Squaring-up Tutorial and stuff

A friend of mine mentioned that she LOVES to quilt but HATES to square up. So do I, but I have found through painful experience that it is a necessary evil to those of us who like our quilts to match up. So I have provided here a short tutorial on it. Click pictures for full-size to make captions readable. Use your "back" button to come back to read the rest!


Whatever your size block is supposed to be finished, you will need to add 1/2" to it, to account for seam allowances. For instance, a 6" block in a quilt squares up to 6.5". Most things that need to be squared will have a diagonal line in the block (though not necessarily). Find what measure the center point of your block would be found at... using our example of squaring to 6.5", the center point would be 3.25". (These hourglass blocks are being squared to 3.5", so the center point shown in the pics is 1.75".) Put the center of your actual block at the center point of the size the block should be.


Put one corner of your ruler at the beginning point of your block. (I line up the diagonal line from the center measure to the top right corner. If you are left-handed you would put it at the top left corner.) Then be sure your other corners will cross the diagonal of your block at the finished squaring measure on the ruler... 6.5 inches down and 6.5 inches wide and the point where both 6.5 inch measurements meet (mine shown are at 3.5" at all points). Cut up the side and across the top, guiding the rotary cutter AWAY from your body and keeping your fingers OUT of the way!!


Pick up the ruler... rotate the block 180 degrees so that the two UNCUT edges are by the hand you cut with and across the top. Once again line up your center point and outer corner points with the measurement you want the block to be. Cut again, up the side and across the top, guiding the cutter as before and keeping your fingers AWAY from the cutter! TADA!! Perfect little units for your quilting pleasure!



And on that note, here is my block for today. Ain't it cute?


Also, I messed with my drum carder more tonight. Well actually we did a LOT of other things today but I am giving you the Reader's Digest version because I want to go to bed! LOL! Anyway, remember that roving that I overdyed with black the other day, and I said I think it is the character Joe Morelli in the Stephanie Plum novels? Well I decided that instead of spinning it from the roving and having random little sections of color, I would card it and see what I got. I have an opinion, but I am taking votes. Which do you like better? The roving or the carded batt? Leave a comment! Thanks!