Friday, January 25, 2019

Corner Triangle Tips and Tricks

There's been lots of sewing activity going on around here, mostly in making more blocks for the Summer quilt pattern from the Quilt Giving book (affiliate link). In the process, I've learned a few tricks in making these corner triangle blocks that I'd like share today.




Sewing these corner triangles is also known as the 'stitch-and-flip method', as the two pieces are stitched together, trimmed, and then the smaller piece is flipped over to the right side to finish the block. Let's have a look at the tips below to make the process easier.

The first tip is to mark the backside, from corner to corner, of the small square that will be the corner triangle. There's no room here for guessing a straight line, or using a guide placed on the machine. A straight pencil line to follow is what's needed here.


drawn line corner to corner
Once the outer edges of the small square are lined up with the larger block's corner, the next tip is to stitch just a thread's width to the seam allowance side of that drawn line.


stitch to the seam allowance side of the line

This compensates for that little bit of fabric that's taken up in the fold when the seam is pressed. And if all has gone well, the edges will line up too, eliminating extra trimming. I've placed lines on each edge to show how everything has lined up after pressing.


finished corner triangle


And here's an optional tip:  stitch another line 1/2" away from the first, within the seam allowance (the area going toward the corner of the large square). Then cut in between the two stitching lines.


corner triangle block and a half square triangle

And the result is the original corner square block, and a bonus HST.


corner triangle block and a half square triangle from start to finish

Now that's efficient sewing - creating the block needed, and getting HST's to use in another project, cutting down on a bunch of triangles to add to the scrap pile. Woohoo!

So I'm off to finish up my blocks and get them sewn into a quilt - there's more coming on the Summer quilt in the next few days.

Happy Quilting!


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7 comments:

  1. Good Morning Susan! I always enjoy reading tips and tricks. That fabric for the HSTs is so pretty - it looks like a fun swirly batik. A friend says those 'free' HSTs go in the Parts Department . . . and mine is getting rather full. I need to take an inventory and use up some of those older but not out-of-date parts. ~smile~ Roseanne

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  2. "And if all goes well" is a key phrase. I always fold my corner over before I trim it, to be sure it will line up okay. It's much easier to rip before the trim if I need to.

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  3. I, too, love that swirly paisley fabric in the small squares, both the color and the design. I follow the same process when doing sew and flip corners. Moving over just a thread width really makes a difference. I need to use up some bonus HST soon.
    Pat

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  4. Great tips. The bonus HSTs are great...unless you forget to do something with them LOL

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  5. Now this is a fabulous idea! I generally cut the corners off lazily with scissors and then throw away those freeby hst. I really need to do this.

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  6. What a great idea for using that little clipped off piece...thank you for sharing that!

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  7. Great tips, especially the bonus HSTs. Love efficient sewing!

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Thank you so much for commenting...you just made my day!