Tag Archives: One Block Wonder

Something Fishy – OBW #81 & the Wedge Star Tool

Something Fishy was made with fabric called Atlantis by Sentimental Studios for Moda. I have had this 6 yard piece in my One Block Wonder (OBW) stash for 12 o 13 years. Evidently I like to age my fabric before I cut it up.

This is my second octagon OBW. Like hexagon OBW’s, octagon OBW’s can be made in many sizes. I will show you how to use the Wedge Star Tool Instructions to choose different size octagons and add different octagon blocks to your quilt. The numbered steps in this post refer to steps outlined in the Wedge Star Tool Instructions. The basic octagon OBW is made with 45 degree wedges as sown below. The Wedge Star tool instructions refer to this as the Wedge Block. We use the Wedge Block instructions to make the basic octagon OBW.

The Wedge Block instructions begin on page 7

The Wedge Star Block instructions begin on page 3

The Mixed Block can be made up of any combination of Diamond Wedges and Large Wedges, plus four corner triangles.

Download the Wedge Star Instructions here:

wedge-star-tool-instructions-1 Download

Cutting Chart

Use the chart on page 2 of the Wedge Star instructions, find your desired finished block size (first column), then follow the row across to determine the strip and square sizes you need to cut.

I chose 6″ finished blocks. From the first column follow to right to the “Large Wedge Strip” and see to cut the wedge strips 4″ Width of Fabric (WOF) and “Corner Square” strips 3″ by WOF.

After I have aligned my 8 repeats and trimmed one long edge so all the repeats end in the same place, I re-measure my repeat to verify how many strips I can cut.

Note: For every 2 Large Wedge strips you will need to cut 1 Corner Square strip.

I ended up with 22″ trimmed repeats, so I was able to cut four 4″ Large Wedge WOF Strips and two 3″ WOF Corner Square strips for 6″ finished octagons.

Wedge Block

Cutting the Large Wedges (Page 7, Step 2.01)

When making an octagonal OBW, we are cutting 8 layers of fabric at once. Our Large Wedge and Corner Square strips are from one fabric. Putting a new blade in your rotary cutter is important!

The cutting instructions on page 2 show you how to cut your wedges with the strip placed horizontally on the mat. I prefer to cut the wedges by placing my strips vertically on the mat. Try both and see what works best for you.

Cutting the Corner Triangles (Step 2.02)

I use my Tucker Trimmer I to cut my Corner Squares from my 3″ WOF strips.

Once your Corner Squares are cut, cut them once diagonally. Each set of corner triangles contains 8 identical corner triangles. When cutting the squares diagonally, consider what design elements will be in both halves.

Constructing the Wedge Block (Step 2.03)

From each stack of 8 wedges, stitch 2 together making 4 pair, press seams open.

Remove the Dog Ears (Step 2.06)

Remove the dog ears and sliver trim the wedge pair. Position the Wedge Pair on the cutting mat. Righties as shown above position it so the 90 degree corner is in the upper right (see tool instructions for left handed cutting). Align the common diagonal line on your Tucker Trimmer with the seam and slide it forward just until it meets with either edge or the point of the wedge, trim up the side and across the top. There may only be a few whiskers trimmed here. Trim all the wedge pairs.

Match up the points, stitch into halves, press seams open (Step 2.08).

Tip: Find the center of one wedge half by placing a pin where seams meet and go through the second wedge half in the same place. Align the two halves, pin on both sides of the center pin.

Remove the center pin and stitch the halves together. Press seams open.

It helps to place your octagon blocks on a design wall as you finish them.

The next step (Step 2.09), is to trim the octagon wedges that will have a corner triangle stitched to them. But before that I want to make some Wedge Star & Mixed Blocks to enhance my octagons and strengthen certain colors .

Wedge Star Block (Page 3)

Cutting the Diamonds (Step 1.01)

All my octagons will be 6″ finished blocks. Go to the chart on page 2, find the first column “Finished Block Size” move down to 6″, move across the row to “Diamond Strip”. Cut the Diamonds strips 1 3/4″ by WOF. Trim one short edge at 45 degree angle by placing the 1/4″ line of your Wedge Star tool on the top edge of the strip. Using a regular 6″by 12″ ruler, bump it up to the Wedge Star tool placing the 45 degree line of the ruler on the bottom edge of the strip.

