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Next Door Neighbor Quilt Block Tutorial

    Today we’re going to sew together a Next Door Neighbor quilt block. This is a fairly easy block but it isn’t the one you see if you do a Google search for it. Just goes to show that lots of different blocks have the same name! Let’s get started!

    next door neighbor quilt block

    Fabric Requirements for an 8″ Finished Next Door Neighbor Quilt Block:

    • Light/White: 4 – 2.5″ x 4.5″ rectangles, and 8 – 2.5″ squares
    • Medium/Hexie Print: 2 – 2.5″ x 4.5″ rectangles, and 2 – 2.5″ squares
    • Dark/Navy: 2 – 2.5″ x 4.5″ rectangles, and 2 – 2.5″ squares
    next door neighbor fabric requirements

    Sewing Directions:

    Flying Geese Units:

    Step 1:

    Using the Light/White 2.5″ squares, the Medium/Hexie Print 2.5″ x 4.5″ rectangles, and the Dark/Navy 2.5″ x 4.5″ rectangles, sew together four Flying Geese units as shown in the picture below. You can find my tutorial for making Flying Geese blocks at https://quiltembroiderypdf.com/how-to-sew-a-basic-flying-geese-block

    next door neighbor 1

    Half Flying Geese Units:

    Step 2:

    For lack of a better name, I’m calling this unit a Half Flying Geese because that is basically what it is. Mark a line diagonally from corner to corner on the back of a Medium/Hexie Print 2.5″ square and sew it onto a Light/White 2.5″ x 4.5″ rectangle as shown below. Then match up the corners of the Medium/Hexie Print 2.5 square and press, also shown in the picture below.

    next door neighbor 2

    Step 3:

    Trim away the excess seam allowance to complete the unit as shown below. Repeat Steps 2 and 3 for a total of two units.

    next door neighbor 3

    Step 4:

    Repeat Steps 2 through 3 using the remaining Light/White 2.5″ x 4.5″ rectangles and the two Dark/Navy 2.5″ squares. You will end up with four Half Flying Geese units as shown in the picture below.

    next door neighbor 4

    Corner Units:

    Step 5:

    Pair up your Flying Geese and Half Flying Geese units as shown in the picture below.

    next door neighbor 5

    Step 6:

    Sew the units together and press the seam allowance toward the Half Flying Geese unit as shown in the picture below. Repeat for a total of four Corner units.

    next door neighbor 6
     

    Putting It All Together:

    Step 7:

    Now you can lay out the four Corner units as shown below and sew them together like a basic Four Patch block.

    next door neighbor 7

    Step 8:

    Sew the two rows together as shown in the picture below.

    next door neighbor 8

    Step 9:

    Press the seam allowances away from the Flying Geese units as shown below.

    next door neighbor 9

    Step 10:

    Sew the two rows together and you’re finished!

    next door neighbor 10

    Step 11:

    Except for the pressing. I pressed my seam allowances using the tweak/twirl/furl method as you can see in the picture below.

    next door neighbor 11

    Layout Ideas:

    This is the basic 4 x 4 layout using colors similar to the tutorial.
     
    quilt 1
    This is an example of adding sashing and cornerstones to the above layout.
     
    quilt 2
    How about a scrappy version?
     
    quilt 3
    This example is an alternating design where every other block is a chain block.
     
    quilt 4
    This alternating design uses cute Sunbonnet Sue and Sam appliques for the alternate blocks.
     
    quilt 5
    Here is a layout where every other block is flipped (so they twirl is the opposite direction). This gives a southwestern flair to the quilt. 
     
    quilt 6