Indian Puzzle Quilt Block Free Tutorial
The Indian Puzzle quilt block is a striking traditional design that offers endless creative possibilities. Made with classic units like flying geese, half-square triangles, and simple squares, this 3-color block combines familiar techniques in a dynamic layout.
What truly sets the Indian Puzzle apart is how dramatically its look can change depending on your choice of color values and placement. Whether you're aiming for bold contrast or subtle harmony, this block is a perfect canvas for exploring color play and adding movement to your quilt.

Fabric Requirements for a 12" Finished Indian Puzzle Quilt Block:
- Light/White: 1 - 4.5" square, 4 - 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles, 4 - 3" squares, and 12 - 2.5" squares
- Medium/Blue Floral: 4 - 3" squares, and 4 - 2.5" squares
- Dark/Blue: 4 - 2.5" x 4.5" rectangles, and 12 - 2.5" squares

Sewing Directions:
Square in a Square Unit:
Step 1:

Flying Geese Units:
Step 2:

Step 3:

Step 4:

Step 5:

Corner Units:
Step 6:

Step 7:

Step 8:

Step 9:

Putting It All Together:
Step 10:

Step 11:

Step 12:

Step 13:

Step 14:

Layout Options:
This one is the block as I've shown in the tutorial in a basic 4 x 4 layout.

Here's the same layout as above but with dark sashing and light cornerstones added.

This one is fun - all the dark fabrics are toward the center and create a star design, and the light fabrics outline the star.

For this one I added in another color. All sorts of secondary designs start showing up!

And here's the block alternating with a simple chain block for another look:

Then you have all the possibilities of putting the block on point. Here's one example with the block alternating with an Hourglass block:



Conclusion:
I hope you've enjoyed this tutorial for the Indian Puzzle 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
P.S. To figure out yardage for a quilt, check out this post: https://fabric406.com/blogs/fabric406-blog/how-much-fabric-do-i-need