The Jane Stickle Quilt – Block D11

I am determined to improve my inset seaming skills. Towards that end, I have made great progress on right angle inset seams. But I have struggled with seams that meet in the corners of a block that are on the fabric bias. Jane’s block appears to use both bias inset seams and appliqué for the four outer square diamonds.  I also noticed that her center square’s corners do not meet the seams of the surrounding diamond and it appears she intentionally pieced in that way. So my first template recreates her original block as I believe she made it.

I really struggled with Block A13. So this time, I made sure not to remove the paper when it came time to join the corners. Plus I made sure the paper remained attached to those small seam areas by using a dot of fabric glue in the seam allowance. I think it really helped with stopping the bias edges from stretching out on me as I swiveled the seams together. It worked and it ended up being easier than I thought. Yay, battle with inset seams won.

Had this ended up being as frustrating as my experience with Block A13, I had a backup template for my second version of the block. For those who struggle mightily with inset seams, I’ve included my alternate template, which adds some additional seams to eliminate both the inset seams and appliqué. I ended up not needing it, but I totally get it if you want to simplify the process with your block.

PDF pattern: Jane Stickle - D11

Note: Unit A and Unit B in the pattern are for the sashing. I chose to make 5-inch blocks like the original rather than sash 4½-inch blocks. If you prefer to add your sashing when your blocks are all finished, just eliminate the A and B units from my pattern. The center sections will then be 4½ inches finished in size and you can add your sashing later.