easy HST quilt tutorial...

One of my blog sponsors, Bear Creek Quilting Company, sent me some of their solids and I turned them into a quick baby quilt for a new nephew. This is just a simple half square triangle (HST) quilt, arranged in this layout. I wanted the quilt to fit a piece of 60" wide minky quilt backing so I went with 7.5" finished blocks to make the finished quilt approx 42" x 56". But the math is simple if you want larger/smaller blocks or a different finished quilt.

I also recommend working with good quality cottons, because thinner ones tend to stretch and warp even after squaring them up. For this project, Bear Creek Quilting has a nice selection of Robert Kaufman solids to choose from, and they are fantastic quality.

For this project, you will need 2 yards of your main fabric for each HST (I chose chestnut brown to coordinate with my nephew's room). Cut twenty-four 8.5" squares, you will have enough left over for binding. Then decide on how many coordinating solids you'd like and cut twenty-four more 8.5" squares. Each HST will be made with one main fabric square, and one coordinating fabric.

When making HST blocks, I prefer to start with a full inch to spare when cutting them. So for 7.5" finished blocks, I cut two 8.5" blocks. Then draw a line on the diagonal between opposite corners on the back of one of them, put them right sides together, and sew 1/4" on either side of the line. Then slice down that line, press open, and using a ruler and rotary cutter square them up to 7.5".

Then just lay them out in the design you like, sew the rows all together, and your quilt top is complete. There are many HST layouts out there, this is just one idea.