A Variation on the Hourglass Quilt Block – Free Tutorial for a New Twist on a Traditional Block

Hi Quilting Peeps! Today I’d like to share the steps to make my variation of an Hourglass quilt block. As usual, there are several traditional Hourglass blocks, two of which I’ve done tutorials on, namely the basic Hourglass and an Hourglass Variation. This variation is fairly easy to make as it only uses Half Square Triangle and Hourglass units. It makes a lovely secondary design when you sew multiple blocks together and, of course, you can make it scrappy! Let’s get sewing!

Update: I now have a PDF pattern of this block available in my Etsy shop if you prefer to have a printed pattern. Check it out by clicking this link: HOURGLASS

Fabric Requirements for a 12″ Finished Variation of the Hourglass Quilt Block:

Light/White: 3 – 5.5″ squares, and 2 – 5″ squares
Medium/Green: 1 – 5.5″ square, and 2 – 5″ squares
Dark/Print: 2 – 5.5″ squares

Sewing Directions:

Half Square Triangle Units:

Step 1:

Using a Light/White 5″ square and a Medium/Green 5″ square, sew together two Half Square Triangle units. Press the seam allowances toward the Medium/Green fabric. Trim the units to 4.5″ square.

For a detailed tutorial on making a basic Half Square Triangle block, click on this link: https://quiltembroiderypdf.com/how-to-sew-a-basic-half-square-triangle-block

Step 2:

Repeat Step 1 for a total of four Half Square Triangle units as shown below.

Hourglass Units:

Step 3:

Repeat Steps 1 and 2 only using the Light/White 5.5″ squares and the Dark/Print 5.5″ squares. DO NOT trim or square up at this point.

Step 4:

Using the picture below for a reference, sew together four Hourglass units.

Match two half-square triangle patches, right sides together, and rotate one of the patches 180 degrees so the colors are opposing each other and the seam allowances nest together nicely.
Mark a diagonal line on back of one of the patches perpendicular to the seam line and more or less from corner to corner.
Sew .25” on both sides of the diagonal line and cut on the diagonal line.
Open up the two units and press the seam allowance. I pressed using the tweak/twirl/furl method but you can press however you wish.
Trim/square up the units to 4.5″ square.

You can find a detailed tutorial for making an Hourglass block in the tutorial https://quiltembroiderypdf.com/how-to-sew-a-basic-hourglass-or-quarter-square-triangle-block

Step 5:

Repeat for a total of four Hourglass units.

Step 6:

Repeat Steps 3 and 4 only using a Light/White 5.5″ square and a Medium/Green 5.5″ square. You will wind up with two units but you only need one for each block.

Putting It All Together:

Step 7:

Lay out the Half Square Triangle and Hourglass units as shown in the picture below.

From here the block goes together like a basic Nine Patch block.

Step 8:

Sew the units into three rows as shown in the picture below.

Step 9:

Press the seam allowances away from the White/Dark Print Hourglass units as shown below.

Step 10:

Sew the three rows together to complete the block. There are a lot of seams coming together at the unit intersections. Just take your time. If you need to press some of them a different direction to make it easier, then go for it.

Step 11:

Press the seam allowances toward the center of the block.

Layout Ideas:

Here’s the basic 4 x 4 layout. I like how a diamond pattern shows up!

This is the same layout as above but with dark sashing and medium cornerstones added.

This version is semi-scrappy with the darks being multiple colors and the medium and light being the same.

This example uses two dark colors along with the medium and light. I think this is my favorite.

For this on-point layout I went back to the original colors.

For another on-point layout, I used the two darks block with dark sashing and cornerstones and medium setting triangles.