How to Make a Scrappy Wild Goose Chase Quilt Block - a Free Tutorial
Hello, quilting enthusiasts! Today, we're embarking on a creative journey with the Wild Goose Chase quilt block, a scrappy and traditional design that's a playground for showcasing your quilting, applique, or embroidery skills or a fussy-cut of a large scale print. This block is not just about piecing together fabric, it's about making each piece a canvas for your artistic expressions.
The tutorial will guide you through my no-trim method for making perfect flying geese units that add a dynamic visual element with their pointed, directional design that give a sense of movement to your quilt. Let’s gather our colorful scraps and start this exciting project!
Fabric Requirements for a 16" Finished Wild Goose Chase Quilt Block:
- White: 1 - 8.5" square, 2 - 5.5" squares, 2 - 4.5" squares, and 32 - 2.5" squares
- Assorted Light Prints: 8 - 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles
- Assorted Dark Prints: 2 - 5.5" squares, and 8 - 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles
If you would like a printable PDF download of this tutorial, you can buy it by clicking the button below. This is totally optional.
Sewing Directions:
Hourglass Units:
Step 1:
Using the White 5.5" squares and the Dark Assorted Prints 5.5" squares, sew together four Hourglass units. Because I'm making a scrappy block, I used two dark print fabrics. This resulted in having two extra units that I can use in another block or project.
You can find a detailed tutorial for making an Hourglass block in the tutorial https://fabric406.com/blogs/fabric406-blog/how-to-sew-a-basic-hourglass-or-quarter-square-triangle-block
Flying Geese Units:
Step 2:
Using 16 White 2.5" squares and eight Assorted Dark Prints 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles, sew together eight Flying Geese units. For a detailed tutorial of my no-trim method for making perfect Flying Geese blocks check out https://fabric406.com/blogs/fabric406-blog/how-to-sew-a-basic-flying-geese-block. The picture below shows the first four steps.
- Mark a diagonal line from corner to corner on the back of the White 2.5" squares.
- Sew a White 2.5" square to an Assorted Dark Print rectangle along the marked line (top image). Note the orientation of the marked line.
- Match the corners of the White square and press (second image).
- Open the small square up and trim the seam allowance (third image).
- Refold (bottom image).
Step 3:
Repeat Step 2 on an adjacent corner.
Step 4:
Repeat Steps 2 and 3 for a total of eight Dark Flying Geese units like what are shown in the picture below.
Step 5:
Repeat Steps 2 through 4 only using the Assorted Light Prints rectangles in place of the dark ones.
Flying Geese Strip Sets:
Step 6:
At this point, you may find it helpful to lay out all the units to get a pleasing arrangement of colors.
Step 7:
Sew the eight Dark Flying Geese units into two strip sets and press the seam allowances away from the points as shown in the picture below.
Step 8:
Do the same thing only with the Light Flying Geese units.
Putting It All Together:
Step 9:
Lay out the two White 4.5" squares, the center White 8.5" square, the Hourglass units, and the Flying Geese Strip Sets as shown in the picture below. From here the block goes together like an uneven Nine Patch block.
Step 10:
Sew the units into three rows as shown below.
Step 11:
Press the seam allowances away from the Flying Geese Strip Sets.
Step 12:
Sew the three rows together to finish up.
Step 13:
Press the seam allowances toward the center of the block as shown in the picture below. All done!
Layout Ideas:
Here's the basic 4 x 4 layout using a scrappy block.
This is an example where the blocks are rotated to make create a grid or lattice pattern.
This is a two-color block (well three-color if you count the background) laid out the same as the previous one only the lights and darks are swapped.
In this example, every other block is rotated 180 degrees to make a chevron design.
For this example, I changed the coloring of the block by substituting some of the background fabric with colored fabric.
This is an on-point layout where the blocks are continued into the setting triangles.
In this scrappy on-point layout I also have sashing and cornerstones in a medium blue.
Conclusion:
I had fun with this block. I like the light/dark aspect and how you can play with rotating blocks to make new layouts. And that large center is a perfect place for something fancy - quilting, applique, etc.
I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial. If you like it and want to see more, just click HERE to sign up for my newsletter and receive a free PDF quilt pattern called "Chained Weathervane".
Happy Quilting!
Elaine
P.S. Take a look at this block that's really similar to the Wild Goose Chase: https://fabric406.com/blogs/fabric406-blog/how-to-make-the-traditional-quilt-block-called-fox-and-geese
P.P.S. Check out my Etsy shop at https://www.etsy.com/shop/fabric406