Couple of Cool Corners

I stumbled across mitered corners a while back. I haven’t yet tried it, but it looks easy enough for me to manage following Amy’s Creative Side’s instructions with lovely pictures!

As she suggests, I will start with a small block rather than the large quilt’s border. I can see using this method whenever I need to add an extra bit of fabric, to make orphan blocks work, or one series of blocks larger, to match the size of other blocks in a series ~ all within the same quilt top.

I’m planning an article next week that this technique may just come in handy! Math hurts my head and I do everything I possibly can to avoid math problems/issues! But, I have several more ideas and blocks to share first!

Have you seen lovely quilts like this that have sashing (white strips) and cornerstones (blue squares)?

Oh, my… would you believe

this is a Disappearing Nine Patch!

Amazing, indeed! Check out Obsessively Stitching's blog for the details! It's just like we went over the other day.... it's all in the original color placement, stitching, cutting, then arrangement! No separate sashing or cornerstones needed!

Enjoy!

Simple to Spectacular - the Nine Patch Block

I’m thrilled the quilter’s world is full of creative people! Take the Nine Patch block design for example, oh, my, goodness!

Creating a simple “Nine Patch” is pretty self-explanatory ~ take 9 squares of equal size fabric (say 4.5"), stitch three together, 3 more together, and another 3 together, then stitch the 3 rows to make the block - clear as mud, I know!

A simple 9 patch quilt can be stunning within itself! It's all about color and placement. I found these on Pinterest after searching "9-Patch":

Nine patch blocks also works beautifully with other blocks. For examples I went again to Pinterest!

(Have you noticed, I love Pinterest! It's the greatest thing since sliced bread!)

Nine patch blocks mixed with Half Square Triangles,
like we did yesterday!

Or, a same-size solid block will make the 9 patch block pop out nicely, like this one!

I took a "simple" nine patch with narrow sashing, and created a wall hanging for my niece... look closely, it's a completed Sudoku puzzle! I shared how I worked it out last year in this article.

But, how do we take a simple nine patch block and make them even more spectacular without all the tedious detailed work?

I made 3 of these nine patch blocks (each for the bottom/top of this quilt), keeping the color/print arrangement the same on each block I created.

I cut the blocks up like Jenny Doan from Missouri Star Quilt Company shows in her video, rearranged, then re-stitched, making the 9 patches “disappear”! I wrote about it in detail back in March, and shared Jenny’s amazing video!

While looking through Pinterest, I’m discovering the “disappearing 9-patch” is as versatile in arranging to make different “looks” as a log cabin block… it’s all in how you turn the “mini blocks” and stitch back together!

This is a lovely disappearing 9-patch quilt a friend of mine recently created!

Great job, Ellie!
I love the way she arranged the "mini blocks"
and added sashing!

In researching for this article, I stumbled upon cutting a nine patch diagonally (both ways) then re-stitching! Take a look at how Scraps of This and That blog explained with lots of pictures! I’ve not yet tried this, but it is high on my to-do list!

Just one more... she calls it the Double Trouble Disappearing Nine Patch! Clever lady!

Experiment. Play. Enjoy!

Where did it go?

Have you tried the Disappearing Nine Patch quilting block? Oh my goodness! It is magic! I found the Missouri Quilt Company’s tutorial on YouTube a while ago and hadn’t tried it until this week. Absolutely love it! By the way, if you're wanting to learn how to piece quilts, or learn new/quick tricks/tips, I highly recommend their videos!

I did one thing differently than what Jenny shows us ~

I didn’t have nine different colors/prints, only six. I wondered what would happen, so I tried! I love how it turned out…

Three "Disappearing Nine Patch" blocks

This is the “recipe” I used, keeping the same arrangement before and after on each block made:

Prepare nine patch as normal –

Cut pieces into 3.5” squares (or whatever consistent size you prefer)

Stitch 3 squares together (using 1/4” seams)

Stitch the 3 rows together

You now have a 9.5” block with raw outside edges

Cut in half horizontally

Cut in half vertically

Flip the cut pieces around and arrange as desired. Sew the now four patches together! (You may notice, this is arranged differently than what was used on the quilt. That's okay because these "extra" pieces are going on another project!)

WARNING: The block will now measure 9” with raw outside edges (giving you a 8.5” finished block – which can throw you off if you’re wanting a finished 9”)

NOTE: I’m wondering… if I had originally cut the squares 4” – would it work out to be 9.5" unfinished? Maybe I'll try it again, just to see! I'm not good at math... 

Bottom line, don’t worry about having all different colors to make this cool disappearing nine patch block!

I think it turned out nicely, giving the splash of color I was looking for to lengthen this Quilt of Valor top I created for the Last Man Standing.

Try it! I think you'll enjoy the magic!