Joan in AK

Eddie had a quilt on here a couple of days ago using a layer cake. It was hourglass blocks with a border. It looked so pretty that I wanted to make one and had a KT Kansas Winter layer cake. For my practice hourglass block , I used 4 of the 10" squares. I do my block this way: I laid light on dark, sewed 1/4 inch on each side of the diagonal, cut down the middle, pressed to the dark side. I put one half square triangle block on top of the other, light on dark, dark on light, drew a diagonal line perpendicular to the seam, sewed 1/4 " on each side, cut open and pressed- one hourglass block. When I squared up my block, I didn't set the ruler right, and my block is off. I had the diagonal line of the ruler on the diagonal line of the block, but something else wasn't set up right. Hope someone can help.

LucyInTheSky

Does your ruler have a 45 degree line? If not, I would suggest getting one that does.

What I do, is I put the 45 deg line on one of the hour glass lines (where the diff fabrics meet) and then whatever I do, I keep the 45 deg line lined up.

So now, if I have an hour glass that is 5.5" and I need it to be 5" (knowing from the pattern), I move the ruler so that the top edge of the ruler measures 5", keeping the 45 deg line along the different fabrics. As long as you stay with the 45 deg line, it will make it so you have equal fabric on both sides of the center. So I get the ruler where the edge is where the fabrics on the right meet, and the 5" marking is where the fabrics on the left meet. I then cut 2 sides (holding the ruler really still). Flip and repeat to cut the other 2 sides.

Does that help?

Joan in AK

I had the ruler's 45 degree line on the block diagonal like you said. I started out with 10" squares, but didn't check the size after sewing. I think I was trying to square them up to 9". I didn't use a pattern, so there was no set block size. I know that if you want to do hour glass blocks this way, having the squares 1 1/2" bigger, gives you room to get a nice square block. Perhaps I should try to square it up to 8 1/2".

Dora Taggart

Hello I ask Eddie for the instructions and he posted them for us . Go to the top of this page and look for search and type in Leather Diamonds quilt and it will pull up page 1 it will have a picture but if you go to page 3 there will be a picture and instructions.

Joan in AK

Hi Dora, that wasn't the quilt. It was this one from Jan 10th
http://www.quiltingboard.com/t-33761-1.htm

mic-pa

WHen you have the ruler set with the 45 degree angle if your block is going to be cut 8 1/2 inces put the center mark on 4 1/4 inces an trim two sides, then turn your ruler around and then set the ruler for 8 1/2 inches again putting the 45* angle thru the center and trim again. You block should be the proper size. No matter what size you want to end up your first cut you always center the ruler exactly half of what the final size of the unfinished block will be. Marge

Oklahoma Suzie

Hope you get them squared.