Tilted Block Tutorial

This post is a supplement to the second installation of the Duo Quilt-A-Long, Rachel is posting today. She is posting the block tutorial and I am showing how to tilt the block.

Doing a tilted block might look difficult but it really isn't - it simply takes a minute or two of planning and then you are good to go. I have done this tutorial in two different ways - a video and written. Before you proceed any further let me say something: I am not a videographer and I had no assistance in the filming of this video. Therefore, I will apologize up front...hehehe

Another confession - this is the first tutorial I have ever written. If it is rubbish please say so. You can't hurt my feelings and the only way to improve is to know the truth.

Here are the steps to tilting a block:

• Finish your block up to the last round. Do not cut or attach your final round until you do some planning.

This is where the block starts - before the final round is applied.

•  Lay the above-mentioned block out on a cutting mat. Decide how much you want your block to tilt. In other words - do you want a dramatic tilt or a slight tilt. The choice is yours. 

• Once you have that determined, lay the bottom right-hand corner (assuming your block is tilting to the right - opposite corner if tilting to the left) on any 1/4 inch line on your cutting mat and your bottom left-hand corner (opposite if tilting the other way) on another line. This line is determined by how severe you want your tilt. In my example I only wanted about a 2" difference. 

Bottom right-hand corner laid on 1/4" mark

Bottom left-hand corner laid on 2" mark

•  This will show you the approximate cutting width of your strips - measure from the bottom left-hand corner of your block to the line you have your bottom right-hand corner lined up on (taking into consideration seam allowance). For a 2" tilt I would need approximately (yes approximations are all you are looking for here) 2.5" strips. I always cut my strips bigger than this measurement.I would rather have a little waste than be short of fabric (not only that - I may change my mind just before cutting). In this case I cut my strips 4". 

You can see what the finished tilt will look like here.

•  Attach strips just as you have all the other strips in your block

• This step can eventually be avoided (once you are more comfortable with the technique). Lay block back out, line a ruler up just as you did the block with the lines on the cutting mat - bottom right-hand corner (opposite for a different tilt) on the 1/4" mark and bottom left-hand on whatever distance you determined fit the tilt you desired (for me it would be on the 2 1/4" because I wanted a 2" tilt and I need 1/4" seam allowance). Draw a line with a pencil or a disappearing pen (I use the friXion pens). Do this on all four sides - lining up the ruler the same way. 

• If this measures the way you want your block to measure and looks like the tilt you are after then cut on those lines. If not, redraw, maybe increasing or decreasing your left-hand measurement. The right-hand measurement should always be 1/4" - this will ensure it butts up to the border, next block, or binding. Of course, if you want your block to float you can increase that measurement too. 

The "right" side (although in the picture it looks like the top)

The finished block - tilted to the left

•  If you look at the top picture and this final picture you will see I made the first cut the wrong way - causing the block to tilt to the left instead of the right. Luckily for me, I didn't mind which way my block tilted. Lesson to learn - pay attention and ALWAYS do the bottom cut first (if you block is directional). If your block is not directional, it doesn't really matter because all you have to do is spin the block.

**Notes: Watching the videos should help this all make sense if it doesn't.Oh and about the second video...I had to trim it down to under 10 minutes in order to post it on YouTube. So if it seems to stop and start abruptly you know why. UGH! Who knew it had to be under 10 minutes? Not me!!







Please email me any questions you may have. I am glad to help.

Here is how it will look when you put four tilted blocks together.

Put in a square layout

Put in a table runner layout (this is what I chose)

Enjoy making your block whether you decide to tilt them or not AND don't forget to post pictures in the Duo Quilt-A-Long Flickr Group.