Remove the Wedge Star tool and cut using the regular ruler.

The rule here is to cut your diamonds the same width as the diamond strip. Continue cutting Diamonds every 1 3/4″ using the ruler. See tool instructions for left handed cutting.

I wanted two color Diamonds so I chose two fabrics.

Cutting the Small Wedges (Step 1.02)

Following the chart for 6″ finished blocks, move across to the “Small Wedge Strip”. Cut the Small Wedge strips 2 3/4″ wide, WOF.

Align the small mark near the top of the tool with the top of the strip, and the line on the tool that corresponds with the width of the strip (2 3/4″).

Step 1.04 – Rotate the Wedge Star tool 180 degrees so the sharp point is closest to you. Align the same guidelines as before and continue cutting the wedges. (I prefer to place my strips vertically when cutting the wedges. Find what works best for you.)

Two fabric color Small Wedges, blue & teal.

Note: We are skipping from Step 1.04 to Step 1.06 because we are making a OBW and will address the corners later.

Piecing the Diamond Wedges

Step 1.06 – Lay out the Diamonds and Small Wedges as shown. I am making two color diamonds first I laid out the Yellow diamonds with the blue small wedges.

Step 1.07 – Take a small wedge from the right hand side and position it it on top.

Note: My interpretation is to place a diamond right sides together with a small wedge as show above.

Stitch small wedges to the diamonds right sides together as show above. Press toward the Diamonds.

Note: Remember that “whatever you are pressing toward goes on top”! So, you would place all your units with the diamond on top.

Step 1.08 – With the Diamond on top, stitch along the matched edges with a ¼” seam. Press the seam toward the Diamond and trim off the “dog ear”. Repeat with the rest of the diamonds.

Step 1.09 & 1.10

Step 1.09 – Using the other pile of Small Wedges, take one and position it on the other side of the Diamond point. Align the raw edges and center the shapes right sides together as shown above.

Step 1.10 – With the Diamond on top, stitch with a ¼” seam. Press the seam toward the Small Wedge. Repeat with the rest of the Diamonds.

Step 1.11 – Use the Wedge Star™ tool to trim each Diamond Wedge unit to an exact size.

Step 1.12 – Position the unit right side up on the cutting mat. Righties point the Diamond toward the 2 o’clock position, lefties point the Diamond toward the 10 o’clock position. Align the desired finished block size lines with the sewn seams. Trim along both sides of the ruler. See tool instructions for left handed cutting.

Layout wedges. Stitch wedges together into pairs.

Press seams open.

Step 1.13 – Remove the “dog ears”.

Remove the dog ears and sliver trim the wedge pair. Position the Wedge Pair on the cutting mat. Righties as shown above position it so the 90 degree corner is in the upper right (see tool instructions for left handed cutting). Align the common diagonal line on your Tucker Trimmer with the seam and slide it forward just until it meets with eight the edge or the point of the wedge, trim up the side and across the top. There may only be just a few whiskers trimmed her. Trim all the wedge pairs.

Step 1.15 – Stitch quarters in halves, then stitch halves together, pressing seams open.

Step 1.16 – To turn your octagon into a square you will need to add triangles to the corners. Determine which wedge sections will be located in the corners of your
finished block. Align the Outside Edge Trim Line on the Wedge Star™ tool with the seams of the Diamond on one corner wedge. Trim along the edge of the tool. Repeat this for the other three corners, making sure you are only trimming every other edge. The remaining edges will be trimmed after the corners are added.

Trim Mixed blocks the same as the Wedge Star Block

Mixed Blocks – See page 10

Mixed block variations combining wedge star and large wedge units.

Mixed blocks are made by simply combining Wedge Stars with Large Wedges as shown above. Once I made several Wedge Star Blocks and Mixed Blocks I added them to my other octagons. The fabric choices for my Wedge Stars and Mixed blocks was to strengthen my orange/golds and turquoises.

Prepping Wedge Blocks for adding the Corners: If there is a way to square up a difficult unit/block Deb Tucker will find it!

