Stepping Stones Quilt Block Tutorial

Today I am sharing a tutorial for the Stepping Stones quilt block designed in EQ7. I next had to decide on a positive or negative setting.












 I drew these up on my EQ7 quilt program.

I asked my son Russell for his opinion.  He favoured the one on the left in the positive setting.  But I really liked the one on the right in the negative setting!  It was just too hard to chose one over the other.  So I decided to make both!

Before we dive right in to the tutorial, there are a few points I would like to make....

First, the piecing of the diagonal seams went quickly using a piece of masking tape as a guide. This tape shows the center line and there was no need to draw a line on the pieces.  So simple and such a time saver!

After chain piecing, taking the pieces to the cutting board and trimming them all in a row made quick work of the trimming.  Then the pieces were brought to the ironing board and then snipped apart from each other before pressing.  I pressed ALL my seams open.

Second, the ability to sew an exact quarter inch seam, or even better, a scant quarter inch seam, will make the piecing of this block so much more enjoyable.  This is a tough block - a real skill builder.  Although I was wondering why I had chosen this block for my project without first considering how difficult it would be....  I did not resort to "Cry Me A River", but persevered and accepted my less than perfect points and the wonkiness of my blocks.  For assistance in achieving a 1/4" seam, please check out this post from my Top 10 Tips for New Quilters series.

Third, this block uses 1" finished strips.  Therefore, the use of a solid or a "reads like a solid" print is best suited to this design.  Using a directional print or any large scale print may result in less than appealing results.

For each block, you will need:

Making the Blocks:

Step 1:

Sew a white 3.5” x 12.5” rectangle to a print 1.5” x 12.5” rectangle.   Sew a print 1.5” x 12.5” rectangle between a white 2.5” x 12.5” rectangle and a white 1.5” x 12.5” rectangle.   Press the seams open.  Then crosscut each completed unit into (8) 1.5” wide strips.

Step 2:

Arrange these strips as shown and sew together.  Make (2) of each of these units.  Press the seams open.

Step 3:

Place a white 1.5” x 2.5” rectangle and a white 1.5” x 1.5” square onto the ends of a print 1.5” x 3.5” rectangle.  Mark the diagonals, shown by the black line and sew along this line.  Trim the corners as shown in red.  Press the seams open.  Make a mirrored unit, as shown below, and sew these units together.  Press the seams open.   Make (4).

Step 4:

Arrange your units made in steps 1 to 3 around a print 2.5” square, as shown.  Sew units into rows. Press seams open.  Sew the rows together to complete the block.  Press seams open.

Block should measure 10.5” square

This tutorial is now listed on my tutorial page here.

As you can see from these pictures that I shared on instagram.... My points are not good.  My seams are oversized.  And my blocks turned out kinda wonky.

But I took my own advice as outlined at the beginning of this tutorial and adjusted my needle, giving me a scant 1/4" seam.  The second set of blocks turned out so much better.  No more wonky!  The points were matching much more easily.  And the blocks were laying nice and flat.

The completed quilt tops overall dimensions were surprisingly different as well.  The first quilt blocks made using an inaccurate 1/4" seam resulted in a finished top measuring 38.5" x 48.5"

Positive setting with inaccurate 1/4" seam finished at 38.5" x 48.5"

The second quilt blocks made using an accurate 1/4" seam resulted in a finished top measuring 41" x 51".  This is a 2.5" difference in both the width and the length.  That's Incredible!  Absolutely astounding!

Negative setting with accurate 1/4" seam finished at 41" x 51"

Hoped you enjoyed the tutorial!
If you are interested in making these twin baby quilts, the pattern is available in my pattern shop here.

Keep On Quilting On!

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