Hive 6 February Tutorial: Easy Improv Squares

Hello Stash Bee friends! I'm so happy to be joining you again for this great group project. I have been in Stash Bee since the beginning, and I think I have only missed one year. I keep telling myself I should gather all my Stash Bee quilt for a group photo, but some of them are still only quilt tops, and one has moved on as a gift to a kindergartener. 

I have home preschool and a few years ago, I started gifting a quilt to my kids graduating to kindergarten. In fact, that Stash Bee quilt was the one that started that tradition for me. The kiddo who has that quilt is now 9 years old. 

Since this is an Instagram hive, I have designed this tutorial to be Instagram friendly. As such, the instructions are mostly in the photos, so very little additional explanation is needed. This block is FAST so I hope you have a fun time whipping a few of these out. 

Fabric selection: You will use solids for this block. Please choose BRIGHT, SATURATED colors when possible, and stay away from selections with obvious muted, dusty or brown undertones. 

You need one light solid and one dark solid of the same color. 

1. Cut a 10-inch square from each of your two fabrics. 

2. Stack your two fabrics so they line up exactly. Using a rotary cutter and ruler, make 3 cuts across fabric at random angles: two vertical cuts, and one horizontal cut. 

3. Your two fabrics will now be split into 6 pieces each. Rearrange the pieces so that each block alternates light and dark. 

4. Sew the horizontal pieces together. Trim across the center line to make a straight line, if necessary. 

5. Sew the two halves together. Your points and lines may not line up exactly. That's okay!

6. Trim each block to 8½ inches. Trimming tip: make sure that the 8½ inch line on your ruler is ON the edge of the fabric, not to the outside of it. 

 Seriously, so easy. I haven't yet timed to see how long it take to make a pair of these, but I'm planning to do that. I had a stack in an evening.