Hive 2 March Tutorial: 12.5" Strip Pieced Block for Susan

One of the things that I find difficult about putting together a quilt is "creating" a random look - somehow I always over-think placement of color and design and it takes me forever to make decisions. So you all can help me with this by doing some of that spontaneous creativity for me! This month's request is an exercise in a sort of "enforced randomization"  - the block is a simple strip pieced 12.5" square, but there are a couple of rules and options to satisfy those rules.

Like Kim in February, I'm going with blues and white this time - and just a spot  - or two or three - of red...

• FABRICS: Prints are OK, but please no holiday or novelty fabrics, and nothing with glitter, metallic or sparkles.  Batiks OK, solids OK, tone on tone, floral, large or small print, text prints all are fine, as long as the primary color of the fabric is blue or white. Or the red accent piece (more about that below).
• For colors, have a look at the photos below. Only three colors -  
• BLUE - think indigo, faded blue jeans, the blue and white china pattern that you see in antique shops
• WHITE - leaning toward bright white, but not cream or off white. White on white prints OK
• RED - think bright lipstick red, but not orange. Err to the side of cranberry or darker reds rather than pink or orange red. 

     

 

 

• I got the idea for this block from these quilts that I found on Pinterest, but the block I'm requesting is a variation on these blocks: 

      

• STEP BY STEP: The is a pretty straightforward strip block, with the variation of adding a square of red to one (or more) of the strips.  It will end up looking something like this: 
  
  
  
  
  It would probably be best to read through all the directions below before deciding how you want to proceed with the block.
• Choose 6 fabrics (you can repeat one or two fabrics if necessary) in different shades of blue, white, or blue and white.   Cut 6 strips 2.5" wide and 13" long.
• If you have nothing that you can use to cut one strip piece 13" long by 2.5" wide, you can sew together similar fabrics to get your strips, but please aim for a uniform color look within each discrete strip. 
• Plan your block so that contrasting fabrics are alternating (one lighter, one darker, etc.) 

Auditioning fabric/deciding strip order

• This is where you have a chance to be really random. You can do this step once, twice, or three times for your block.  Choose one, two or three RED fabrics, and cut 2.5" X 2.5" squares (no more than 3)

• Choose one of your blue and/or white 13" strips, and randomly cut it into two new rectangles that are 2.5" wide. In the photo below, I've chosen 2 different strips to cut.
  
  
  
  
  
• Now choose one of your red 2.5" squares and sew it to one end of the strip you just cut.
  
  

  

  Red square sewn to the shorter end of a blue strip

  
  
  
• Sew the other piece of the cut strip onto the other side of the red square - you should now have one 15" X 2.5" strip. 
  
  

  

  Preparing to add the remaining blue cut strip

  
  
  
  

  

  Ready to sew longer blue strip onto left edge of red square

  
  
• Press the seams toward the darker fabric and trim to 13" length.
  
  

  

  Trim to 12.5"



• Repeat the step of adding a red 2.5" square up to 3 times for your block. It could be on 3 separate strips, or 2 red blocks on one blue or white strip...all three red blocks could even be on one strip. Or they could be on 2 or 3 separate strips. Where you add the red square and how many (up to 3) red squares you add are choices that are up to you.
• Sew your 13" X 2.5" strips together lengthwise, using a quarter inch seam, and press toward the darker color in each instance. 

  

  One pair of strips ready to sew together

  
  

  

  Strips sewn into pairs. Two more seams to go!
  
  

• Once you have all 6 strips sewn together, press the seams toward the darker color and  you are done!  I'll do a final trim once I have all the blocks.

 Here are a few completed blocks:

 

Please let me know if you have questions about this block, since it's my first time explaining the process without a prior tutorial to rely on.

I look forward to seeing your interpretations of these instructions! 

Susan

Hive 5 - March Tutorial - Granny Square Block for Sara

As always, I have been so indecisive about what to choose for the month but ended up settling on a granny square quilt block. I used to cut my scraps into pre-determined sizes, including 2.5" squares, and still have quite a few left in my stash. I find these blocks to be fun and relaxing to make.

Before we get started

• Blocks will be 9" square unfinished
• Press however you prefer - I recommend nesting seams
• Blocks can be scrappy or not

Color Palette and Fabric Selection

I'm leaning into teals and burnt oranges for these blocks. Here's a palette for inspiration:

Each block is two-toned, with the low volumes and one color in various values. As you can see below, I've used a lighter and a darker value of contrasting teals for the pattern. For the exterior dark print, please choose a mostly solid color (i.e., if there's a contrasting print, the overall block should read as a consistent value) to help maintain the contrast. For the interior colors, I'm less particular. This is also a good block for fun focal fabrics as your interior square, if you'd like.

