When I work on the squares for these quilts I follow a very simple process. I cut out squares of interfacing that have an inch overlap (for these 9”x 9” squares I cut out 9 roughly 11” x 11” squares of interfacing). I stack the interfacing out on the table next to the pile of pieces, a laid out template of the square and a piece of paper where I can stack up quilt pieces that are on the big or small size when it comes to fitting pieces into the square.

I start with the center piece and work clockwise piecing on the first row, working clockwise:

As I fit the pieces on I try each piece in each position and if it doesn’t fit I put it in either the ‘biggish’ or ‘smallish’ pile for later use. I always wait till the very end of the quilt to do any trimming of pieces.

When the first row is complete I start on the second row:

I find matching pieces for the full row but then sew them in one at a time, pausing as I sew to feed in each new piece. The placement starts to get a little trickier the further along I go because there is more to line up.

I keep the process up, adding a row at a time, circling around from the center out. It’s very methodical and I find it oddly soothing. It’s always a little different with each pattern. For this one I’m trying to keep the newspaper article together so that the diamond and the four triangles that go with it are in the same square. This means those triangles go where they go whether they fit or not. The technical sewing term is fudging.

Fortunately most of them, at least in this first square, fit more or less so the ‘adjustments’ were kept to a minimum. Here is how the finished square came out:

This is another one where I really like how it looks from the back:

Happy Labor Day