the color placement is correct. Take care that the two small HSTs are positioned the same way, with the same color in the upper right.

Block Assembly

1. Sew a small white square to a small HST, and press toward the white. Sew the white rectangle to the side of that unit, and press toward the rectangle. This is the small HST quadrant.
2. Sew the small HST quadrant to the large HST next to it. Press toward the large HST.
3. Sew the two halves of the block together. Press the seam open.
4. The block should measure 12 1/2" x 12 1/2".

Quarter Log Cabin Block Tutorial

The block design I selected for the Knoxville Modern Quilt Guild's next charity quilt is a quarter log cabin -- big and bold and easy to sew. I created the measurements in EQ8 but I'm still kind of new to the software and figuring things out, so the block comes out at around 13" unfinished instead of the 12.5" I was going for. But that's okay! When a lot of people sew the same block, size variations are inevitable, so we'll trim them all to size when it comes time to sew them into a top.

Our color palette is based on this fabric chosen as the backing:

To simplify, that's solid fabrics only in white, gray, aqua, peach and red.
To avoid striped blocks, we're looking for at least 3 colors per block.

Here's the diagram and cutting information (based on five colors but easily adapted to just three or four):

Quarter Log Cabin Block

Approx. 13” unfinished - DO NOT TRIM

Color palette: White, Gray, Aqua, Peach, Red

Use 3-5 colors

PIECE	COLOR	DIMENSIONS
A	One	3 x 13
B	One	3 x 10.5
B	Two	3 x 10.5
C	Two	3 x 8
C	Three	3 x 8
D	Three	3 x 5.5
D	Four	3 x 5.5
E	Four	3 x 3
E	Five	3 x 3

When cutting, I found it easiest to start with the smallest pieces, E, and work my way up, and I oriented the block like the diagram above to make sure I cut all the right colors for the right spots.

Assembly is simple. Start with the small E squares, and build the block one strip at a time. Press seams open as you go.

These blocks are so fast to make that I ended up with four of them. They offer a few different layout options that are fun to play with, too. I look forward to seeing all the blocks from guild members and how they all come together.

Wonky Pound Sign/Hashtag Block

Whether you call it a pound sign, hashtag, nine-patch, tic-tac-toe or something else, this grid block is an easy one to make. The following instructions are for members of the Knoxville Modern Quilt Guild, as this block is being collected for our next charity quilt, but anyone is free to make it!

KMQG:
Please use this color palette -- solid fabrics and white. You can make the strips white, as I've done here, or reverse the color placement so that the background is white and the strips are one color.

Blocks are due by the meeting on February 15, 2020. Email modknoxville@gmail.com with questions!

The unfinished block should be 13.5 to 14 inches. Do not trim the block to size. Just turn it in as it is, and the volunteer who pieces the top can trim all blocks to a consistent size.

STEPS:

1. Start with a square at least 12.5" and four strips 1.5 x 15."

2. Use a ruler to cut the square into thirds. The cuts can be slightly slanted, but if you're more comfortable with precise, straight lines, feel free to do that instead. (Tip: I tried this block without using a ruler, and it made the strips harder to piece. So grab that ruler and rotary cutter.)

3. Insert two strips into the cuts, and piece the square back together. Press the seams open. With wonky lines, it's a little tricky to get the outside edges of the square aligned again, so take care and do your best. Remember that the block will be oversized, so it's okay if the edges are a little bit off (like mine are!).

4. Use a ruler to cut the square into thirds again, perpendicular to the first two strips. (Again, if you're more comfortable with precise lines, you don't have to make them wonky.)

5. Insert the remaining two strips into the two cuts. Pin and sew them to two sections. Press the seams open.

6. Now you need to sew the three sections back together. If your strips are precise, line up the strip seams on both sections, pin and sew. Press the seams open.

If your strips are wonky, this is the trickiest part of the block because the seams don't line up exactly across the break. Lay the two sections together and eyeball the alignment of the vertical strip so that it doesn't appear to shift to the right or left as it's intersected by the horizontal strip.
Then carefully flip them right sides together (I flip the lower section up so that it's on top). Try to do this flip without shifting the piece to the right or left. Pin to avoid shifting while sewing.

