The Buddy Blanket

Quilts provide an opportunity for variety and creativity to flourish. The traditional straight-row setting can be altered for a “setting on point.” This refers to rotating the blocks within a project, literally setting them on their point, commonly called a diagonal setting. It would seem that turning the blocks 45° it would not influence us so dramatically. You find a whole new perspective on traditional blocks. In this video, your instructors, Colleen Tauke and Laura Peters, will present a fun mini quilt called the Blanket Buddy, featuring the diagonal setting technique.

The Buddy Blanket download.

This video will focus on the basic skills of piecing and pressing strip sets. For pieced patchwork blocks to fit together correctly, accuracy is essential for success. Colleen and Laura stress the importance of these as the foundation for enjoying the process of quilting. Once the piecing is complete, they focus on the orientation of blocks and how this creates the zigzag design. The diagonal-set blocks make arrangements that contain motion and that adds interest to the finished project.

They highlight the construction of diagonal rows or the diagonal setting. Once all the blocks are correctly placed, Colleen and Laura address the outer-edge triangles needed for you to create and complete the design. This allows you to trim the sides of the quilt to make the “mini quilt.” We also provide close-up views of placing the ruler, marking, and trimming to ensure an accurate trim of the patchwork center in this diagonal setting project.

Our last discussion will cover the quilting process. This is one area many quilters need help with. We review our approaches to quilting and finishing the Blanket Buddy quilt. Follow the links here for more video instructions concerning accurate quarter-inch seams and binding tips.