Step 2.09 (Pg. 8) – Determine which Large Wedges are going to have Corner Triangles attached.
Step 2.10 – Make a halfway registration mark on these four wedges. Wedges can be folded in half matching the seams and then lightly pressed to give a centerfold line. Or the centerline of the tool can be placed on the sewn seam with the point of the tool at the center. Mark with a removable marking tool.

Note: Add a flower pin to the top wedge unit for each block to aid in orientation. This will help you throughout the trimming process.

Step 2.11 – Place your Wedge Star® tool upside down, with the Invisigrip™ facing up. Find the Block Center dimension for your project on the chart.

Step 2.12 – Measure down that distance from the flat edge of the tool and make a mark on the back of the tool, across the centerline as illustrated. Use a fine point Sharpie® marker. For our example, make a mark 3¼” from the tool edge.

Step 2.13 – Working on your cutting mat, place the intersection of the centerline of the tool and the Sharpie® marked line on the center of the sewn block. At the same time, align the centerline of the tool with the halfway registration mark on the fabric block.

Step 2.14 – Cut along the flat edge of the tool. You should only be trimming off a small amount of fabric. If you are trimming more than ¼”, recheck your tool mark!

Step 2.15 – Repeat for the other three Corner Wedges.

For prepping Wedge Star & Mixed Blocks for adding corners see tool instructions page 5, Step 1.16.

Add Corners:

Block corners are trimmed and ready for Corners

Choose corner triangles that will help blend the octagons and create flow.

When four octagons are put together, there is a diamond spaced shape between them. You fill this space with 4 identical triangles cut from the 3″ Corner Strip.

Keep adding corners to the octagons and place back on the design wall.

Corners have been added to all the inner octagons.

I add corners to all the inner octagons first, then continue adding them to the outer edges.

Squaring up the Octagon Blocks

Step 2.18 – For blocks that finish to 12” or less, we prefer to use our Tucker Trimmer®. Consult the Block Cut Size in the chart and align the common diagonal and sizing diagonal with the marks made for the previous trimming. Make sure that the intersection of the tool lines is over the center. Trim two sides. Rotate the block 180° and line up the diagonal lines as well as the clean up lines with the trimmed edges. Trim the final two sides.

My octagon blocks will be 6″ finished. Therefore, I can use my Tucker Trimmer I and square up my blocks to 6 1/2″. Make sure the intersecting lines for 6 1/2″ are over the center of the block and trim as shown above.

All my octagons are now trimmed to 6 1/2″ and are ready to be sewn into rows.

Tip: To line up your blocks, pin where the seams intersect on both blocks. Pin on both sides, then pull out the pin in the seams and stitch.

See how nicely the points line up when the blocks are trimmed and squared.

Something Fishy

As you can see, this project was closely supervised by Tucker!

Included in your Wedge Star Tool Instructions is a free project “Freelancer”.

Download the Freelancer Supply list in 3 sizes:

freelancer-supply-list-7-inch Download

freelancer-supply-list-9-inch Download

freelancer-supply-list-12-inch Download

Ruca the Technicolor Cat – OBW #77

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Last January I had the great joy of meeting my half sister Marti for the first time. I also acquired many new family members.

When I saw this panel by Chong-A Hwang for Timeless Treasures, I knew I had to make a One Block Wonder for my Great Niece Alexa. Alexa has a wonderful cat named “Ruca”, whom she has had since she was in college. I met Ruca, a very special cat.

Even though this panel states it measures 24″ by 44″, by the time I cut apart the panels and squared it up, it was more like 23 1/2″ wide. For my finished hexies to fit evenly across the bottom of the panel I would have to make some adjustments. If I cut my strips 3 3/4″ wide, my finished hexies would be 6″ wide, which is not evenly divisible by 23 1/2″. I could just add fabric to the panel to bring it up to 24″ wide and then hide the extra fabric with appliqued hexagons as I have done before.

But I decided to trim the panel to fit the bottom rows of hexagons instead. If I cut my strips 3 1/2″, my finished hexies would be 5 1/2″ wide which would be evenly divisible into 22″. I don’t trim the panel until I’m ready to add the hexies. You can see that four finished hexagons (or 8 half hexies) will fit across the bottom of the panel. Here are my tips for Using Panels for a OBW:

using-panels-for-a-obw-copy Download

Ruca the Technicolor Cat, OBW #77 measures 62″ X 62″

I am so pleased with how this OBW came out. It was wonderful meeting you Alexa, thank you for your hospitality.

