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-   -   Tonight I discovered fat quarters are different than 1/4 yards (https://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1/tonight-i-discovered-fat-quarters-different-than-1-4-yards-t119039.html)

lue 04-27-2011 07:04 AM

Katesnana, I love the quilt in your avatar! Can you send an enlarged picture to me at [email protected]. It looks as though it's a nine patch with alternating squares and that you got the diagonal lines by putting a pink as your center on each nine patch. Did I get that right?

reeskylr 04-27-2011 07:07 AM


Originally Posted by sueisallaboutquilts

Originally Posted by JulieR

Originally Posted by oldswimmer
Well, take heart....there are alot of people out there that have had that moment of not knowing.....AND, there may even be more uncertainty about a fat 1/8th.
I always thought a fat 1/8th was 18X11...what do you all say?

I say that's too much math. I just call them scraps.

HAHAHAHAHA love this!!! :thumbup: :thumbup:

ROFL!!! :thumbup:

maryb44662 04-27-2011 08:01 AM

Well, I never knew the difference in a fat quarter and a 1/4 yard of fabric, so I learned something today too. I do not buy fat quarters, jelly rolls, etc., due to the abundance of fabric that I already have. I just use what I have on hand. Thanks for all the information. This board is just a great learning site. Take care, Mary

nwm50 04-27-2011 08:06 AM

L O L....i just love this board! I just learnt a new thing today too! But the comments posted here are funny....ya'll have a great week....

Heartwarming quilts 04-27-2011 08:09 AM

Oops! It's the pits you had to learn the hard way. Look at it this way now when you teach your class you will be able point that out to your students.

dixiechunk 04-27-2011 08:42 AM

I love Becky's story about the spahetti. Back in the day when hospitals were getting into this HIPPA thing, I had a co-worker who came back from a smoke break all excited because she had finally found out why admin had put shredders on all the units and insisted all things paper be shredded. "It's to prevent back injuries...the paper weighs less when it's shredded!" As I live and breathe this is a true story. I spent a lot of time trying to convince her a pound of paper was a pound of paper was a pound of paper, shredding it just increased the volume and dispersed it into more bags. It was of no use, that's the story she was hearing and that's the way it was.

charlotte625 04-27-2011 08:46 AM

well if it makes you feel better I didn't know it either.
But let me see if I got this right..( since I don't get right answer in math most of time)
a 1/4 yard of fabric ....9 inches by 44 inches
a fat quarter ....is 18 in by 22 in.....
now I know why mine never turned out right either....
thanks all of you Char

dixiechunk 04-27-2011 08:52 AM

I have actually read each posting in this thread and have to say I truly was surprised at the number of ladies who didn't know what a FQ was. Now, please don't take that as a criticism, just a comment about my own naitivity. The important point is that we take this as a lesson not to assume anything when teaching somebody a new skill, quilting or otherwise. If I was writing instructions for a quilted item I would probably have used the term FQ when referring to needed supplies and I would have assumed that anyone who bought the pattern would know exactly what that meant. I mean, the market place is flooded with FQs and FQ-friendly patterns and books. And I would have been wrong. See me hanging my head in shame.

patdesign 04-27-2011 08:59 AM

Years ago, didn't realize till I opened one up, as it turned out I needed the full width. oops!:)

bearisgray 04-27-2011 09:06 AM

1 Attachment(s)
Maybe this drawing will make it clearer?

The length of a fat quarter yard (FQ) should always be at least 18 inches.

Not all fabrics are 45 inches wide - some are as narrow as only 40 inches - so the width of the FQ will only be half of the width of the fabric - so may vary from 20 to 22.5 inches.

A "regular" or "skinny" quarter (1/4) yard should always be at least 9 inches long - and the width of the fabric.


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