soscrappy: Rainbow Scrap Challenge 2015 Sampler - June

This is another of those great "leader and ender" blocks with a great secondary pattern. With a slightly different color placement it makes a fabulous x as an alternate block. I switched the colors though for the diagonal effect in a single block.

You will need two four patches for this one. They come from 2 inch squares and can easily be pieced individually if you have lots of 2 inch squares handy, but as I was working with pieces of fabric, I just cut a 2 inch strip of blue and one of background fabric. Each of these strips will need to be at least 8 inches long. In addition, you will need 2 extra squares of background fabric that are the same size. Finally, cut 3.5 inch squares in blue. These are the squares that are traditionally done in background fabric. Feel free to mix up the color arrangement if you like.

For the larger squares, you will use "flip-and-sew" corners. In order to make these, just place a two inch square in alternate corners of each 3.5 inch square and use a pencil to draw a diagonal line corner to corner. Sew on the drawn line. You may also sew a parallel line about 3/8 of an inch closer to the corner to yield bonus triangles. This part is optional of course.

While sewing, go ahead and layer the two strips right sides together and sew those too.

Press the strip set with the seam toward the dark fabric in the strip set and press the background triangles open on the large squares.

Now onto the second phase of the cutting. Sub-cut the strip set into 2 inch segments. You will need 4 total units. Combine these into pairs and sew to make four patches.

OK, now all your sub units are ready to go. Alternate them as shown, making sure that the blue squares form a nice diagonal running parallel to the seams of the alternate blocks.

Sew your subunits together into a larger four patch which should measure 6.5 inches unfinished.

Add the star points following the tutorial found on the RSC15 tab. Tada! Coming soon, I'll catch you all up on the alternate block directions. I've fallen a bit behind, but today is the day to play catch up again.