Modern almost 9-Patch Tutorial for Jennifer Hive 3

This is my 11th year in Stash Bee.  I love this group because it gives me the push to sew something every month.  Each block is fun to pick the fabrics and see things come together.  I've made several quilts as a result of this group.

This month when I was thinking of what to ask for, I kept looking at a postage stamp quilt I had started with scraps.  I have no inspiration to keep working on this because it is so blah, so I decided to ask you to help me give it a bit of a modern kick.  We are adding some random uniformity to a plain quilt.  I will insert these squares somehow, maybe with a plan, maybe not, but I'm sure it will give me the inspiration to finish it.  I'm going for a large King size quilt.

Here are my finished pieces with the quilt so you can see what I'm going for:

This isn't quite a 9 patch since there are only 5 strips per block, they look like a 9-patch.  

These are small blocks with a multi color fabric in the middle surrounded by Red.

I will insert these in a large postage stamp quilt to add some interest.

• FABRIC PARAMETERS: 

The base color of the square should be red.  Any solid red will do, although please don't use a batik.

The center square should be multi-color.  It doesn't have to contain red.  It really can be anything since this is a scrappy quilt.

Strips  - cut a 1.5 inch strip of the red.  You will need a length of 40 inches so you may need to cut two like I did:

From this red piece you will need:

8 x 3.5 inch blocks

8 x 1.5 inch blocks

From the multi color scrap you will need:

4 x 1.5 inch squares.  They can all be different or the same fabric for these centers.  I prefer them to all be different to add to the scrappiness if possible.  How many 1.5 in scraps do you have?  I know I have a ton!

They will be assembled like this:

I pressed to the outside:

Here are the final squares.  Feel free to trim them or send them as-is and I'll take care of the trimming:

Thank you all so much for adding some new life to this big scrappy quilt!  I can't wait to see it all together.

- Jennifer

July 2026 tutorial for Hive 4

 Happy Summer! 

This month I’m looking forward to staying in my sewing room more and doing a reset of my fabric and and purging my fabric.

So far I haven’t quite gotten there. I recently attended Stitch Florida and am a bit behind!

My beautiful block is called October stars and I am looking for a white on white back ground with bright florals. 

The block is made up of half square triangles. The size of the block is 12”

Here are some whites and some bright happy florals:

Here are some examples of the blocks I have already made. 

light 

light 

It is a fairly easy block but you do have to take care in the layout!

For my tutorial

You will be making half inch triangles using any comfortable method. This half square triangle  measures 3.5. 

To make these you will cut 

8.  4.5 of both background and floral.

Mark you diagonal and sew along each side then cut on your diagonal line.

Square down to   3.5!

Arrange according to the picture here!

Press toward the dark side! 

I look sew forward to seeing your squares!

Doretta

Hive 5 - July tutorial for Amy - (still) Twirling at the Disco

 It's summertime in Minnesota. A short, but lovely time of year! Long, sunny days, and celebrating my birthday, fishing on the little and big lakes are all a great way to enjoy the summer along with quilting (it's never a bad time to get the sewing machine out to make something beautiful). 

This year, I'm going back to a quilt I started in the 2024 Stash Bee. It's called Twirling at the Disco. It's a great stash buster using mostly 2 1/2" squares.

Here is a previous Stash Bee tutorial with excellent instructions: http://stashbee.blogspot.com/2024/04/hive-2-april-tutorial-for-kim.html

Here is the original pattern: https://www.sameliasmum.com/2020/02/twirling-at-disco-quilt-free-pattern.html?m=1

When I originally made this quilt back in 2024, I thought I was done with it, but have been putting off quilting it for 2 years and realized it's because it's not done. I want to add some more blocks and that's where you come in 😁 

I think 12 more blocks will finish it off. It'll be a good queen size quilt. 

This is a super easy block to assemble. There are a lot of pieces, but it goes together quickly and is a great use of those small scraps you’ve got laying around.

I used this advanced chain piecing also known as web piecing (and probably other things as well) for the 16 patches. Assemble them however you prefer, but I thought I would share for anyone who is interested and hasn’t tried this method. https://youtu.be/qE7KKaS5p-8?si=ADB0Qz5b-0JStY7n

You will need the following fabric:

Forty (40) 2-1/2” squares in a nice mix of colorful prints. Just about anything goes but I would like to avoid browns, blacks, greys, and anything that reads mostly white. Batiks are cool. Licensed fabric are fine. Holiday is acceptable (preferably not majority holiday). Use as great a variety as you'd like.

Two (2) 4-1/2” squares from low volume fabric with white background or white or white on white.

Two (2) 4-1/2 “ by 8-1/2” rectangles  from low volume fabric with white background or white or white on white.

