The Strip Tube Ruler.. My favorite ruler ever!

Hello!  My name is Daniela Stout and I am thrilled to be part of this month long cutting event with Moda. I own Cozy Quilt Shop (which is outside San Diego, CA) and Cozy Quilt Designs (a pattern, book and ruler publishing company.) And I love strips! Today I want to show you the most brilliantly simple invention that makes quick work of strips, turning them into gorgeous blocks in no time at all.

We call it the Strip Tube Ruler and my mom made me do it.

Quick sidebar: It's true... my mom made me do this. When we started writing patterns for 2½" strips we used this tube technique with a square up ruler. Then one day my mom (and then primary sample maker) said we should create a ruler to make it easier. Naturally, I ignored her. (Just like your kid, huh?) But then a customer said the same thing! Then my husband made us a prototype, found a company here in the States to make it, and a best-selling item was born.

And if you don't mind a shameless plug.. this mom of mine is Georgette Dell'Orco and she is way talented in her own right, creating some of our best-selling patterns. She even digitizes quilting patterns for the terrific computerized quilting machines out there. Check her out at QuiltersNiche.com

Now.. back to the ruler. How does it work, you ask? It's easy.. .and sooo versatile!  Today, I am going to quickly show you just one way to use it.

First. Sew two 2½" print strips together (a "print strip" is a strip from a bundle like a Jelly Roll). Press the seam in one direction. Next sew a print strip to a 2½" background strip to make another set. Again, press in one direction, preferably to the dark.

Place the two sets right sides together and sew a tube by stitching a ¼" seam on the top and a ¼" seam on the bottom. A tube? Yes. Trust the process. :-)

Place the 5½" line of the Strip Tube Ruler on the bottom STITCHING line. Cut up and down to cut out a triangle.

Now pull the triangle away from your tube and open to reveal a diagonally pieced square that measures 5½" square. BRILLIANT!

Next time you cut, place the ruler on the top stitching line (make fresh cuts) to reveal another triangle that opens to a perfect 5½" square! 

You see how this goes... continue down your strip to cut out a bunch of triangles that open to perfect squares... making fresh cuts, now.

Notice the fabrics are the same but in different placements? Sort them into two piles as pictured.

Arrange your fabrics as you desire and sew the four blocks together. Below is my very favorite block (which I regretfully named the Daniela Block. Why did I do that again?)

Now... let's see how it looks when you put 40 strips, some background and the tube technique all together using this technique.



Do you love it?  Do you want the pattern? Well! I invite you to subscribe to my eNewsletter and you can have this pattern I call Strip It Tube It for FREE!  Click here to subscribe.

So in this sample we used the 4½" measurement, but The Strip Tube Ruler goes up to 9½"... so you can just imagine the possibilities are endless.

And for more ideas check out these other patterns by Cozy Quilt Designs that use the tube technique with 2½" strips.

 






Tradewinds










Intertwined









Transitions










Parallel Universe


 






Lotus Blossom










Paradise Found









Tropics









Festivities









Timber










Multifaceted



Need more inspiration? Come visit our Strip Tubing feature page and meet the baby brother, Strip Tube Junior.

Now if you are still reading this, you get bonus information! On our Strip Tubing feature page is a link to "The Chart"... this handy pdf will tell you how you can use this technique to cut out regular half square triangles!! Sweet stuff. And if you want to make your own designs, it will tell you what size tube to make!

So hey, one more thing... if you like videos, visit our YouTube Channel to see me in action. I debut a Strip Pattern a month... And many of them use the tube technique!

So that's me and the Strip Tube technique. Hope you love it as much as I do...

I will be giving away one of these wonderful rulers to one lucky winner! To enter please leave a comment telling me your favorite Cozy Quilt Designs pattern. Feel free to use one I mentioned or pictured in this post or maybe you even have a favorite in your own library.

You will have until September 30th (That's TODAY!) at midnight to comment. All winners will be randomly selected and announced on Moda...The Cutting Table Blog on October 2nd.