Hands 2 Help - Speed-piecing 4-Patches Tutorial

I am so excited to be participating with Hands2Help Comfort Quilt Challenge 2023 hosted by Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict and my very first guest post! 

I love to make scrap quilts, making something from the leftovers and castoffs. (Ok, I love making scrap blocks. Finishing the quilts is another story, ha!) Sometimes though, I want to use a speedier piecing method rather than sewing individual scraps together. 

Bonnie K. Hunter of Quiltville.com makes the most wonderful scrap quilts and generously shares many free patterns. One that I especially like and have made before is her Bricks & Stepping Stones pattern.  Here's the flannel quilt I made using this pattern. You need a lot of  4-patches.

I’m going to show you how to make a bunch of 4-patches (quilting term for 60!) with less measuring / cutting steps, and fewer seams. If you have ever made a Trip Around the World quilt, this is a similar method.

Please read through all steps before starting. Piecing accuracy is really important! Use a scant ¼” seam allowance.

These instructions will make 60 (yes!) 4-patches that finish at 3 inches (3 1/2" unfinished). I’ve also included cutting measurements to make other sized 4-patches at the end of the post. 

You can use just two colours of fabric, or go scrappy, and use a variety of lights and darks.

From yardage, cut:

•  3 strips – 4” x WOF* (dark)

•  3 strips – 4” x WOF (light)

*width of fabric minimum 41" 

1. Sew the strips together in pairs, alternating light and dark. Measure your strip set. It should be 7 1/2" wide. If it is too narrow, fix your seams now, otherwise your 4-patches will be too small. If it is wider than 7 1/2", you can leave it if you don't mind doing a bit of trimming to square up your 4-patches, or fix it now if you don’t want the extra work. Personally, I don’t mind the little extra. 

2. Sew the pairs together. Press seams toward dark fabric.

3. Square up one edge. Cross-cut the strips into 4” segments (pieces will measure 4” by 21 1/2”). You should end up with 10 segments. 

4. Flip every second segment and pin the segments together to make a checkerboard. Sew and press seam to one side.

5. Align the 1 3/4" line on your ruler with the first seam to the right on the short side of the checkerboard . (If you are left-handed, you can measure and cut from the left side). Make sure the ruler line is lined up from top to bottom, adjust if necessary (a little tug here and there may help). Cut. 

The segment will measure 2".

6. Flip the 2" segment around and sew it to the opposite side of your checkerboard. Press the seam to one side.

7. Turn your checkerboard on your mat so the long side is on the right (left if left-handed).
Align the 1 3/4” line on your ruler with the first seam in from the right edge. Make sure the ruler line is lined up from top to bottom, adjust if necessary. Cut.

8. Flip the 2" segment around and sew it to the opposite side of your checkerboard. (You may need to press seams so they nest together). Press the seam to one side.

Your checkerboards will now look like this. Now comes the fun part!

9. Make sure your checkerboard is laying straight on your cutting mat. Align the 1 3/4” line on your ruler with the first seam in from the left edge this time. Make sure the line is lined up from top to bottom, adjust if necessary. The 3 1/2" line should be lined up along the left edge of the checkerboard.  Cross-cut into 3 1/2” segments.

10. Continue aligning the 1 3/4" line with the seam line, and check that the 3 1/2” lines up to the left edge (right edge if left-handed). Cut into segments.

11. If you can move around your table, keep the pieces lined up on the cutting mat, or cut each segment individually. Repeat the steps above. Align the 1 3/4" line to the seam and cut into 3 1/2" unfinished 4-patches. 

Congratulations! You just made 60 4-patches!! Were you counting seams? If my count is correct, there were only 26 seams sewn! How cool is that?

If you make another set, you will have enough to make your own Bricks and Stepping Stones quilt (with a few 4-patches left over)! 

4-Patch Finished Size	Cut Strips
2”	3”
4”	5”
6”	7”
8”	9”

Remember the sneak peek I mentioned in my To-Do Tuesday post? This is what I am doing with it. 

1. I followed steps 1 - 10 above. I then sewed a 6 1/2" wide strip of bright fabric to the segment. Press seams to bright fabric. 

2. I straightened the edge, and then cut 3 1/2" segments, aligning the 1 3/4" line with the 4-patch seams. 

And here are some of the blocks up on the design wall. 

I hope you will give this method a try.  Please let me know if you find anything confusing. I will be making my quilt top for Victoria's Quilts Canada. At the retreat I attended in early March, I met a local representative so I'll arrange to drop off the quilt top to her when it's done. 

I hope you consider joining the Hands 2 Help Challenge, too!

Sharing with Sarah at Confessions of a Fabric Addict

Quilting is more Fun Than Housework Oh Scrap!