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The quilt above was one of my QOV tops made with lots of scraps
This quilt below is the exact same pattern, but made using only 3 fabrics
Fabric Requirements
to make complete quilt shown above
Overall Size.....56"x68" finished
Block Size.....12" finished
Border.....3" & 1" finished
HST units:
Various prints: 40 5" charms,
or 5 strips 5" x WOF
COC: 40 5" charms
or 5 strips 5" x WOF
4-patch units:
Various prints: 50 5" charms
or 7 strips 5" x WOF
COC: 50 5" charms
or 7 strips 5" x WOF
Both of these quilts were made for the QOV project. The scrap version was made from HST units
collected in a block swap and the fabric for the blue/yellow/green top was donated by Laura Nessler
Construction
The scrappy version of this quilt was made using 4" HST units
collected in a quilt swap. These units were made using
5" squares of a print fabric and COC
Each 5" square will yield 2 HST units
Each block has 4 of these HST units. The quilt above has 20 blocks
so 80 HSTs are required.
4-Patch Units
The other element of the block are 4-patch units.
To make the scrappy version, I decided to use 5" charms
for my 4-patches.
The photos below illustrate the technique using 5" charms
Each block has 5 of the 4-patch units. A 20 block quilt will
require 100 of the 4-patch units. Each charm set will yield
2 of the 4-patch units.
I purchased some sets of 5" charms that I used for this quilt
Here are a few of the charms used to make the 4-patch units
To sew the 4-patch units, choose a medium or dark print charm
and place right sides together with a light charm
Sew a 1/4" seam along one edge of the set, then turn and sew
a second 1/4" seam on the opposite edge
Once these sets are sewn on both sides (I chain stitch my units)
take the sets to your rotary mat and cut down the center of the
sewn charms, the dimensions should be 2 1/2" x 5", see below
Carefully press the seams open, pressing to the dark fabric
Then cut these units in half again, yielding 2 halves of a 4-patch
as the photos below will illustrate:
For the scrappy quilt above, I used 50 medium/dark charms and 50
light charms which yielded 100 4-patch units at 4 1/2" UNFINISHED
I mixed the sections to create a variety of units like the one below
HST Units
The HST units in this quilt were collected in a swap,
however you can achieve a very scrappy look by using
5" charms that can be purchased in sets
For the quilt top above, 80 HST units are required
You will need 40 EACH 5" squares of light & dark fabrics
First, draw a line down the center diagonal of the lighter
fabric. Then place a light and dark 5" square together
and sew a scant 1/4" seam on EITHER side of the drawn line
then cut apart ON the line, as the photos below illustrate
Now gently PRESS the HST units open, pressing towards the dark
fabric, being careful not to drag the iron and distort the unit
It is CRITICAL at this point to SQUARE UP your HSTs.
The cutting measurements given for the HST units
are deliberately OVERSIZED to allow for trimming.
If you attempt to piece the block without trimming,
your HST units will be too large to match the rest of the pieces.
There are different quilting rulers on the market to accomplish this.
I use the Bias Square ruler from
That Patchwork Place. You will need to trim ALL FOUR SIDES of your HSTs.
This seems unnecessary, but you will be rewarded with perfect points
by making this extra effort.
The photos following illustrate how to square up your HST units
Referring to the photo above, you will need to trim the first two sides.
Line up the diagonal line on the ruler with the seam line
of your HST as shown. Slide the ruler along until your 4 ��
line on BOTH SIDES of the ruler are slightly to the INSIDE of
the bottom edges of your square as shown in the
photo. This is very IMPORTANT, so that you will have sufficient
fabric to trim the final two sides.
The photo below shows the completed first 2 cuts.
Now, you will turn the square to position it for the last two cuts.
Referring to the photo above, you will see that the ruler is now
lined up so the diagonal matches the seam
AND the first two cuts are EXACTLY on both of the 4 �� lines of
the ruler. Carefully make your final cuts,
holding the ruler so it does not slide out of position.
The photo below shows the squared-up HST.
Refer to the following illustration for your block assembly.
NOTE ... NOTE ... NOTE ...
This layout is different than a customary Jacob's Ladder block
To avoid having 4 light or COC fabrics meet at the corners
where the blocks are set in the top, I rotated the 4-patches
in the block corners (upper left/lower right in image above)
However, in the blue & yellow quilt top, I kept the orientation
of the traditional Jacob's ladder block.
Finishing
Lay out the 20 blocks in 5 rows of 4 blocks.
By referring to the illustration at the top of this page,
you will see the placement of the blocks is achieved
simply by rotating each block so that a chain effect
is created
Once you are happy with your layout, piece the top
by sewing the 4 blocks for each row, then sewing
the rows together
Once the top is pieced, you may add borders.
The top above has a 3" border.
~~~ Borders ~~~
For the border, you will need to cut 6 strips x WOF
and then piece end to end as needed to make
lengths required for each side
IMPORTANT ... IMPORTANT ... IMPORTANT
To keep your quilt square, measure across the CENTER
of the quilt both length & width.
Do not measure the quilt along the edges to get
length of border pieces.
Measure across center, use that one measurement,
then cut both side pieces EXACTLY the same lengths
To sew on, find the center of the top on the edge you
are sewing, and the center of the border strip
and pin, right sides together. Then pin the ends
to the end of the top and then keep pinning
in this manner, easing where necessary.
Then stitch with a 1/4" seam
After the first 2 borders are sewn, press, THEN
measure again through the center to find the lengths
for the final border pieces
Cut, pin and sew the same way
Layer, and quilt as desired, finishing with the binding technique
of your choice.
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