BLOCK OF THE MONTH AUGUST 2019

BLOCK OF THE MONTH AUGUST 2019

SQUARE DANCE

COLOURS AND FABRICS

Fabrics can be printed with patterns eg. pictures of planes, anchors, hobbies etc. or they can be geometric patterns, stripes or overall tone-on-tone patterns.  They can also be plain.

RED FABRIC

Strong red please.  No pinks.  No orange.

BLUE FABRIC

Strong blue please.  Royal blue, Navy blue or strong mid-blue would be great.

No aqua.  No teal.  No pale blue.

Please remember...

use 100% cotton fabrics

and 

gender neutral prints eg. no floral patterns.

Use 1/4 inch seam allowances.

CUTTING THE FABRICS

FIRST...Cut one strip of BLUE fabric and one strip of RED fabric 3 1/2 inch x about 25 inch long.

Iron the strips exactly on top of each other, as this will hold them together during the cutting.

Place them together on the cutting mat.

Note - My fabrics are separated a little so that both the red and the blue can be seen.

Even the edge of the strips by trimming off a small amount before cutting the pieces, then cut:

2 pieces 1 1/2 inch wide

2 pieces 3 1/2 inch wide

2 pieces 6 1/2 inch wide

SECOND...Cut one strip of BLUE fabric and one strip of RED fabric 1 1/2 inch x about 18 inch long.

Iron the strips exactly on top of each other, as this will hold them together during the cutting.

Place them together on the cutting mat.

Even the edge of the strips by trimming off a small amount before cutting the pieces, then cut:

4 pieces 1 1/2 inch wide

4 pieces 2 1/2 inch wide

This results in 14 pieces RED and 14 pieces BLUE fabric

CONSTRUCTING THE BLOCK

Let's talk about pressing seams...

There are no RIGHT ways and WRONG ways to press the seam allowances in patchwork.

Whatever way the seams are pressed, either to one side or open, is OK in patchwork so please
use the method you like.

I found I preferred the pressed open seams for most of my joins in this block.

The final seam I pressed to one side.

The Square Dance block is made from four parts that are each a square that I call a Quarter block.

There are two Quarter blocks of each colour combination.

Making the 

QUARTER BLOCKS WITH RED CENTRES

Join a red and a blue 1 1/2 inch square to each other.  Press the seam allowances.

Join a blue 2 1/2 inch rectangle to the side as pictured and press the seam allowances.

Join a red 2 1/2 inch rectangle as pictured and press the seam allowances.

Join a red 3 1/2 inch rectangle as pictured and press the seam allowances.

Join a blue 3 1/2 inch rectangle as pictured and press the seam allowances.

Join a blue 6 1/2 inch rectangle as pictured and press the seam allowances.

Make a second identical quarter block with a red centre.

Making the 

QUARTER BLOCK WITH BLUE CENTRE

Follow the previous instructions, using the opposite colour in each position.

Make two identical quarter blocks with a blue centre.

LAYOUT THE BLOCK

then

Join two quarter blocks together, with right sides together, (one with a red centre and one with a blue centre), placing the little blue square and the little red square together.

I like to stab through the space between the seam allowances that are pressed open.

Pin the matching seams together, sew the seam and press the seam allowances.

Repeat for the other two quarter squares.

Then join the two halves of the block together and press the seam allowances.

And here it is..

SQUARE DANCE BLOCK

Please, do not trim any blocks!  

Uneven edges don't matter as ALL blocks are trimmed a little to make them the required size for each quilt design that is created to meet the Requirements of each Recipient.

A PDF version of the block can be found HERE

Thank you for contributing blocks that will be made into quilts for deployed

Aussie Heroes by the Coffs Harbour Sewing Team.

Send your blocks to 

Sandy Corry

9 Wendouree Court

North Boambee Valley   NSW   2450

...and please include your email address if you would like me 

to advise you when they have arrived.

Alternatively, view the Wednesday Happy Mail Post on the blog to see

all the blocks that have arrived in the preceding week.

Thank you for being a part of this great venture.  Our quilts DO

make a difference to those serving us and our country.

Until next time,

Sandy