Up Up & Away – OBW #75

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Quarantine quilt number 4 – “Up Up & Away, in My Beautiful Balloon”. While I was visiting my family in Lake Havasu City last January I got to attend their Hot Air Balloon Festival. It was fabulous.

I saw this panel by Greg & Company on eQuilter and just had to get it for a One Block Wonder.

First thing, decide what size strips to cut. I start by trying to get an idea of how many hexies will fit across the top and/or bottom of the panel. It is just like making a pieced inner border to fit around the center of a quilt. The width of the panel should be evenly divisible by the finished size of my hexagon block. This panel measured 34″ x 44″. Even though it is a large print that would support a 6″ finished hexie, the 34″ width is not evenly divisible by 6″. I did not want to trim too much off the panel so I decided to cut my strips 3 1/2″ wide. That would yield 5 1/2″ finished hexagons. If I trim one inch off the panel side making it 33″ x 44″, meaning 33″ divided by 5.5″ = 6. Now I know I will get 6 hexagons (or 12 half hexies) across the width of the panel both top and bottom. Download my Tips for Using Panels for a OBW:

using-panels-for-a-obw-copy Download

I started at the bottom and worked my way up the sides and across the top.

I used most of my hexagons and got achieved a design I was pleased with.

I number my rows and stitch the half hexies into rows. Then I join the rows pressing all seams open. I cannot stress enough how much easier it is to press your seams open with the help of my Strip Stick. I have 4 different sizes. The 48″ Strip Stick makes pressing the long seams open go quickly without disturbing the previously pressed seams.

I stitch my hexies into 4 groups. Top, bottom, left and right.

I decided I wanted to applique the bottom section to the panel first. Instead of trimming the points I pressed under a 1/4″ seam and stitched it onto the bottom of the panel. I chose to attach the right side next by matching up the dog ears as you would when joining the rows and stitch three quarters of the way up towards the top of the panel (partial seam).

By using a partial seam, it allows you to match up the dog ears of the top hexies with the side rows of hexies.

I will mark where the top hexies hits the top of the panel, add a 1/4″ seam allowance, trim the hexies and stitch to the top of the panel. I decided to trim the hexies because I did not want to cover the balloons.

Now I can finish the partial seam.

With the top, bottom and side hexies stitched in place, I can easily attach the left side hexies to the panel matching up the dog ears.

This is one colorful One Block Wonder. I have ordered some great fabric from Fabric.Com for the back.

As soon as it arrives I will quilt it and send it you Angie!

Tucker Approved!

Northern Lights

18 Replies

The more you practice the better you get at something. The same is true with quilting. This quilt was supposed to be for my son Josh for Christmas (last Christmas). Oh well, better late than never. This panel is called Northern Lights by Abraham Hunter for Elizabeth’s Studio. It claimed to be 36″ x 44″ but is was closer to 39″ wide.

I aligned my 6 panels, cut my hexagons and began designing around the panel. I do not trim the panels before I align them. Once they are aligned I can decide whether to use any of the borders or not. I decided not to use the border in the blocks so when I guesstimated how much to trim off to even the edges , I included the borders.

I start by trying to get an idea of how many hexies will fit across the top and/or bottom of the panel. It is just like making a pieced border to fit around the center of a quilt. The width of the panel should be divisible by the finished size of my hexagon block.

You have two ways to make sure your hexagons will fit across the top and bottom of your panel. You can trim or add fabric to your panel and/or you can also adjust the size of your finished hexagon so it is divisible by the width of the panel.

Strip Width Yeilds	Finished Hexie Size
3.75”	6.0”
3.50”	5.5
3.25”	5.0
3.00”	4.5
2.75”	4.0
2.50”	3.5
2.25”	3.0
2.0″	2.5

I decided to cut my strips 3.75″ for 6″ finished hexagons and trim my panel to 36″ wide. Six hexagons will fit across the bottom and/or top of the panel.

I kept playing with the design.

Once I was satisfied with the design, I stitched the hexagons into four sections.

I laid the top portion of hexies on the panel to help give me an accurate width to trim off. I felt I would not lose an important part of the panel by cutting off the tree.

