Block 1: 4 Patch

Starting in March (tomorrow), members of the Trash to Treasure group (link on the right side of my blog) in raverly.com will be participating in a quilt block of the month. The blocks are going to start out simple so that those new to quilting can develop their skills. These blocks can be made into a bag, table runner, small quilt, large quilt, etc. Personally I plan on making a full to queen size sampler quilt out of them. Everyone is welcome to join along. The March block is called a 4 patch.

Cut two 6 1/2" squares out of two different fabrics. This will give you 4 squares.

I am using an universal needle in my sewing machine. You want to use a quarter of an inch seam when piecing your quilt block. I have a special sewing foot (shown here) that is 1/4", that way I just keep the edge of my fabric even with the edge of the sewing foot to achieve the right seam allowance. You might have to purchase this foot for your sewing machine. You also want to use a straight stitch when sewing.

Place 2 of your squares (fabric A and fabric B) right sides together. Then sew them together. Do this twice.

I like sewing them in a kind of chain so that I use less thread and it goes quicker.

On the back of the joined fabrics, iron the flap towards the dark side. This is a standard rule of quilting, unless the directions say otherwise. This is so that you don't see the little bit of fabric through the other side.

Now place the 2 sewn pieces right sides together with the opposite colors facing one another. Where the middle seam is, butt the creases up against one another as shown. This is so that your block lines up just right in the center.

Pin your fabric together and sew.

Iron the flaps on the back towards the darker fabric. As you can see from the picture you will be sewing it in two different directions, thus adding a little twist to the center point.

Then even up your block so that it is straight on all 4 sides. Using a rotary cutter, a ruler, and a cutting mat makes this a lot easier to do. Your block should be 12 1/2" squared. If it is smaller, don't worry about it right now. See what size your other blocks turn out to be, and then cut all of them to the same size (or remake them).

If you have any questions or if you have anything to add to this, please leave a comment.