Mabel, but put them on-point

by Jennifer Jones August 6, 2024

We're back with yet another edition of Mabel! Patchwork quilts are such a good starting place if you're wanting to learn to quilt, which is why I wrote a super simple tutorial last year using a sea of squares. (Find the original post here.)

Then at the first of the year, I decided to revisit Mable and add some four-patch blocks in place of the white squares, to produce a bit of a chain effect and make it a little more playful. (You can find the details for that post here.)

And now we're back with yet another version of Mabel, but this time we're placing the blocks "on-point." If you're not familiar with this term, it basically means that rather than the blocks being arranged in the quilt as a square, they are put at an angle so they look like diamonds.

This small change can really elevate a quilt and make it look a lot more difficult, but it's really not! It just takes a little more planning and precision, but it's a doable step towards being a more experienced quilter!

- Mabel On Point -

63"x 63"

The original Mabel has a bit of a color-fade design, so we'll use that for the instructions. But you can easily make Mabel like we did with a mixed-up layout by scattering your fabrics throughout rather than placing them in rows.

To begin, you will need to arrange your blocks a bit differently. Rather than placing blocks into an identical number of blocks per row, each row needs an odd number of blocks, beginning with 1. Then the next row will need 3, the next 5, the next 7, etc., continuing on for the size you desire.

Now for a little geometry. A fabric square that measures 4.5" cut, will measure 4"x 4" when it is sewn into the quilt, because each side will lose .25" in the seams on all sides. But for a 4" fabric square on point, you need a little math to figure out the width, aka the hypotenuse. ;) I know, I know. Lots of people don't love math, but I do. I think it's so fun and amazing. And simple! Once you know the formula, you can easily find how large that square will be sewn into the quilt.

Let's go back to that 4" finished measurement. If we use that (because for a 4.5" square on point, we'll still lose the seams) and multiply it by the square root of 2 (that's just the formula for the triangle it's making), we find that the 4.5" square on point will measure 5.66" across. Now if you know you're wanting to make a square throw about 63" wide/long, you know how many blocks wide your quilt needs to be!

Are you wishing I'd just do the math for you by now? Ok....

So for a 63" square Mabel on point, you need the following using 4.5" squares:

(2) rows of 1 square
(2) rows of 3 squares
(2) rows of 5 squares
(2) rows of 7 squares
(2) rows of 9 squares
(2) rows of 11 squares
(2) rows of 13 squares
(2) rows of 15 squares
(2) rows of 17 squares
(2) rows of 19 squares
(2) rows of 21 squares
(1) row of 23 squares

We alternated our blocks with a background fabric and an accent fabric, beginning and ending with the background fabric.

Sew your rows together as normal, using the numbers above for how many blocks you need. Then lay them out like shown below:

Sewing the rows together is a little trickier. You will sew the rows by centering the smaller row onto the larger one. There will be almost a whole block extra on the larger row. That's good! This leaves you room to trim and not lose your points.

Keep adding to your rows by adding the next size up (and eventually decreasing back down once you come to the largest row).
When you've sewn all your rows together, it should look like this:
Now it's time to trim! This is where that little overhang is so important. Be sure to trim 1/4" away from those points so you don't lose them when you bind your quilt. (The dotted lines are where you cut.)

Now you're ready to quilt your quilt top! This method also works for making a quilt block that has pieces that are on point, like a Granny Square! Or you could try it with all HSTs and *that* would be amazing too! So many options. I hope you try it, and if you do, be sure to send me a picture! I love seeing what you make!

all my best,

Jennifer