Half Square Triangles - Another Method

Warning....lots of photos to illustrate this method for making half square triangles. This is the method Bonnie Hunter describes in step 2 of her Carolina Christmas Mystery.

First step - press 2 1/2" strips of light and dark together. Pressing two fabrics together before cutting or sewing makes them sort of stick together.

Bonnie uses the Easy Angle ruler for the cutting but I am using the Omnigrid ruler below and it is working great. Have to admit I have never used this ruler before - I won a complete set of Omnigrid rulers years ago for a miniature quilt I entered in a magazine contest. Wonderful prize but got rulers I didn't know what to do with so it is nice to learn how to use them.

To use this ruler you first need to square off one end of the fabric strips you pressed together.

First angle cut - do remember I am left handed so you would cut from the other end if you are right handed. Look at the placement of the ruler, the 2" line is along the bottom of the strip and the straight edge is along the cut end. (Am using 2" line as the finished block is to be 2" square)

Cut along the angled edge of the ruler and you get one set of triangles ready to stitch.

Flip the ruler over lining up the 2" line along the upper edge of the strip and cut along the straight edge of the ruler.

Now two triangle units are ready to stitch. Notice one of the tips is missing from the triangles - it is supposed to be this way.

I have found that if I stitch from the point to the other end of the triangle I have better luck. When I stitched some from the opposite direction I had trouble with the seam wanting to get too narrow as the point went under the presser foot and I had to restitch it to get the 1/4" seam.

Press the units flat first to set the seams. I set the seams of anything I sew before opening as it seems to make opening and pressing easier for some reason.

Press the triangle squares open like you do using any other method of making them.

Pressed unit all done.

Clip off the one dog ear to complete the unit.

So far this method has worked very well....will keep plugging along as I don't have time to sit long at a time to sew these days but a little at a time and soon I will have all the units finished.

There is no way I can keep up with the steps for this mystery as they are published but am working at my own speed. So far I am enjoying the process and anxious to see what the quilt will look like when it is done. I will not peek at the finished quilt if I can help it until I am to that point as I know it will be published before I am to that step.

Happy, happy quilting,
Lynn

Carolina Christmas - Step 1

The strips for step one are cut - 2 1/2" wide of cream and gold. As you can see I have some stitched and an unruly pile waiting to be paired up. See Elaine, it didn't stay clean too long.

Here is an even closer look at the jumbled pile.

I put my rotating mat on the top of my pressing surface so I don't have to bend over to cut. These strip sets had to be cross cut into 2 1/2" slices....192 of them.

Decided I had better sew when I can so I don't get too behind on the steps to this mystery. I am printing off the steps as they come out so I can have it handy to read as I stitch. Bonnie Hunter of Quiltville the creator of the Carolina Christmas mystery has lots of hints in her instructions so don't want to miss out on any of them.

Happy Quilting,
Lynn

Starch Fabric - Carolina Christmas

I starch most of the fabric I use in the quilts I make. I find it just makes it a little stiffer and stitches together so nicely. The fabric behaves better after stitching too if I starch the fabrics before I cut them and it removes the wrinkles from fabric that has been folded. (The gold fabric laying out has not been starched yet.)

I buy the heavy starch in a spray bottle and the cheapest I can find as I think it works just as well as the more expensive kind.

I do lay a piece of fabric on my ironing surface to catch the overspray and any starch that might soak through the pieces I am starching. This wild fabric that I have on the ironing board really should be washed as it is so stiff since I have used it for some time.

Got all my gold and cream fabrics pressed and the pieces cut for step 1.

Lynn

Mystery Quilt Carolina Christmas

After stitching up all those Scrapaholic quilt blocks I really have the urge to use up more of my fabric. You know that fabric that has been fermenting in the closet, some of it for years. It would be nice to see those boxes and boxes be reduced a little.

Bonnie Hunter from Quiltville is doing another mystery that just started after Thanksgiving. She has the best scrap quilt patterns and instructions on her web page so take a look if you have not been to the Quiltville web page. This mystery is called Carolina Christmas and so far she has posted the first two steps. Her plan is to use reds, greens, gold and neutral fabrics in her quilt but I have chosen to use blues, greens, golds and off white fabrics for mine. I really had a hard time finding enough gold fabrics in my stash so have some that are more tan but think they will work. Bonnie is using multiple greens and reds but only one gold. I just don't have many fabrics larger than fat quarters and I refuse to buy any more fabric unless I can't find something that will work in my stash.

Here is the stack of fabrics I pulled today for this project laid out on my sewing room floor.

Anyone else doing this mystery? If you feel the urge just visit the web page and download the instructions. She says this mystery is one that will be in a book at some point so will only will be on the web page for a limited amount of time.

Lynn

....... No, to answer your question, I do not have the borders even cut let alone stitched for the Scrapaholic quilt but wanted to start this project. I know I will not be keeping up with the mystery steps but started now anyway. Will fit the cutting and stitching of those borders in somewhere but probably after Christmas.