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 Today, as an extra block, I’m going to make one of the corners of the border around the medallion. It seems like a fairly simple pattern, but it’s quite challenging. Upon studying the pattern, I see that it’s best to make four identical quarters of the entire block. Each part consists of two mirrored large triangles, which in turn consist of several pieces. Cutting the many small triangles isn’t a big problem. The red and brown parallelograms, a kind of diamond shape, are more challenging. |
  I use the rotary cutting examples generated by EQ7. The width of the strip is conveniently indicated as 1 3/16 inches. However, I find the way the corners should be cut less practical. If the pieces aren’t cut properly, it becomes very difficult to assemble your block correctly. So, I do it a bit differently. |
 I start with the 1 3/16 inch wide strip. I cut a corner off at 45 degrees using my ruler. Most square rulers have a line for this, which you can use. Then, you can see in the pattern that the distance I’ve marked in yellow is 1 inch. The entire block is 6 inches wide. |
 I can’t measure the 2 1/8 inch on my ruler, at least not if it has to lie diagonally. But I can measure the 1 inch + 2 times 1/4 inch for the seams, totaling 1.5 inches. That’s the diagonal line where the diagonal side of my strip lies. If the top of my strip now lies tightly against the diagonal on my ruler, I can cut my block perfectly. |
 When I’ve cut all the pieces, I lay them out in the correct pattern so I don’t make mistakes. I’ll start with the upper right quarter, and from that, the bottom right half. First, I’ll sew together the narrow strip of the brown diamond, red triangle, brown triangle, and another red triangle. I’ve already placed the red and brown triangles together correctly. There’s another tricky part here. How should I place the triangles so that all the seams have the correct width? |
  Fortunately, there’s a trick for this. The tip of the bottom triangle that protrudes under the top triangle should be exactly 3/8 inch wide. |
 The block is finished. Only two more corners of the border around the medallion to go... |