I really loved making the tiny heart quilt block, so I started looking around for other quilt blocks I could make tiny. And I came up with this tiny cat quilt block tutorial! Expect a whole series on this!
Yes, it's really just a cat head. But it's still cute! This is a smaller version of my Cat Block, which is available for purchase at my Etsy shop. This one finishes at 2.5 inches, like the tiny heart quilt block.
So, how do you make this one? Well, you start by cutting the fabric. You'll need background fabric and cat fabric. Scraps will work fine.
Here's what you need to cut (rectangle measurements are height by width):
From the cat fabric:
-Two 1.5 inch squares
-One 1.5 inch by 2.5 inch rectangle
-One 1 inch by 1.5 inch rectangle
From the background fabric:
-Two 1.5 inch squares
-One 1 inch by 1.5 inch rectangle
Once you get everything cut out, you need to turn the 1.5 inch squares into half square triangles. I forgot to get pictures of this part, but if you'd like to look at pictures, the tiny heart quilt block post has great pictures, and the process is the same. You just won't have the bigger squares.
To make the half square triangles, start by matching up the two background squares to the two cat squares. Draw a line from one corner to the opposite corner, right down the middle of the square. Sew on either side of this line, a quarter inch from each side. Cut the squares on the line you drew, and press them open (I suggest pressing the seam to one side). Then trim them to 1 inch.
Now it's time to start sewing! Lay out the half square triangles and rectangles as shown in the picture. Be careful that you have the half square triangles turned the right way, so they look like ears and the chin.
I like to start sewing by attaching the half square triangles to the 1 inch by 1.5 inch rectangles. This creates three rows that I can sew together to finish the block off. Sew with a quarter inch seam allowance, and be sure to press the seam when finished (I prefer to press to one side, but you can press open if you like).
When sewing the top row (with the ears) to the middle row, just be mindful of where the diagonal goes into the seam. I like to press towards the rectangle, and put that row on top, so I can see right where the seams meet, and make sure my stitching goes right into the intersection where the diagonal seam meets the straight seam.
When you are finished, you can either put the block in a larger quilt, or quilt and bind the block by itself! It's so cute as a tiny quilt. To quilt it, I cut batting and backing at about 4 inches square. Put the backing wrong side up, then layer the batting on top. Then put the block right side up on top of the batting. Secure it with safety or quilting pins. I quilt it by using a "stitch in the ditch" method (which is sewing right in between the seams of the block), but you can quilt it however you like. It's small enough that you could probably even just baste it by sewing about an eighth inch from the edge of the block.
Then it's time to add the binding! For a better binding tutorial, check out this post on how to bind the tiny heart block. It's the exact same process. I did cut the binding at 2.5 inches by 12 inches, and it was the perfect size.
And then the tiny cat block is done! Look at how cute it is with the tiny heart block!
Did you make a tiny cat block? I'd love to hear about it, so please let me know in the comments below!
Commentaires