Patchwork is the art of joining small pieces of material in patterns using diamonds, triangles, squares, and similar shapes. It is important that all pieces are cut accurately, allowing 1/4 inch for seams, and that they are joined together with the running stitch as evenly as possible. The success of the finished design depends not only on careful cutting and sewing together but on the color harmony of the whole. If scraps from mixed colors are used they should be chosen with taste and equally distributed in all sections of the quilt.

For patchwork quilts here are 7 simple rules to follow:
1. Draft your pattern, allowing 1/4 inch all around for the seams.
2. Use a number 60 thread and a number 8 short needle. A long needle is not necessary, for very few stitches are taken on such small pieces before drawing the needle through the material. Use white thread unless the patches are cut from very dark cloth. Unlike applique, patchwork does not require thread in matching colors.
3. It is important to have small pieces pressed smoothly to facilitate cutting as well as stitching together. Place the pattern on cloth and trace around the outline with a hard lead pencil. Cut out each piece as accurately as possible.
4. Separate the patches according to size and shape, and string them together. Some quilt makers prefer to sort them as they will be needed in assembling each block.
5. Sew patches together with small running stitches and secure each short seam as it is finished with at least two back stitches. The seams should be 1/4 inch deep, and sewed as straight as possible.
6. In piecing the block, sew several patches together at a time to form a small section of the design. Fit sections together and see that the corners of adjoining pieces match exactly. In order to have it perfectly accurate, tack the corners together with a few over-stitches. Sew the sections together with the usual 1/4 inch seam.
7. After the block is pieced, press it on the wrong side with a warm iron. Press the seams flat not open.

If the quilt is made from many colored scraps, remember to alternate light and dark shades. Distribute patches according to color rather than print of material. It is better to finish sewing all the separate blocks before setting them together. In that way, you may be surer to get a uniform distribution of the colors.

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