Sewing Directions for Drunkard's Path Quilt Blocks
Some quilt blocks consist of a foundational piece or two that can create many different patterns, depending on the way you sew them together. The Drunkard's Path is an example of this variation, with its two simple pieces that you can position in many different ways. The biggest challenge in sewing Drunkard's Path quilt blocks is the curved edge between the two pattern pieces, but with practice, you can master the technique of sewing curved edges.
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Thin cardboard
- Ruler
- Pencil
- Scissors
- Cotton fabric (light and dark colors)
- Iron
- Cutting mat
- Quilting ruler
- Rotary cutter
- Fabric marker
- Pins
- Sewing machine
- Cotton thread
Instructions
-
-
1
Measure and cut a 3 1/2-inch and a 2 1/2-inch square from the thin cardboard. Place the larger square on a flat surface so the top and bottom edges are straight. Make a point on the bottom edge of the square, 1 1/2 inches from the bottom left corner. Make another point on the right edge of the square, 1 1/2 inches from the top right corner. Join these two points with a curved line. Place the smaller square in the same position and draw a curved line to connect the top right corner and the bottom left corner.
-
2
Cut along the lines you drew on both squares. Discard the small bottom right corner from the larger square and the small upper left corner from the smaller square. These are the two templates you will use to cut your squares.
-
-
3
Iron the cotton fabric to remove all wrinkles. Align the selvage, or uncut, edges with the right sides of the fabric facing out. Bring the folded edge up and align it with the selvage edges. Iron the folds so they are smooth and crisp, and place the folded fabric onto the cutting mat so the folded edge is nearest you and the selvage edges are at the top.
-
4
Cut eight 3 1/2-inch squares from the light and dark fabric and eight 2 1/2-inch squares from the light and dark fabric -- 32 squares altogether, 16 large and 16 small. Place the large template onto the large fabric squares and trace along the curved edge with the fabric marker. Place the smaller template on the smaller fabric squares and repeat the same process. Cut along the lines with the scissors and discard the small corners of fabric.
-
5
Choose a large light piece and a small dark piece. Fold each piece in half along the curved edges and place a small dot at the center points with the fabric marker. Make 1/4-inch-long snips along the curved edge of the large piece with the scissors.
-
6
Place the large piece and small piece together along the curved edges with right sides facing each other. Match up the center dots and pin the pieces together.
-
7
Stitch along the curved edge with a 1/4-inch seam allowance. Remove the pins and press the seam allowance toward the larger piece.
-
8
Repeat the same process, matching up light and dark pieces, until you have 16 small blocks. Arrange the blocks together in four rows -- four blocks across and four blocks down. Experiment with different placements of the light and dark areas of the pieces to create different patterns.
-
9
Stitch the blocks together in rows and then sew the rows together using a 1/4-inch seam allowance. Press the seam allowances flat.
-
1
