What is it? Triangles and quilts. What do they have to do with each other. Plenty. Using half-square and quarter square triangle blocks in various arrangements of color and size have produced literally thousands of quilt patterns. Solid colors, prints, batiks, fabric styles and block orientations all contribute to an unending array of designs. And triangles seem to be an easy thing to create. Right? But how do I know what size to cut my fabric blocks to begin with? There is a formula for the half-square block. You can either add 7/8″ to the finished size block you want or you can add 1″ to the unfinished size block taking into account your ¼” seam allowance. Or, if you want to make eight at a time, decide what size you want your unfinished block to be, add 1″ and then multiply that number by 2. That seems easy, right? No, not really. There are charts though. Nope, still a hassle. Deciding between finished and unfinished sizes, adding and subtracting, marking and cutting. The hassle is making all of those little triangles and making them perfect in both symmetry and size so everything fits together and we get the designs we wanted when we picked out our fabric. It can be a difficult task that will take all of the fun out of creating. Some quilters don’t even try. There’s got to be another way, right? There is. Clover has developed an amazing tool that takes out all of the hassle and allows us to create half square and quarter square quilt blocks with reckless abandon. It’s the No-Hassle Triangles Gauge. This is a nifty little tool that solves all of the triangle problems, does the math and even shows us exactly where to put our diagonal lines.
What does it do?The No-Hassle Triangles Gauge allows you to achieve your triangle quest with ease, either half square or quarter square. No guess work. No Mistakes. No hassle.
For half square triangles you refer to the left side of the gauge. There you will find five different sizes of blocks. Reset the locking slide to the diagonal line below the size desired for your quilt design. The two numbers above will tell you what size to cut your blocks and what size the final triangle block will be. Once the blocks are cut, superimpose the triangle gauge within a double stacked block and mark the center line. Sew your scant quarter inch on either side of the marked line and then cut, unfold and press. Voila! You now have a perfect half square triangle block.
For quarter square triangles you refer to the right side of the gauge where five size blocks are also indicated. Proceed to form half square blocks as above. Once complete simply match up two half square blocks, rotate 90° and repeat using the gauge to mark the final diagonal. Sew a scant quarter inch on either side, cut along the line and press open. Now you have perfect quarter square triangle blocks. What could be easier?
How do I share it? The No-Hassle Triangles Gauge is a class and an in-store demonstration. Just seeing it in its packaging will not convey its use or usefulness. Classes are obvious. For the in-store demo simply make a few half square and quarter square triangle quilt blocks and display them along with the gauge. A story board showing each step really conveys your message and will generate questions. Make sure all of your associates know how to do a demo. Show it with a quilt you’ve made at a meeting of your quilt guild. Everyone will want one.
