Traditional Patchwork Quilt Pattern and Tutorial (Part 2)

Here is the first block from a series of 12. The finished size when the block is sewn into the quilt top is 12 inches square. Enjoy!

You will need:

One dark 4 1/2″ square

Four white 4 1/2″ squares

Eight dark 2 1/2″ squares

Eight light 2 1/2″ squares

Here are my patches.

First sew together the middle row of squares.

Press the seam towards the dark fabric. It is best to press each seam as you go. Don’t use steam as you will probably get shiny ridges on the fabric or maybe even shrink the patches. Don’t wiggle the iron, just press.

You should now have this.

Now make the four-patch blocks. Use the 2 1/2″ squares for these.

Chain sew eight pairs of light and dark squares together. Chain sewing is when the next pieces to be sewn together are fed through the machine immediately after the previous ones. This saves a lot of time and thread. When all eight pairs have been stitched, just snip them apart and press the seams towards the dark fabric.

You should have eight of these.

Now take two of these pieces and place opposite colours on top of each other.

Chain sew together. Make sure the middle seams butt up against each other and lie in opposite directions. I find I get better matching when the seam on the top piece is lying towards me. This isn’t always possible.

Press the seams and you should have four of these.

Lay them on the table taking care to place the colours correctly.

Sew the top and bottom rows of three.

Finally, sew the three rows together. Remember to press seams as you go and give a final press of the entire block when completed. If the block isn’t quite perfectly square at the stage, don’t panic….it can be squared up later when all of the other blocks are finished.

Look out for Part 3 showing the construction of the next block. Happy stitching.

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Posted by Oh Sew Tempting on August 30, 2012

http://ohsewtempting.wordpress.com/2012/08/30/traditional-patchwork-quilt-pattern-and-tutorial-part-2/