Scrapitude Triangles

The newest clue for the Scrapitude mystery quilt has to do with triangles. The idea is to cut 5.25″ squares into quarter square triangles before sewing.

I didn’t, yet, do all the cutting as instructed in the first clue, partially because I wanted to see if I could find a better way, more preferred way to cut. I also didn’t want to delve into my stash completely yet. I still wanted to try and use as many scraps from my scrap bin as possible. Some of the drawers are getting pretty full.

EZ Companion Angle Ruler
EZ Companion Angle Ruler

In order to cut from my scrap bin, I had to be able to cut from smaller scraps. I don’t have a lot of 5.25″ scraps laying around. It occurred to me, as I was thinking through this process, that I had a ruler that would make cutting the quarter square triangles a bit easier. I found the EZ Triangle Companion Ruler (I think I bought this for the Easy Street Mystery quilt) and the Fons & Porter Half & Quarter Triangle Rulers. Neither had been opened (ooops!), so I examined them and, for no particular reason, chose the Fons & Porter to try first.

I cut one 5.25″ square the way Charlotte suggested so I had a sample. I used that to determine the size I needed to to cut using the HST/QST ruler. The directions on the Fons & Porter ruler tell you to cut a strip size of 2.5″ to get the size QSTs I needed. This cut off the tip of the triangle at the top (see that tiny black triangle at the tip of the ruler in the photo below?). I wasn’t sure why I would want to cut off the tip since it didn’t create the bunny ears. This made me wonder if that ruler would work. I didn’t want a hole at the point where those triangles intersected with other piecing.  Nobody was around to answer on Twitter, so I cut the strips 2.75″ and used that dimension as a guide for cutting additional triangles.

“Strips” is a bit of an exaggeration as I was using scraps. I tried to find scraps that were at least 2.75″ wide.

Fons & Porter Half/Quarter Square Triangle Ruler
Fons & Porter Half/Quarter Square Triangle Ruler

Using this ruler took a lot longer than cutting already cut 5.25″ squares into quarters would, but I was able to use a nice variety of fabrics and I was able to clear out my scrap bin a little more.

I found that I had to have a nice straight cut line on which to line the correct cutting line.

One confusing thing, which I have found with other rulers, is where to put the fabric under the ruler. Some of the lines, including the one I needed to use, were quite thick. Do I line the ruler on top of the fabric with the bottom of the thick line even with the cut line? Or something else?

I just decided to be consistent. I can always trim.

If you haven’t done the triangle step of Scrapitude, I hope you’ll try using one of these rulers to vary your fabric selection.

Scrapitude Posts

Author: Jaye

Quiltmaker who enjoys writing and frozen chocolate covered bananas.

11 thoughts on “Scrapitude Triangles”

  1. I think I will invest in the companion ruler before Bonnie Hunter’s next mystery comes out. For Scrapitude, I started with the 5.25″ square, but ended up with more of each print than I would like. I like the idea of being even more scrappy.

    1. I didn’t think of the squares making the QSTs not scrappy enough, but you are right. that could be a problem. Perhaps you can NOT use those fabrics in other steps?

  2. I own several sets of Marti Michell’s templates, and find they are great for scrappy quilts. I’ll often print out a template from EQ (or use the book) to find which template fits. Scraps can be stacked 4-6 layers when cut, and the backs of even the small templates have invisigrip film scraps on the back so they don’t slip.

      1. Hey Jaye, I looked at Scrapitude and liked the idea, but have too many other projects going right now (including 3 versions of a mystery quilt that has multiple layouts). If you’d like me to give you a more in-depth of the template sets and how useful they are, I’d be glad to. For scrap quilting or other blocks, they are very handy to use rather than a ruler with tape to get various sizes.

  3. 5.25 isn’t a scrap in my language. You could have left the little triangle off the top and not had hole issues but I find that little triangle useful when lining up patches to sew. Did you check to see if you had any Acuquilt templates the right size?

    1. Well said, Cathy. 5.25 isn’t a scrap for me either. I remember hearing, on the podcast interview with Charlotte, that she cuts up her yardage into certain sized pieces, like Bonnie Hunter, and 5.25″ is one of them. I suspect she was able to pick from a wide variety of 5.25″ squares where the rest of us have true scraps. I was having a hard time finding 2.5′ pieces!

      I didn’t look for a Go die, but that would have been a good idea. I’ll look and see if I have one. For future reference.

        1. Good idea. I like the idea of cutting my scraps into usable pieces, but I don’t always have a project that fits the pieces. I am going to keep my idea in my head for future projects.

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