Barbara Brackman's Civil War Sampler....any done this?
 

Has anyone made blocks from Barbara Brackman's book Civil War Sampler? Looking at the directions I am slightly confused. If you've done these please let me know how hard you found them to be and how you used the directions on page 6 and 7. Oh no. I hope I haven't messed up thinking I could actually do this one!! This is the one that needs all the 1/8th inch size blocks and that's why I wanted the 7/8" ruler. Thanks!

I found the book on the publisher's website.
http://www.ctpub.com/barbara-brackma...l-war-sampler/
There are three quilts displayed. Can you tell us what block you are making??? Are you trying to make HST??

i'm planning to make a lot of blocks. I just love the traditional old blocks made with the civil war repro fabrics. Yep, I think there will be HST for sure. Thanks for any suggestions anyone may want to offer!

I don't cut any blocks with 1/8". I would round up to the nearest whole number and trim to the size you need. In my opinion it will look neater.

I do the very same thing. Always cutting an 1/8 inch makes things small.

I never cut 1/8" as the other QB members have said. I always cut the closest whole number up and then after pressing I can trim to the size I need. Everyone's 1/4" is different so cutting a little bigger helps. Good Luck on this project-I have the book and I too love the Civil War fabrics.

So then it's okay to cut a 3 7/8" square up to 4" and it will work putting it with the other pieces even if they are not in 1/8" increments? Have never done this type of piecing before and certainly don't want to mess up this fabulous civil war repro fabric. I guess I'm making this too difficult, huh? Thanks so much!

If you cut the original square at 4", your HST triangles will be slightly too large from the blocks. No problem. After you have completed the HST units, trim them to 3 1/2" square, making sure the seam between the two fabrics is right on the diagonal of the block. Better a little too big and trim than too small.

For HST I do as others do and measure up and trim. I think we are missing the point here however with her question as while there may be some HST in the quilt there are other blocks that use the 1/8" increment measurement. Personally I have not made blocks using 1/8" increment measurements other than I frequently use 3/8" seam allowance on my bindings because that is the width of my presser foot. Typically, quilting and patterns don't use 1/8" increments.

If I were doing this quilt I would more than likely follow the pattern and tediously cut out the pieces as the pattern maker has directed. She probably did this for a reason that isn't readily apparent to all of us. I think if you don't, you will more than likely run into fitting blocks together problems far greater than the aggravation of measuring 1/8". I would mark my ruler with a thin strip of painters tape so I could readily find my measurement especially if a particular measurement was used frequently. It shouldn't be that much more difficult to cut something 3 7/8" than 4 if your lines are clear when measuring. Take your time and enjoy the journey. Think of how much you are going to cherish the quilt when it's done.

Some patterns are cut at 1/8" increments to avoid the use of templates. When I had numerous HST and QST's with odd measurements, (like McCalls USA quilt in my posted thread) I invested in the Triangulations CD. It was a life saver. I could make a whole computer sheet of triangles in the correct size without lifting my needle, using the continuous line method. If you cut your own slightly bigger as suggested above, just make sure you square up each unit, whether it is triangles, nine patch, rectangular sections etc. BEFORE you sew the units together.