Ever heard the term HST in quilting or sewing circles and wondered, what exactly are they talking about… Well, let me tell you about them, plus give you a sneaky time saving method of construction!
Firstly, HST stands for Half Square triangle. A HST is a basic quilting block (and a favourite of mine, you can create so many different outcomes with this unpretentious block). Plus they are fantastic to create modern quilts or use up scraps. Hence the development of my Chic Chevron quilt.
Based off the humble HST, how amazing is that! Essentially HST units are made up of two 90 degree triangles. That is where it can get scary, the bias becomes involved…. Things can go out of shape REALLY quickly!
So, back to the sneaky method of construction I mentioned before, because who doesn’t love a time saver! There are actually a couple of different methods, “2 from 1”, “4 from 1” or the Holy Grail “8 from 1”.
I’m going to talk about the “2 from 1” method, as this is a great place to start, especially for beginner quilters. With this method, the diagonal (or bias) is kept in line by seams, ensuring your block doesn’t go into a weird skewed shape.
Basically you will need two squares of fabric. For this example, let’s start with 8 inch squares. Draw a diagonal line (in pencil or pen) across one square as seen in below image.
Place them right sides together, then sew ¼ inch from the drawn line on either side of the drawn line.
Cut along the diagonal line. Open up the blocks, and iron. Use your ruler to trim to size.
TA DA! You have two HTS’s. Or as in the case of my photo, a pile of HST's!
Looking for an easy quilt to make that uses HST’s, my Chic Chevron quilt pattern also includes detailed instructions for making them.
Or alternatively you can head over to my tutorial on HST 2 from 1 by clicking here. Or if you are ready to take the plunge there are also tutorials for HST 4 from 1 and HST 8 from 1 coming soon.
I love what I do and am excited to share my journey with you.
Happy sewing
Anita : -)
**If there any terms used that you don’t know what they mean, there is a handy reference in my tutorials. If there’s one you think needs to be added, let me know. I’m always checking and updating it. : -)
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