Free Fair and Square Quilt Block Tutorial

Let's sew together a Fair and Square quilt block today! This 12" traditional block appeared in the Kansas City Star and is a fun easy block to put together. Let's get started!

Fabric Requirements for a 12" Finished Fair and Square Quilt Block:

• Light/White: 4 - 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles, and 1 - 3" square
• Medium/Green: 4 - 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles, 4 - 2.5" squares, and 2 - 3" squares
• Dark/Red: 4 - 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles, 4 - 2.5" squares, and 1 - 3" square

Sewing Directions:

Center Unit:

Step 1:

Using the Light/White 3" square, the Medium/Green 3" squares, and the Dark/Red 3" square...

make four Half Square Triangle units as shown in the picture below. You can find my tutorial for making a basic Half Square Triangle at: https://fabric406.com/blogs/fabric406-blog/how-to-sew-a-basic-half-square-triangle-block Note the direction that the seam allowances are pressed - toward the red and away from the white fabrics.

Step 2:

Lay out the Step 1 units as shown in the picture below and sew together in two rows. This is just like sewing together a basic Four Patch block.

Step 3:

Press the seam allowances in opposite directions. Your seams should nest nicely.

Step 4:

Now you can sew the two rows together as shown below.

Step 5:

And press the seam allowance. I've pressed the seam allowance using the tweak/twirl/furl method so that the center lays nice and flat. You can find instructions for this method at: https://fabric406.com/blogs/fabric406-blog/how-to-sew-a-basic-four-patch-quilt-block

Side Units:

Step 6:

Using the Light/White 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles and the Medium/Green 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles, make four Side Units as shown in the picture below. Press the seam allowance toward the Medium/Green fabric. That's a pretty easy unit!

Corner Units:

Step 7:

Using the four Medium/Green 2.5" squares and the four Dark/Red 2.5" squares, make four two-patch units as shown below. Press the seam allowance toward the Medium/Green fabric.

Step 8:

Match up one Step 7 unit with one Dark/Red 2.5" x 4.5" rectangle and sew together as shown in the picture below. Press the seam allowance toward the Step 7 unit. Repeat for a total of four Corner units.

Putting It All Together:

Step 9:

Lay out the Center unit, the Side units, and the Corner units as shown in the picture below. From here on out, the Fair and Square quilt block goes together just like a basic Nine Patch block.

Step 10:

Sew the units into three rows and ...

Step 11:

Press the seam allowances toward the Side units as shown in the picture below.

Step 12:

Now sew the three rows together and you're done! Except for ...

the pressing! Press the seam allowances toward the outside of the block as shown below.

In Conclusion:

The Fair and Square quilt block went together pretty fast. It's an easy block with only Half Square Triangles, rectangles, and squares to sew together. I enjoyed sewing it and like that it's a little different. If I were to sew several blocks together to make a quilt, I would have to try out whether sashing in between the blocks would look better or not. 

I used the same light, medium, and dark color placement as in the traditional block but I think if you swapped the dark and light colored fabrics, the block would look totally different. Might have to try it to see.

I hope you've enjoyed the Fair and Square quilt block.  If you liked this post and want to see more quilting tutorials like this, simply click here to sign up for my newsletter and also receive a free PDF quilt pattern called Chained Weathervane.

Happy Quilting! 

Elaine