In the photo below, you can see that the vertical seams look pretty well-aligned on either side of the horizontal strip. Check your piece to see if they look aligned before you start sewing. You can also experiment with putting a pin in one seam and trying to line it up with the other seam. Or if you have a trick for getting this part right, let me know!

Sew two sections together, and press the seam open. Then repeat the alignment with the third section. Flip, pin, sew and press the seam open.

7. And there you go! Your block is ready to be trimmed to size (or not, if this is for the KMQG charity quilt).

4-Patch Butterfly Block Tutorial

The Knoxville Modern Quilt Guild is ready to make another quilt for a graduate of local nonprofit The Restoration House of East Tennessee, and we've decided to collect these 4-patch butterfly blocks in cool solids from our members. Consistency is one of the challenges of charity block collections, so to help ensure that everyone's blocks fit together well, I've put together a simple tutorial.

4-Patch Butterfly Block
Unfinished size: 12.5" inch using scant 1/4" seam allowance
Finished size: 12"

Step 1: Select 4 solid fabrics in cool colors (blue, green, purple) and cut four 3.5" squares from each color. Cut four 2.5" white squares and then cut each one on the diagonal, resulting in 8 white triangles. (You can also use larger triangles to make piecing a little easier.)

Step 2: Place the white triangles on the corners of two diagonal colored squares as shown. Make sure that when you sew a 1/4" seam from the long edge of the white triangle and then flip it down to cover the corner, the white extends beyond the colored corner. Sew the white triangles in place and press seams open. The triangles do not need to match each other - wonky butterflies are fine!

Step 3: Flip the triangles down and press. Then trim to 3.5" square.

Step 4: Repeat Steps 2 and 3 with each of the other colors.

Step 5: Make sure that all of the butterflies are going in the same direction. Sew the squares of each color into pairs, and press seams open. Then sew the two halves of the blocks together, press open, and sew the four blocks together to finish the block.

4-Patch Hourglass Block Tutorial

The Knoxville Modern Quilt Guild, of which I am a member and secretary, supports a local nonprofit, The Restoration House of East Tennessee, year-round by providing quilts to the women and their children who "graduate" from their program to live on their own. The guild tries to always have one completed quilt ready and one in the works. It's time to start working on the next quilt, and we've chosen a 4-patch hourglass block -- there are four blocks pictured above.

I made one block to test out the technique and fabric choices, and then I decided to write up a tutorial for our members -- and post it here for everyone. After the first block, I made a second one just because. Then I needed to make a third block in order to take photos for the tutorial. And then I thought four blocks would make a better photo here, so basically things got a little out of control. But now we have four blocks for our charity quilt!

4-Patch Hourglass Block
Unfinished size: 12.5" using a scant 1/4" seam allowance
Finished size: 12"

Step 1: Select 4 fabrics and cut one 7.5" square from each. I chose to coordinate the fabrics in pairs but didn't pay much attention to how the pairs coordinate with each other, as the finished quilt will feature many different fabrics.

Step 2: Place the squares right sides together in pairs, pin, and draw a line from one corner to the other.

Step 3: Sew 1/4" away from both sides of the line.

Step 4: Using a ruler and rotary cutter, slice the block in half on the line, then again along the other diagonal. If you're able to make the second cut without moving the block, your pieces will be more accurate. Below I've separated them slightly to show the cuts that I made.

Step 5: Open each of the four sections and press the seams to one side. I pressed all seams toward the print fabrics so that the seams would nest (fit together more precisely) when I sewed them into hourglass blocks. Below you can see how the four sections will come together to form two hourglass blocks.

Step 6: Sew the triangle sections together to create two hourglass blocks. Press the seam open, and then trim the block to 6.5" square. (This darn photo won't flip, but you get the idea.)

Step 7: Arrange your four blocks however you like, and sew the top two together and the bottom two together. Then sew the top row and the bottom row together for a completed block.

 And there you have it -- a 4-patch hourglass block!