Monday, March 7, 2011

Disappearing 16 Patch Tutorial

Today I am guest blogging over at Stash Manicure  and sharing a part of my Happy Quilting Quilt-A-Long.  That is how to make a Disappearing 16 patch block :)  So pop on over and check it out or follow along below.  Either will work!!


Start by making some 16 patch blocks.  (If you have never made a 16 patch block there are excellent instructions on how to make them  here. )  You can make your blocks any size as long as they are all the same.  In the example we are using 5" blocks but I have also made it in 3 and 4 before and they all look great.  You will be able to get 2 Disappearing 9 patch blocks out of each 16 patch block.



Grab your first 16 patch block that you made in the last step.  Lay it out on your mat.  Don't worry to much about lining it up, it doesn't matter.  Now, if you have a yard stick it will probally be easier to use.  Unfortunately, I don't own one.  Crazy, I know.  If you don't have a yard stick use your long ruler and another ruler lined up together.  Lay your ruler diagonally across your entire block.  You want to try and make sure that your ruler is intersecting each of the corners.  Make sure to really smooth your corners out, they will want to creep in on you :)  Once you are all lined up, go ahead and cut along the diagonal.  



Now don't move your fabric.  Go ahead and pick up your rulers or yardstick and align them along the opposite diagonal.  Once again, make sure to intersect all of your points and to smooth out your corners.  Honestly, a lot of times your points will be all lined up and then you will find the edge doesn't line up.  Most often it just needs to be smoothed out.  Once you are all lined up go ahead and slice along the diagonal. 



Now you can go ahead and pull your 4 parts apart.  You will end up with 1 - 2 of these little scrap pieces hanging out either under your square or poking out.  Go ahead and cut them off.  This will help to reduce bulk making them easier to piece in future steps.



So out of each 16 Patch Block you will end up with 4 wonderful, adorable, easy to make, triangles :) 



Continue this process until all of your 16 patch blocks have been cut.  You will have a fun little pile of triangles.



Now, back to more random piecing fun!!!  Go ahead and grab 2 triangles and line them up as follows.  Once again, you are trying to keep it random so don't stress to much about what lines up where.  Just try to avoid having the exact same blocks across from each other :) 



Lay your top triangle onto your bottom triangle with right sides together.  Once again we are going to pin just like you did your 16 patch blocks.  Pin your seams first, making sure they match up.  Then pin your edges.  If you have any bubbles smooth them out with your finger and then put in a vertical pin :)  Continue to pin your blocks until you have done the required amount of sets.  (Once again, remember, if you are required to have an odd number of blocks you will have 2 leftover triangles)



Now it is on to sewing.  Once again, sew a 1/4" seam along your pinned edge.  Make sure to remove pins as you go and to double check your seams that they are laying flat by running your finger underneath the seam right before you sew across it.  Continue to chain stitch all of your Disappearing 16 Patch Blocks.



Go ahead and clip your threads between your sets.  Now, just like before, we are going to press the new center seam open.  Yes, you will have some little overhangs at the edges, we will deal with them shortly :)



Now, this step is not necessary but only takes a second and I like to do it to reduce bulk. Along the corners of the inner squares there will be a small triangle that is "hanging out".  (The little red plaid one)  I like to clip these out in all four of the corners.  Once again, not necessary, it just reduces bulk.



Lastly, turn over your block over.  You will have 4 little triangles sticking out from the center seam.  Go ahead and clip them even with the block.  Repeat for all 4 edges. 



And there you have it.  A stack of adorable Disappearing 16 Patch Block.  So now what can you do with these cute little guys, the possibilities are endless!!

***Note - When you go to sew these blocks together, you will be cropping off the points of the 4 inner squares, that is the way the design works, sadly, I didn't know how to put that in the images below, but you can see it in the actual quilt below.  I really liked the cropped look to give it a blended look with the additional sashing :)  

You can start by simply turning the blocks on their sides and sewing them together in rows to give this look.

Or, You can add some straight sashing cut on an angle and sew the blocks in rows to give this look.

Or, You can add some corner triangles with a “goose in the corner” to give this look.  This is the pattern we are doing for the Quilt-A-Long.  




And for fun, here are some images of the finished quilt from the Quilt-A-Long.  You can get all of the directions on how to make this quilt in the Quilt-a-Long link at the top of the page :)




Pin It!

34 comments:

  1. It was fun seeing how you made those blocks. I think I might try those later this week.

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  2. Thank you so much!!! I tried making this about a year ago - let's just say now I will be able to do it!!!!

    I am your 500th follower!!!

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    1. I loved this idea but I wish there was a picture the finished blocks put together. The illustrations are great but the colors are too orderly for a scrap quilt. I am going to try this idea !

