Betsy recently shared her method for making Polaroid/Photo Blocks with the Guild. Here are the instructions she shared.
Polaroid block materials and instructions:
1 - fussy cut 2.5” center square for your “photo” (finished block = 7.5”)
white or off white material: background fabric:
2 - 1” x 2.5” strips 2 - 2.5” x 4”
1 - 1” x 3.5” strip 2 - 2.5” x 7.5”
1 - 1.5” x 3.5” strip
If you would like to make a Polaroid square with a shadow:
1 - fussy cut 4” center square (finished block = 8.5”)
white/off white material background fabric:
2 - 1” x 4” strips 1 - 1.5” x 1” piece
1 - 1’ x 5” strip 1 - 1.5” x 5” strip
1 - 1.5” x 5” strip 1 - 1.5” x 7” strips
1 - 2” x 8.5” strip
shadow material (black of gray): 1 - 2.5” x 1” piece
2 - 1” x 4.5” strips 1 - 2.5” x 7” strip
For block without a shadow:
1.) Sew a 1” x 2.5” white/off white(w/ow) strip to each side of your fussy cut photo
square. Press seam towards photo square - although either way will work, this is just
what I have seen recommended. Decide which look you like best:-)
2.) Sew the 1” x 3.5” w/ow strip to top of the photo square. Press seams away from the
photo square.
3.) Sew the 1.5” x 3.5” w/ow strip to the bottom of the photo square. Press seam away
from the photo square.
4.) Sew a 2.5” x 4” background(bg) fabric strip to each side of the photo square block.
5.) Sew the 2.5” x 7.5” bg fabric strips to the top and bottom of the photo square block.
You can use 1 square to make the front of a pouch or bag, combine 4 - 6 of these
blocks to make a pillow and combine more to make a lap quilt or quilt top.
For a block with a shadow - same as steps 1 - 3 above but with larger strips for this
block:
4.) Sew the 1.5” x 5” background(bg) strip to the top of the photo square block.
5.) Sew the 2.5” X 1” bg strip to a 1” x 4.5” shadow strip along 1” edge to make one long
strip.
6.) Sew the new strip from the above step to the right side of the photo block square along
the long edge. Start by matching the background fabric piece at the top of the strip to the
background fabric piece on the top of the photo square block. Press seam towards shadow
fabric.
7.) Sew the 1.5” x 1” background strip to the remaining shadow 1” x 4.5” strip, again
along the 1” end, again making a new longer strip
8.) Sew the new strip from above step to bottom of photo square block - sewing the long
edge of the strip to the block so that the background fabric will match up with the white
fabric of the block on the left side and the shadow fabric will match up with the
previously sewn on shadow fabric strip on the right side. Press towards the shadow
fabric.
9.) Sew the 1.5” x 7” background strip along right side of the photo quilt block. Press
seam towards background fabric.
10.) Sew the 2.5” x 7” background fabric along the left side of the photo quilt block.
Press seam towards background fabric.
11.) Sew the 2” x 8.5” background fabric strip along bottom of quilt block. Press seam
towards background fabric.
Similar to the blocks above, you can use this block for the center square of a bag,
combine for a pillow or quilt top.
Here is the link to the instructions on the Crafty Staci website that I mentioned at our
meeting. Her instructions are even better in that they include photos for each step:-)
https://www.craftystaci.com/blog/photo-quilt-block
Hope you have fun making these!
For a PDF of the Above Information click HERE.