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| Completed blocks |
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| All caught up! |
My quilt group in Wales is doing a block of the month. The leader this year is Brenda of
Pie Plate Patterns. She and her daughter, Bonnie, have a lot of cute patterns for table runners, baby quilts and a couple books on using layer cakes. They also put on a fun retreat in the Spring. Brenda has designed this block of the month. It has been fun so far, different sizes of blocks, and making more than one of each, sometimes 2 and sometimes three. I am all caught up, ready for this month's pattern!
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| Leftover triangles |
I love the bonus triangles from making square in a squares and flying geese. I use them as leaders when chain sewing. It is amazing how many get sewn together without even trying! I then will use the HST units to make mini quilts.
I love the method of making half square triangles by adding an inch to the finished size, drawing a line down the center, sewing 1/4 inch on either side, cutting along the line and squaring up the 2 HST units. I always get a perfect unit. Some time in the last few months someone on one of my online quilting lists went off on a rant about quilters who use this method. She said something like "just do it right in the first place and you don't have to waste fabric and time to square up the units". Ouch. In quilting math there is the magic 7/8th of an inch. Add it to your finished size and cut your triangles to sew HST. Well, guess what? That measurement is rounded to the nearest eighth of an inch. So if you cut and sew exactly right, your HST is not quite right. There are so many different ways to achieve the end result. Using the method that works best for you is the right way to do it. If I take a class where a specific technique is being taught, I will try it out in class. But if it doesn't work for me, I will use the method that does. I would be interested to hearing what some of your favorite methods are and why.
I prefer to make my half square triangles the way you describe. For a while I used a ruler that squares up before pressing the square open but I found that my pressing was distorting the shape, so now I press open then use a Deb Tucker ruler to square up.
ReplyDeleteI am using a different Deb Tucker ruler to make square in a square blocks. For this project I am using "bonus" triangles. I am starting to dread bonus triangles and find ways of doing a project so that I don't get them. The reason I dread them is that friends give me theirs, so far I have had at least a dozen people give me bonus triangles.
I make my flying geese using 5 squares and another Deb Tucker ruler! I compared making 20 geese using this technique and 20 geese by cutting out triangles. The time difference was minimal about 30 minutes for the first and 25 for the second. The first set were far more accurate. I suppose with practice accuracy would improve.
Years ago I took a tailoring class, the instructor told us to do all but the lapel (which was what she was the crux of the Japanese tailoring technique she was teaching) in the way we liked best. Like you I try out what is taught and then choose what is most comfortable to me.
Helen