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  3. I tried to leave a post on stash manicure yet it gave an unavailable error -- so here I am -- your work is so precise. If I were not already in a quilt along, I would be in yours for this disappearing 16 patch. Fantastic techniques! Just wanted to let you know that I have enjoyed visiting your blog for a while, even though have not commented very often.

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  4. fun and coool quilt along - will be following the progress.

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  5. Your idea and pictures are fabulous!!!! Make something else up.

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  6. These look great little blocks! Thank you for tutorial. :)

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  7. I love this block, but have a question. When you mention 5" blocks, are you talking about the finished block or the individual blocks that you sew together to make the 16-patch block?

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    1. It can be confusing when they use only the term "block" when they actually mean "square" for an individual cut piece and "block" for sewn pieces of squares/et al. This takes 16 squares to make a block.

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  8. What a great idea, as I am always looking for clever ideas. LOVE your site.

    Heather

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  9. I really like the look of this and it's a great idea, but don't all those squares-on-point lose their corners when the blocks are sewn together? You can't tell with just a drawing, but once those 1/4" seam allowances encroach on your nice squares, my guess is that they all end up "unpointy". I'm afraid that would be too frustrating visually as a finished product, so I would be inclined to stick with a different construction method myself.

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  10. Hi Cathy, yes you are right, you do get little corners. It is actually part of my design process and it mentions it in the quilt-a-long. Sadly, I didn't know how to add this into the EQ 7 drawings. But it really does look super cute :)

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    1. Hi Melissa! Do you have a finished quilt with the look Cathy is referring to? Just curious how the final product looks. Thanks!

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  11. Muy buen tutorial, Gracias, esta precioso!

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  12. Gotta try this one. Love scrappy quilts and would be a great way to use some of the stash. Thanks.

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  14. I love the design. Do you have any problems with the block as the finished edges are all bias edges? What is the final measurement of the block, after constructed, but before adding if with other blocks. Thank you.

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    1. So glad you like it. I didn't have any problems working with the bias. The blocks are 14" x 14" before you start adding to them but you can make them larger or smaller by simply changing the start size.

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  15. What a beautiful design and idea! You are so clever!

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  16. I love how this turned out, I have made a D9P but never 16. I think a grandson need something like this soon. Off to college and he said he has grown too tall for the one he has now.

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  17. But don't you cut the peaks off when you join the finished locks?
    I just can't get my head around this diagonal cut, unless missing points is acceptable now.

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  18. I agree with Dee Soden. When they are sewn together they would lose their points. How does that work?

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    1. Yes, the points definitely get lost. I wouldn't make this block because of this problem, but Melissa's quilt does look nice overall. It's all about how technical you want to get. It is ok for beginners I think and they can become more technical as they gain experience.

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  19. Love it! I am new to quilting but any idea how big to make the squares so that the end i have 12.5inch blocks please?

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  20. I love this pattern and the various things you can do with it! I'm new to quilting, just completed my 10th quilt this year and have many more yet to do. Can't wait to start on this one. Thank you for making the tutorial so easy even a beginner like me can easily follow!

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  21. curious as to how many charm packs you used and what the finished size is

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  22. Oh, I love this and all the variations you can do with those little triangles. I want to give this a go with a baby quilt for my future grandchild! pinning now.

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  23. I can't wait to try this one. It's on my scrappy to do list

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  24. I did not see an answer to one question about size of squares before one starts. I may have missed it, but I have same question. Is it 5 inch cut size for each square one would sew together to get the 16 patch? I am in a group of ladies making quilts for homeless children and forster children. We have been doing the disappearing 9 patch. Would love to do this one also. Thanks, hope you are able to reply. Love the design.

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    1. It doesn't matter what size your initial blocks are. 5", 5 1/2", 6" will all work. Personally, I would not recommend this arrangement for charity quilts because you are sewing bias seams after the blocks are cut. When a lot of people are working on blocks for quilts it is very important to keep the design structurally sound. I know because I'm the one who does the quilting for my group's charity quilts, and I cope with a lot of problems. Often the resulting quilt is not praiseworthy. If your group operates with each person making an entire quilt from start to finish, then it would be OK. That way, the person who makes the top has to deal with the problems.

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    2. Hi BettyBoo, I tried to respond to your question via email but you are a no-reply blogger so I am hoping you find the answer here. I used 5" squares, but absolutely, you can start with whatever size your prefer. I hope you enjoy making this quilt and am so glad you are considering it for such a wonderful cause ;)

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  25. The way to correct cutting off the corners is to add 5/8 to the four cut through squares running on diagonal (obviously turning them into rectangles.) Theis gives you the 1/4 inch you need to seam and not loose the points. Great fun pattern!

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Thank you so much for your sweet comments. I just love hearing from you!!
Have a Happy Quilting Day :)

Melissa