We have made it to week 3 for the Blanco Quilt Sew Along and we are ready to start sewing our half square triangles! The Blanco Quilt is half square triangle heavy, and while they are a relatively simple block to create there are a few tips and tricks that I’d like to share for HST success! If you are just joining us, then you can find all of the information about the Blanco Quilt HERE, as well as an introduction to the Sew Along HERE.
Tips & Tricks for Half Square Triangles
Half square triangles are one of the foundational quilt blocks in the quilting world, and have been utilized in quilts for years! When I first started quilting I did not like them much at all, but over the years they have grown on me. Making them is pretty methodical and I can get in a nice rhythm while stitching.
Tip #1 – Use a Coordinating Thread Color
One of my favorite tips for half square triangles, and all piecing in general, is to piece your quilt using a thread color that matches your background fabric. I know having a cone of neutral thread is useful, but I am a sucker for all the pretty colors. I’ve matched my Riley Blake Rainforest solids to Aurifil 1148, and I use Aurifil 50wt for almost everything!
Tip #2 – Count Your Fabric Pieces Carefully
This tip is mainly for people making a Blanco Quilt using fat quarters. Make sure you do not use too many of your 3″ main fabric squares for the half square triangles. You’ll need 8 of each print for the HSTs and 8 of each print for the flying geese next week.
Tip #3 – Mark Your Lines or Get a Seam Guide
The first 3 times I made a Blanco Quilt I did the traditional method of marking lines down the center of my squares and then sewing a 1/4″ seam down each side. For my sew along version I purchased the New Leaf Stitches Clearly Perfect Angles Sewing Template & Clearly Perfect Slotted Trimmers. I read rave reviews and wanted to give them a try for myself.
In the video below you can see the Clearly Perfect Angles template and how it works to line up your fabrics. Overall I really like the template, it’s essentially a window cling that fits to the bed of your machine. It took some fiddling to get it lined up just right, but not marking HST (or flying geese next week) is a great bonus.
The ruler on the other hand wasn’t as ground breaking as I hoped it would be. It did seem like it was faster to trim the blocks before pressing, but that is were the positives end. As you can see below, the coating on the backside is already rubbing off, and some of my HST did not end up as accurate as I would have liked. I filmed a review and demonstration of the ruler and you can watch it on YouTube HERE.
Tip # 4 – Use A Tailors Clapper for Flat Seams
In all of my years of sewing I never invested in a tailors clapper. Then Modern American Vintage won me over with their gorgeous handcrafted tailors clappers and notions. 😍 A tailors clapper is a piece of carved hardwood, generally 2″ – 3″ in width and they come in varying lengths. You press/steam your quilt block then place the clapper on the seam immediately after pressing and hold it down until the fabric cools. This traps the heat and steam in the fabric, making the seam as flat as possible.
Can you tell which HST below was pressed without the tailors clapper and which one was pressed with the clapper?
Blanco Quilt Sew Along Week 3
That’s all I have for y’all for week 3 of the sew along! HSTs are a nice and simple first step into this pattern and I can’t wait to dive deeper in the coming weeks!