I trimmed the panel, Trimmed the portion of the hexies so it could be stitched to the panel.

I discovered when the bottom set hexies were aligned with side hexies – I needed to add about 1 1/2″ of fabric.

Now it all fit together wonderfully. I just needed to hide the fabric I added and trim the top and bottom points.

You can’t even tell where I added the fabric or hid it with smaller hexagons. Next I will get quilted!

No moose were hurt in the making of this quilt as Tucker was on duty supervising me the entire time.

using-panels-for-a-obw-copy-1 Download

Using Panels for a One Block Wonder

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Have you seen some of the wonderfully creative One Block Wonders (OBW) made using precut panels? If you haven’t you should join the Facebook group “One Block Wonder Quilt Forum”! This is my third OBW using panels and I wanted to share how I put them together.

My last OBW using panels “The Heron”, was so much fun I couldn’t wait to make the next one. Start by purchasing 7 Panels. One to be incorporated into the top and 6 to be aligned for making the hexagon blocks.

The process is same whether you are using yardage or panels. The only difference is the repeats are already cut for you. I don’t trim the panels, I just press them and layer them assuring they are all going in the direction. Align them as directed in Maxine Rosenthal’s book One Block Wonders or One Block Wonder Encore.

Once the repeats/panels are aligned, trim one long edge so all the layers are ending in the same place. This panel has a good size design, so I cut my strips 3 3/4″ wide by Width of Fabric (WOF). Then using my ruler with a 60 degree line I cut my equilateral triangles and made my blocks. Once the blocks are sorted by predominate color it is time to design.

I know that when I cut my strips 3 3/4″ wide, my finished hexagon block will measure 6″ wide. I squared up the panel and measured the width. This panel after squaring up was 23″ wide. This means 3 finished hexagon blocks would measure 18″ and 4 finished hexagon blocks would measure 24″ wide. At this point I had two choices, trim the panel to 18″ wide or add fabric to make the panel 24″ wide. I decided to add fabric that I will hide later. You can decide to center your panel or offset it in any way.

I place the panel on my design wall and start the designing process. I always place my blocks on the design wall so the opening is north and south.

I have established that I will need four blocks wide across the top and the bottom. How deep it goes depends on me. I chose 4 blocks wide and 3 blocks deep on the top, and 4 blocks wide and 2 blocks deep on the bottom.

When placing the blocks on the side of the panel, every other block remains whole, while everything other is a half of a block. I don’t remove the half until I’m sure the block will remain there, I just fold it in half.

When I am satisfied with the design I number the rows as always and stitch the rows together in four groups: the top, bottom, right side & left side. I think of this as a giant block that has a rectangle in the center and will be constructed using a partial seam.

Decide whether to attach the top or bottom first. I am going to attach the top rows first by trimming the points that will be stitched to the panel, leaving a 1/4″ seam allowance.

Once I have stitched the top rows to the panel I need to choose which side to attach next, matching up dog ears as you would when joining the rows and stitch three quarters of the way down (partial seam).

By using a partial seam, it allows you to match up the dog ears of the bottom of the side rows. I will them mark where the panel hits the bottom rows, add a 1/4″ seam allowance and stitch to the bottom and then finish the partial seam.

It is now easy to stitch the remaining side rows to the panel matching the dog ears at the top and bottom. I have not finished this top yet as I’m teaching several classes soon and wanted to have a good visual example to show the class.

Now to hide my added fabric.

I made sure I had several left over blocks. I stitched the two halves together, pressed the seam open and using my ruler, trimmed 1″ off every side. This reduces my hexagon to about 4″ wide.

I use a Fusible Knit Interfacing, cut a square slightly larger than the hexagon. Place the bumpy side of the interfacing with the right side of the hexagon. Stitch around the hexagon using a 1/4″ seam allowance. Trim off the excess interfacing and snip a hole about 1″ wide.

Turn the hexagon right side out. Now the fusible ‘bumpy side is on the outside. Finger press the edges to flatten it out. This is a great way to get a perfect finished edge. Once I have decided where to place my smaller hexagons, I can use my iron and press them in place and finish them by stitching them down.

See how well the small hexagons hide my added fabric? I will post this OBW once I finished it.

