- Background (muslin)
- Dark (indigo)
Block No. 94 · five-patch
New Mexico Quilt Block
Part of: Five Patch Quilt BlocksHalf Square Triangle Quilt BlocksState Quilt BlocksTwo Color Quilt Blocks
New Mexico uses the same five-patch skeleton as Missouri Puzzle with the values reversed: the nine-patches have dark edges, the rails are dark outside and background inside, and plain background squares sit on the axes. The corner triangles now read as large background flying geese around the frame.
Version note: Follows the Generations coloring. Quilter's Cache's New Mexico uses the same seams with a third fabric in the plain squares. It shares Missouri Puzzle's seams but is a different design, so it has its own page. Layout confidence: medium.
- Level
- Intermediate
- Grid
- 15 × 15
- Pieces
- 77
Chart
Cutting for a 11 1/4" block
15 × 15 grid. All cuts fall on 1/8" ruler marks. Unfinished block: 11 3/4".
| Fabric | Shape | Cut | Size | Then | Pieces used |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Background | Square | 5 | 2 3/4" square | Use as cut | 5 |
| Background | Square | 20 | 1 1/4" square | Use as cut | 20 |
| Background | Rectangle | 4 | 1 1/4" × 2 3/4" | Use as cut | 4 |
| Background | Half-square triangle | 6 | 3 1/8" square | Cut once diagonally (2 triangles each) | 12 |
| Dark | Square | 16 | 1 1/4" square | Use as cut | 16 |
| Dark | Rectangle | 8 | 1 1/4" × 2 3/4" | Use as cut | 8 |
| Dark | Half-square triangle | 6 | 3 1/8" square | Cut once diagonally (2 triangles each) | 12 |
Method
Piecing steps
Step 1: Cut every patch listed in the cutting chart for your size. Plain areas are cut as the larger squares and rectangles shown; do not subdivide them. Columns count from the left and rows from the top, starting at 1, in grid cells.
Step 2: Make the half-square triangles: cut each HST parent square once diagonally, sew contrasting triangles along the long edge, press toward the darker fabric and square up (12 at 2 3/4"). Keep each fabric pair and size in its own stack.
Step 3: Make the twelve large HSTs and square each to 2 3/4". Pair them around the outside so the background triangles meet in geese shapes on every edge.
Step 4: Make four nine-patches with background corners and center and dark edges, and four three-rail units with dark outer rails.
Step 5: Make section 1: sew the large dark/background HST at column 1, row 1 (dark in the upper-left), the large dark/background HST at column 1, row 4 (dark in the upper-right), the background square at column 1, row 7, the large background/dark HST at column 1, row 10 (background in the upper-left) and the large background/dark HST at column 1, row 13 (background in the upper-right) in a column, top to bottom. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 11 3/4" high.
Step 6: Make section 2: sew the background square at column 4, row 4, the dark square at column 5, row 4 and the background square at column 6, row 4 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 7: Make section 3: sew the dark square at column 4, row 5, the background square at column 5, row 5 and the dark square at column 6, row 5 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 8: Make section 4: sew the background square at column 4, row 6, the dark square at column 5, row 6 and the background square at column 6, row 6 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 9: Make section 5: sew the dark rectangle at column 4, row 7, the background rectangle at column 5, row 7 and the dark rectangle at column 6, row 7 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 2 3/4" high.
Step 10: Make section 6: sew the background square at column 4, row 10, the dark square at column 5, row 10 and the background square at column 6, row 10 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 11: Make section 7: sew the dark square at column 4, row 11, the background square at column 5, row 11 and the dark square at column 6, row 11 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 12: Make section 8: sew the background square at column 4, row 12, the dark square at column 5, row 12 and the background square at column 6, row 12 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 13: Make section 9: sew the large background/dark HST at column 4, row 1 (background in the upper-right), section 2, section 3, section 4, section 5, section 6, section 7, section 8 and the large dark/background HST at column 4, row 13 (dark in the upper-left) in a column, top to bottom. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 11 3/4" high.
Step 14: Make section 10: sew the background square at column 7, row 1, the dark rectangle at column 7, row 4, the background rectangle at column 7, row 5, the dark rectangle at column 7, row 6, the background square at column 7, row 7, the dark rectangle at column 7, row 10, the background rectangle at column 7, row 11, the dark rectangle at column 7, row 12 and the background square at column 7, row 13 in a column, top to bottom. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 11 3/4" high.
Step 15: Make section 11: sew the background square at column 10, row 4, the dark square at column 11, row 4 and the background square at column 12, row 4 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 16: Make section 12: sew the dark square at column 10, row 5, the background square at column 11, row 5 and the dark square at column 12, row 5 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 17: Make section 13: sew the background square at column 10, row 6, the dark square at column 11, row 6 and the background square at column 12, row 6 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 18: Make section 14: sew the dark rectangle at column 10, row 7, the background rectangle at column 11, row 7 and the dark rectangle at column 12, row 7 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 2 3/4" high.
Step 19: Make section 15: sew the background square at column 10, row 10, the dark square at column 11, row 10 and the background square at column 12, row 10 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 20: Make section 16: sew the dark square at column 10, row 11, the background square at column 11, row 11 and the dark square at column 12, row 11 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 21: Make section 17: sew the background square at column 10, row 12, the dark square at column 11, row 12 and the background square at column 12, row 12 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 1 1/4" high.
Step 22: Make section 18: sew the large background/dark HST at column 10, row 1 (background in the upper-left), section 11, section 12, section 13, section 14, section 15, section 16, section 17 and the large dark/background HST at column 10, row 13 (dark in the upper-right) in a column, top to bottom. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 11 3/4" high.
Step 23: Make section 19: sew the large dark/background HST at column 13, row 1 (dark in the upper-right), the large dark/background HST at column 13, row 4 (dark in the upper-left), the background square at column 13, row 7, the large background/dark HST at column 13, row 10 (background in the upper-right) and the large background/dark HST at column 13, row 13 (background in the upper-left) in a column, top to bottom. Press and check it measures 2 3/4" wide by 11 3/4" high.
Step 24: Complete the block: sew section 1, section 9, section 10, section 18 and section 19 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 11 3/4" wide by 11 3/4" high.
Step 25: Press the finished block. Every join above runs edge to edge, with no set-in or Y-seams.