April 2026~ Gift Sewalong~ Granny Square Quilt block

 Hello everyone, 

April has arrived, and with it a new tutorial for another gift idea!

I have to confess that I am going to cheat a little bit with this one because I'm going to share how to make one block, but then you will have to decide what you want to turn that block into! You can choose to make more blocks ( like I did) to make a quilt, or maybe 2 blocks to make a tote ( see that post here( click)), or maybe just one block to make a super fun pillow! 

I made my project using 2.5" squares, but you can use bigger ( or smaller!) squares, and you will end up with the same LOOK, but in a different SIZE. My tutorial is going to be based on that 2.5" size though, so adjust your fabric requirements accordingly!

These blocks were completely inspired by a couple of  fun finds at my local reuse store a few weeks back: A couple of charm packs, and this book:

The charm packs ( 5" squares) were so Springlike and I really wanted to make something with them right away, and when I spotted this block pattern in the book I was sold! By pure coincidence the pattern called for 2.5" squares and I knew if I cut carefully that each of my charm squares could be cut into 4 2.5" squares, and that is how these blocks came about!

Now before you think that you now need charm squares~NO! It will be much better if you have slightly bigger squares, and besides, you will need more than just 4 squares of some of the colors ( charm packs typically have only one, sometimes two squares of each fabric).

Just dive into your scraps or fat eights and you will be able to find all you need there. And please don't worry too much about which colors go together. If the fabric makes YOU happy then they work!

Let's get started: 

To make one block you will need 49  2.5" squares.

To make your block fun and scrappy, cut 7 different colors.

 I used my multiple square die ( click)  to cut my needed pieces, but you could use a strip die or any square die from a Qube or a BOB die! 

From color 1: cut 1  2.5" square

From color 2: cut  4 squares ( rough cut 1 5.5 " square to cut into 4  2.5" )

From color 3: cut 8 squares ( rough cut 2 5.5" squares to cut into 8  2.5")

From color 4: cut 12 squares ( rough cut 3 5.5" squares to cut into 12  2.5")

From color 5: cut 12 squares ( rough cut 3 5.5" squares to cut into 12  2.5")

From color 6: cut 8 squares ( rough cut 2 5.5 " squares to cut into 8  2.5")

From color 7: cut 4 squares  ( rough cut 1 5.5"  square to cut into 4  2.5" )

Refer to the block layout below to see where the various colors will end up. I think it is good to have contrast between the squares, so try and use a variety of lights and darks in prints, checks, stripes, etc.

Here is a visual of the squares you will need in the various colors:

Like I mentioned before, I used charm squares and was able to line those up on a 2 by 2 grid, but sometimes they were a little skimpy! So I suggest you cut 5 1/2 " squares to give yourself some room for error. And remember, your selvedge ( tightly woven) edge GOES NEXT TO the sticker, and your STICKER GOES THROUGH your machine sideways: 

( yes, missing the mat in this photo but wanted to show how I laid my square on die and how die goes through machine ;) )

Once I had  cut my needed squares, I laid them out next to my sewing machine, in the correct formation. and then I laid the entire right hand column blocks on top of their neighbors, like so:

Starting at the top, I chain-pieced each one of those pairs. When I finished that column, I laid that down back in original position ( all threads still attached between them) and moved onto the next columns:

The very last column gets sewn to the previous column so that those end up in threes, rather than  pairs. This is when I clipped the threads between the sets.

Next I sewed all the ROWS onto each other, still NO pressing of anything, so that I had rows of 7 blocks. First I sewed the 2 by 2: 

and then I sewed on the triple..

...until I had sewed all 7 together into rows:

Then it was time to press my rows! I collected my rows in order and piled them: 

Each ROW needs to be pressed in OPPOSSING direction from the one beneath it. But because your fabrics mirror each other, you can press all your rows the same direction and FLIP them to face the other way so that the seams nest.

If you use directional fabric you have to pay a little more attention, like I had to with my diagonal stripe fabric.

Once my strips were all pressed, I laid them out in correct order again, with seams opposing and able to NEST.

Then I sewed my rows together to form my block. You can do this however you want...add one row at a time, or sew rows 2 by 2 and then sew them together, it does not matter, as long as you make sure the rows stay in the correct order!

After all the rows were sewn together, I pressed EVERYTHING in one direction. This was my personal choice ( and would make things simpler if I were to sew this block directly to another block).

And voila, one 14 .5" ( unfinished) block done! 

I absolutely LOVED making this first block so set out and made a whole bunch more, using exactly the same method.

Could you do it faster with strip sets? Possibly, but I think that would require a lot of thinking things out beforehand, and this was a fun, fast, and easy method.

As I mentioned at the start of the post, I was only going to explain one block and have YOU figure out what else you wanted to do with it.  You could add some borders and make a sweet wall-hanging or table topper....you could make a totebag....or you could choose to make an entire quilt! And don't forget that if you were to change the fabrics that your blocks could serve so many seasons and holidays!

I ended up making a total of 9 blocks ( and at that point I ran out of fabric, otherwise I would have kept going!) and decided to add sashing and cornerstones between the blocks to make a smallish cuddle quilt, or a fun wall quilt. 

If you want to do the same you will need to cut 12   2.5" wide  by 14.5" long pieces of sashing, and 12  2.5" cornerstone squares. I used my strip cutter ( click) to cut the sashing, and the multiple squares die (click) to cut the cornerstones. If you decide to make more blocks you will of course need to adjust your sashing and cornerstone numbers as well.

There you have it, April's ( sort of) gift idea! I hope it inspires you to make at least one block, but I hope you will be just as smitten as I was and make a whole bunch!

I wish I could tell you fabric requirements, but I was using some charm packs ( at least 3, and then switched to include some scraps, so I really couldn't say for sure. However, it wouldn't be that tricky to figure out because you know you can cut 4 needed  2 .5 " squares from a charm ( or slightly bigger) and the rest can be figured out from there ;).

As always, let me know if something is unclear and I will be happy to explain further!

 I also have to disclose that I use affiliate links in my posts and I will receive a small commission if you purchase something through one of my links~ thank you for supporting what I do in this manner!

Happy creating!

Monique