Half Square Triangles

We have been laying low for the past month.  We are all fine but we made a trip to Texas to deliver some samples to a new quilt shop in Corpus Christi (Sew Hooked) and to spend some time with the kids.  We wanted to celebrate Donald's birthday with him (I found an awesome chess set to go with the quilt!) and there was also a re-enlistment ceremony for him that we wanted to attend.  It was held on the USS Lexington and this was the first time Bob and I had ever been on an aircraft carrier.  I know its a really old carrier, but it was still awesome.  This four year enlistment will put him at 22 years in the USAF.  

Grandma never passes up an opportunity to spend time with either of her grandsons.  I can't believe how big Benjamin is getting.  And he is a talker!  I was worried that he wasn't very verbal, especially knowing his older brother.  I guess when Everett is around, Ben didn't need to talk.  Now, he is a talking machine and it is so much fun to listen to him.

Laura and I had been working on some new Christmas designs and wanted to get our samples made up.  We really did get a lot done in such a short time.  I will be sharing these new pieces over the next week or two.  We are currently making some videos to show how easy and quick these projects are so there is still a lot of time to get them made up for this season.

In the meantime, I wanted to share our half-square triangle foundations with you today.  I have always hated making these because the diagonal seam that is on the bias always gets out of whack.  So, even in patterns that aren't made entirely on our foundations, I have found that I can make these up and use them in any commercial patterns.  You can't tell that some areas have the foundations in them and other areas don't.  That is one of the reasons our foundations are so versatile.  You can use them anywhere!  So, I made a batch of two-inch half-square triangle blocks to share with you here.  To start, cut a 3" strip from two different fabrics.  Place the right sides together and press them.  This helps to keep the two fabrics together.

The next step is to cut this strip into 3" squares.

Then cut the squares in half, diagonally.  Remember, you have two layers of fabric together through all of this.

Set a foundation block on each triangle set.  I like to cut at the cutting table and pin the foundation block to each triangle set and then take the whole stack to the sewing machine.

When I get to the sewing machine, I chain piece the blocks.

Once the whole batch is stitched, I clip them apart and then press the fabric open.  Then it is time to take them to the cutting mat and trim them up, 1/4" from the solid line on all four sides.  And they are done!

You can see from the trimmings, there isn't much waste but every block is exactly the same size and ready to go into your quilt.

We offer packages of the half square triangle blocks in a variety of sizes, from one inch up to five inchex.  If you haven't tried them, I highly recommend them for any project!

 I hope you are staying safe and staying healthy.  HAPPY QUILTING!