QAF Block of the Month
June 2005
Tuxedo Junction
9 1/2" unfinished; 9" finished
Another fine quilt design from Pat (Shaka)
Thompson
This month's block is a very simple variation of the familiar
9-patch . It uses just two fabrics: a Kona black and
a Kona white or other good quilters quality 100% cotton black and white solids.
No other colors allowed.
The secrets of this block's
success are the correct placement of your HSTs (half-square triangles)
and careful pressing. It
is easy to turn your HSTs
to face in a wrong direction, so follow the picture above and your block
will be perfect.
You may make as many blocks
as you like using the same black and white fabrics.
FABRICS FOR EACH BLOCK:
TO MAKE HST UNITS:
Place one white 4" square over one black 4" square RST
(right sides together). Using your ruler and a pencil, draw a diagonal
line from corner to corner.
Sew a scant 1/4" from this drawn line on both sides of
the line, then cut apart on the drawn line. Press each unit open with the
seam allowances
pressed OPEN. Carefully trim to 3-1/2".
Repeat with second set of
4" squares.
NOTE: You will end up with one extra HST unit, which you can use in additional
block(s).
CONSTRUCTION:
NOTE: Carefully follow the picture (above) so that your HST units are facing
correctly. If you lay out your pieces so that they look like the picture
(before sewing them together) everything will go together accurately.
Sew one HST to the right
side of your black 6-1/2" x 3-1/2" rectangle.
Press seam away from HST. This is your top row.
Sew one HST to the left side
of your white 6-1/2" x 3-1/2" rectangle.
Press seam away from HST. This is your bottom row.
Sew the 3-1/2" white square to right side of one HST. Then sew the
3-1/2" black square to the left side of that HST unit. Press seams
away from HST. This is your center row.
Now, sew your rows together. There are only two intersections that must
match--those that connect the outer rows' HSTs with the center HST. Since
you have opposing seams, these should nest together for a good match.
Press the seams of these
rows open, rather than to one side. This will prevent any black showing
through to the underside of the white and will keep your
quilt looking crisp and neat. Using a 'Square Up' ruler, trim your block
to a perfect 9-1/2".
That's it! Easy and fast. These blocks can be used in ANY log cabin layout
design, so make up one of our sample quilts or design one of your own.
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Below are some sample quilts
to show how versatile this block is.
© 2005 Mary Evans