Here's my fabric pull:

I made 2 four patches and 2 sixteen patches, I did some fussy cutting for fun and arranged them in as nice an arrangement as I could for such a scrappy scrappy pattern.

Then each four patch got attached to a white square

Lastly, I assembled two rows (top and bottom) and then attached the two rows into the final block:

My original 16 blocks:

I decided I wanted to make it a rectangle, so I added 8 more blocks, but I cannot leave well enough alone, so I am excited to add 12 more blocks (3 more circles) and finally finish this one up.

Thank you so much for your participation. I hope you have a lot of fun putting it together.

Wishing you all a wonderful summer and more quilty fun for the rest of this year and on!

Hive 2 - July's tutorial - Rail fence quilt block

 Hi, Happy Semi quincentennial! 

You had to know it was going to be a Red, White and Blue theme.  With vacations, kids out of school and a month of many celebratory events I figured it would be good to have a simple and easy block. (I promise next year's will be more complicated. 😉) 

So, the colors pulled are just red (red-blue, if possible, compared to red orange) and white. The red just has to read red. Please check ** if the red fabric as they are prone bleed White on white is okay as well as Batiks fabrics.  

U

You will need three red fabric strips and two white fabric strips of 2.5" by 10.5" so, it should measure 10.5" x 10.5" unfinished.  The fabrics can be the same bolt or different bolts. 

Lay out will be red, then white, then red, then white to finish up with a red strip.  The red strips start and finish the block.  I ended up using an ombre fabric.  

Sew the first two strips using a 1/4" seam allowance. Then sew the next strip to the ones already sewed and so (sew) on.  

Press your seams towards the darker fabric.

I'm sure you are wondering where the blue comes into play.  I'll be making white stars on blue background to finish up the quilt.  

Thanks for your assistance & enjoy 250th celebration of the America's independence.

Deb

😃

** A good test to see if the red fabric will bleed is to take a small piece like one inch square and wet it completely and put it on a white paper towel to dry to see if the dye transfers.  If there is a terrible problem, you can wash the fabric till it runs clear.  

Hive 1 - July 2026 Tutorial - Begger's Block for Cindy

 Happy Summer all!

 I've chosen Beggar's Block (or Roman Square or Cats and Mice).  It is a very easy quilt block. With only rectangles and a square, the block goes together so quickly!  Rather than cutting each block separately, you can use a strip piecing assembly approach and reduce your sewing time.  The blocks are assembled in a 9 patch format and the rows are sewn together for the final product.  You should end up with a 9" (maybe 9 1/4) finished block.

FABRIC PULL

        The center  square (3 1/4 in) and the center stipes should be white.  The other stripes should be bold bright colors.

FABRIC/CUTTING REQUIREMENTS:

WHITE        (1)    3 1/4 square

                      (1)     1 1/4 x 42 strip (this is longer than you will need but makes chain piecing easier)

COLOR

                    (2)   1 1/4 x 42 strips

SEWING INSTRUCTIONS: 

1)    Using the picture above for reference, sew two of the Bright  1.5" x 42" rectangles to opposite sides of a White 1.5" x 42" rectangle. Press the seam allowances away from the White fabric.

2)  Cut the strip into  3 1/4 in squares for a total of eight Beggar Stripe units.

3)   Lay out all the Beggar Stripe units and the White 3.25" square as in the picture below. From here the block goes together like a basic Nine Patch block.  The solid white square is in the center and the Beggar stripes alternate direction around the square.

4)  Sew the units into three rows as shown below.

5)  Sew the three rows together to complete the block.  This should result in a 9" block.

Here is a link to a YouTube (by Sewing Parts online) tutorial which you may find helpful as well.  

How to Sew the Beggars Block (Step-by-Step)

This was a quick block to assemble and should be really great scrappy!  I'm looking forward to all the beautiful colors and prints.

Hope y'all have a wonderful 4th and a great summer.  Thanks.

Cindy

Hive 1 June Log Cabin Block for Caitlin

 My grandma, who taught me to quilt, made a lot of log cabin quilts. They’ve always felt like the quintessential quilt block to me, but I haven’t actually made many myself! Thank you for asking for this one; it was a nice nostalgic little project for me, with a bunch from my grandma’s stash in it. It’ll go in the mail tomorrow. 

Hive 1 June Purpleish Log Cabin Block for Caitlin

 

This was a fun and easy block, and I think Caitlin's purple and red color palette will make a lovely quilt.  Happy quilting all!

Pam 

Hive 1 - June log cabin block for Caitlin

 I love the color scheme you are going with!! Purple is my favorite color, so the hardest part was narrowing it down to just a few fabrics :) 

Hive 1 - May 2026 – Neon Stroked Flying Geese for Kelli

 

Sorry, I didn't realise that I didn't publish it last month 🙈

Hive 1 - June 2026 - Block for Caitlin