I was closely supervised while making this OBW by my quilting buddy Tucker!

using-panels-for-a-obw-copy-1 Download

Quilting in Vermont

Wild Flowers in the Dead of Winter!

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I just finished my quilt donation to Quilter’s Dream Batting, Hopes & Dreams Challenge for ALS research. It is my hope that every quilter reading this will donate a quilt to help raise awareness and research money for ALS, Lou Gerhigs disease. 100% of money raised goes to ALS research.

All quilts donated are entered to receive fantastic prizes donated by wonderful sponsors.

Categories for prizes are:

Sew Lovely – 3 Quilters will win prizes valued at $500.

Sew Generous Individual – An Individual donating the most quilts will win $1,250 in great prizes.

Sew Generous Quilt Guild – The quilt guild donating the most quilts will win $1,250 in great prizes.

Sew Generous Professional – The professional quilter, longarmer or teacher who donates the most quilts will win $1,250 in prizes.

Sew Popular, 3 Winners – Top quilts are posted on the internet and voted on, 1st Place $1,250 in great prizes, 2nd Place $750 in great prizes and 3rd Place $50- in great prizes.

Sew Creative , 3 Winners – Fabric Postcards, wall hangings, handbags, accessories, miniature quilts, mug rugs, paintings, table runners, etc. which will be sold to raise funds for ALS Research. All entries will be entered into a drawing to win prizes valued at $500.

Sew Generous Quilt Shop – The quilt shop that donates the most quilts will win $1,250 in great prizes.

Donate one or more quilts by July 31st. Quilts postmarked after July 31st will be entered in next year’s Hopes & Dreams Challenge. For complete information go to Quilters Dream Batting and click on Hopes & Dreams Challenge for ALS.

Wild Flowers of Alder Creek

It is winter in Central NY, but there are flowers in my yard today!

I hope you take time to donate to ALS Research!

For The Birds, # 58

12 Replies

Somebody stop me! I need to be working on Studio 180 Design class samples. But I just had to make one more One Block Wonder. This great fabric is Brazilia by Alexander Henry. I wanted to try a different design approach.

I like the unevenness. Once I sewed the blocks together I bound the uneven edge with a burgundy fabric. I then laid the blocks over the original fabric and adjusted it until it was in a position I liked. I sewed the two together and then squared up the top.

It is a very subtle edge, but I like the way the original fabric flows into the blocks.

Here is a close up of where the original fabric meets the blocks.

I chose another tropical bird fabric for the backing.

You know, no quilt it complete without a label.

Yellow Brick Road With a Twist, #57

12 Replies

I’m making a fund raiser quilt for The Landmarks Society of Greater Utica whose mission is to promote the preservation and restoration of historically and architecturally significant buildings and sites. Through projects, community education, advocacy, marketing and planned activities, the Society engages its’ members, partners and the community in preserving the past and protecting the future.

I decided on a One Block Wonder because they are so much fun and visually interesting. As I’ve said before I’m a self proclaimed Wizard of Oz freak, plus L. Frank Baum was born in Chittenango, NY in 1856 not far from Utica. So I went to my Oz stash and chose my fabric. It all starts with 6 repeats of fabric. I decided to put one repeat on the back of the quilt because it was too large to use in the borders.

I cut my 6 repeats, aligned the fabric, cut my strips, cut my equilateral triangles and decided to start with a Yellow Brick Road.

I began by using the yellow blocks to start the path.

I was pleased with the design except for one block.

As I said earlier, the original fabric design was too large to use in the borders so I needed to pull from my Oz stash for the outer borders. I had already sewn the rows together when I noticed one block in the lower left of the quilt that kept catching my eye. I decided to embroider something in the block to tone it down.

Monkey in the Moonlight, I love it!

Borders on, now to quilt it.

Locked and loaded. I’m using Quilters Dream Orient Batting made from an exotic blend of bamboo, luscious silk and very soft cotton! After washing, when I took it out the dryer it just draped in my arms.

The shadows were in the way a little, but at least the sun is out on this beautiful April day in Central NY.

This is the 57th One Block Wonder that I have made.

One Block Wonders at Sew Nice

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I finished up the design portion of a One Block Wonder class I taught at Sew Nice in Norwich, NY. It was a great class with 11 wonderful creative women. We had loads of fun!