I am not a fan of HSTs, creating perfect points is not my forte… but avoiding HSTs does not improve my skill so on occasion I try again.

In my continuing attempts to master the HST, I have found that my walking foot is perfect for piecing the HSTs and for sewing on the bias. On the Janome Skyline S7, the walking foot is a cut above the rest: it is the ACUFEED FLEX with superior feed system.

With the Janome SKYLINE S7, if you match the edge of your fabric with the line on the walking foot illustrated in the photo above, you obtain a ¼” seam… as with all quilting, consistency is key.

For this HST practice I needed to find a block with lots of them… not just any old block because it is October and Thanksgiving and think of all the delightful autumn leaves, acorns, pumpkins… and turkeys!

“Turkey in the Straw” is composed of all HSTs, perfect.

Goal: Make 36 HSTs @ 3 ½” (unfinished)

Technique: I have explained my HST technique here, however in the world of quilting there are many different ways to make an HST, so choose what makes you happy.

I used tone on tone fabrics which will allow you to practice your HST skills without panicking over obvious points missed. In my sample, two tones of turquoise were used.

Cut the squares at 4” – 18 in a medium shade, 18 in a light shade.

● On the light square, draw line in pencil and one line on each side of centre line (these are sewing lines)

● Sew on sewing lines

● Cut on centre line

● Press open

● Trim to 3 ½”

Once you have 36 HSTs, arrange block

Above pic shows all hsts arranged as block

Sew in 4 patches and then sew as nine patch… final size of the block will be 18 ½” square (unfinished)

Above pic shows 4 patches:  two types

Applique turkey with steam a seam and quilt with straight lines, following seams for placement

photo 6 – completed

See… that HST practice was not so bad, and I ended up with a lovely turkey quiltlet for the holidays.