Looking at the photo on the left, I've pulled different oranges that may work. To the far left, these would make good dark contrast/exterior blocks as I'd prefer them to read as one color. In the middle, these fabrics start to have more contrast within the block and can visually be differentiated from the darker contrast exterior blocks. For the blocks that I played around with, I found that I preferred a strong contrast. The rightmost fabrics can either be similar to the exterior blocks, with strong contrast to the interior 4 but feel free to fussy cut if you'd rather. 

The photo on the right has diferent low volumes. The top row, with softer contrast, is preferred for these blocks. The bottom fabrics have strong contrast and end up making the blocks feel busy.

Directions

Cutting Directions

• 12 - 2.5" low volume squares (30" strip)
• 8 - 2.5" dark contrast squares in the main colorway (20" strip)
• 4 - 2.5" light to medium contrast squares in the main colorway (10" strip)
• 1 - 2.5" dark contrast focal square in the main colorway

Piecing

1. Lay out squares and determine placement. The focal square will be surrounded by the 4 light/medium contrast squares, which are then surrounded by the dark contrast squares. Finally, the low volume squares will make up the exterior of each row. First row of photos.
2. Using a 1/4" seam, sew the blocks in each row together. Press. I recommend alternating the direction of the seams for each row to help with nesting. Second row of photos.
1. You can either eyeball the placement of the topmost/bottommost low volume squares, or crease the rows at center to help with alignment.
3. Using a 1/4" seam, sew each row together. Press. I found the seams cooperated best when I pressed the rows above the middle row towards the top, and the rows below the middle towards the bottom. Third row of photos.
4. Trim block to 9" square. Be careful to leave 1/4" around the edges of the dark contrast fabric. Last row of photos.

A big thank you for sewing along!

Sara

@rippingoutstitches

Hive 3 - March Tutorial - Haphazard blocks for Laurie

Hive 3 March Tutorial Haphazard blocks for Laurie

Hello, my name is Laurie and I’m so excited for another year with Stash Bee! It's always a tough decision to pick my block for the month but I finally was able to pin one down. It's bright, it's scrappy, it's creative, it's versatile!!

I'm using My Poppy Makes for inspiration. You can find the quilt  here:  MY POPPET MAKES

I changed up the dimensions so we will end up with a 15” block.

Fabric:  

Let’s keep this Pink & bright!  

Center Square: Black and white, typeset, tone on tone, white on white

Strips: Any shade of pink, the more variety the better.  If pink doesn't work for you, then blue or yellow will work also.

Instructions: 

Cut (1) 8.5” square from your center fabric.

Pick out your 4 different fabrics in your pink color line and cut strips.  

(1) 4" by 8.5"

(2) 4" by 12.5"

(1) 4" by 16.5"

Sew the strips around the center square using a 1/4” seam and trim each strip after you sew it.  The measurements I gave for the strips are oversized so you will need to trim down a bit after sewing. This is expected.

    

Your block should now measure around 15.5” but don't worry if it doesn't. This block isn't one that has to be exact and a little wonkiness is fine with me.  Press seams as you like.

 Now comes the fun part!  Cut the block in half twice 

(7 3/4” for those who want measurements)

Then turn each piece so that the center square is in each corner. It makes a plus sign pattern in the middle of the block.  (it's ok for one strip fabric to end up in a row/column but if you want to move blocks around go right ahead and play around with the layout)

 

Sew the 4 pieces together.  Your block should be around 15"

Press the seams as you like.  Don't worry about trimming as I can do that later when assembling the quilt.

    

Hope you have fun with this quick and easy block!

Thanks, Laurie

Hive 4 Tutorial March 2025 - Checkered Garden Block

Hi! I'm Maureen and am the Queen Bee this month for Hive 4. The block I have chosen is the Checkered Garden, a free tutorial by Ashley of Film in the Fridge. Here is the picture of the blocks I have already made:

Sample Blocks

The Checkered Garden tutorial can be found here.

I created a checklist to go along with the tutorial. It doesn't replace the instructions in the tutorial, but will help keep you organized as you go through the steps. I have also clarified pressing instructions in the checklist. The checklist PDF can be found here.

Fabric Parameters:

• The colors are coral, peach, aqua, teal, green, yellow green, and navy plus the low volume whites and creams. Below is a picture of fabrics I have used already, which should give you a good idea of the types of fabrics I like as well as the palette:

Fabrics

• No batiks, please
• Print or solid fabrics are fine, but no licensed character prints. I love anything from Ruby Star, but not other character fabrics
• For color C in the tutorial, please use a cream or white low volume fabric. See example below. Color C is the center light color that runs through the block.  

Sample Block

If you have any questions, please reach out to me in the Instagram chat for our group.