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Broken Sugar Bowl Quilt Block
From our Free Quilt Block Pattern Library
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Skill Level: Beginner
The Broken Sugar Bowl quilt block is another variation in the Jacob's Ladder block family.
Not quite the block you were looking for?
Click here to go the other Jacob's Ladder variations and links to those patterns.
Let's make our Broken Sugar Bowl!
General Instructions
Several abbreviations are used on this page:
- SA - seam allowance
- HST - half square triangle
- RST - right sides together
- Bac - background fabric
All SA are 1/4" unless otherwise noted.
Pressing instructions are highlighted to make them easy to find.
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Step 1: Cutting patches for a Broken Sugar Bowl
Broken Sugar Bowl designSample Size: 6" finished / 6½" unfinished
Grid: 6x6
Design Type: Jacob's Ladder
Choose a medium and dark fabric with enough contrast so that the individual pieces are clearly differentiated.
I prefer to cut over-sized patches for my half square triangles, then sew the unit and trim to the correct dimensions.
In this tutorial for the 6" finished sample block, I cut my #2 and #3 patches 3-1/8" x 3-1/8" instead of the 2-7/8" x 2-7/8" listed in the chart below—adding 1/4" to each dimension—for specifically that reason.
If you'd like to cut your HST patches oversized, they are marked with ** below.
 |
Cutting Chart for a~ Traditional Piecing ~ | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Patch | Fabric | Qty | Finished Block Size | ||||
| 6" | 9" | 12" | |||||
| 1 | Dark | 2 | 2½" x 2½" | 3½" x 3½" | 4½" x 4½" | ||
| 2* | Medium | 2 | 2⅞" x 2⅞" | 3⅞" x 3⅞" | 4⅞" x 4⅞" | ||
| 3* | Background | 2 | 2⅞" x 2⅞" | 3⅞" x 3⅞" | 4⅞" x 4⅞" | ||
| 4 | Dark | 1 | 1½" x 7” | 2” x 9” | 2½" x 11” | ||
| 5 | Background | 1 | 1½" x 7” | 2” x 9” | 2½" x 11” | ||
| 6 | Background | 2 | 1½" x 1½" | 2” x 2" | 2½" x 2½" | ||
| 7 | Medium | 2 | 1½" x 1½" | 2” x 2" | 2½" x 2½" | ||
| Unfinished Block Size | 6½" | 9½" | 12½" | ||||
| Grid Size | 1” | 1½" | 2” | ||||
Step 2: Create the Broken Sugar Bowl units
Half Square Triangles (HST)
Make 4
We'll use the Quick Pieced Method for making these HSTs.
Draw a diagonal line on the back of both #3 background squares.
Stitch a 1/4" from both sides of this drawn line.
After stitching, give the pairs a quick press as they were sewn and then cut them in half on the drawn line.
Press the four HST open with the SA to the dark.
Find your Finished Block Size in the chart below and trim your HST as directed. If you cut generously you'll be trimming more than if you cut the patches the exactly as listed in the Cutting Chart.
| Finished Block Size | Trim HST to... |
|---|---|
| 6” | 2-1/2” |
| 9” | 3-1/2” |
| 12” | 4-1/2” |
Four Patches
Make 1
Make 2With RST, sew the #4 and #5 strip together along the long edge.
The SA is pressed to the dark.
Find your Finished Block Size in the chart below.
Verify that your strip set measures true to the corresponding width. Subcut the stripset into four equal units the 'Subcut Width'.
| Finished Block Size | Stripset Width after Stitching | Subcut Width |
|---|---|---|
| 6” | 2-1/2” | 1-1/2” |
| 9” | 3-1/2” | 2” |
| 12” | 4-1/2” | 2-1/2” |
With RST stitch a #6 to a #7 square. Repeat for a total of two.
Press the SA toward the darker fabric.
Arrange the pairs as shown below.
With RST, sew each pair together. The SA can be pressed to one side or 'twirled'.
These are our finished four patches.
Step 3: Assemble the Broken Sugar Bowl quilt block
Arrange all the units into rows as shown below. The dark #1(large) and #4(small) squares are in the outside corners.
With RST, stitch the units in each row together.
Take a quick peek and flip open the patches right before sewing them. It's real easy to mix them up at the sewing machine.
When you're sure they're in the proper position, stitch.
Press the SA away from the HST.With RST, stitch the rows together. I pin to keep the points of the HST matching up where they should be.
And this is the finished Broken Sugar Bowl quilt block!
More Jacob's Ladder variations...
The Broken Sugar Bowl quilt block is one of a number of Jacob's Ladder block variations. There are instructions on this site for many more—both 9-patch and four-patch variations—in several sizes.
Simply click any of the images below to go directly to those block instructions.
For design inspiration, click here to go to our Jacob's Ladder quilt pattern ideas page.
What about a different quilt block?
For a list of ALL the quilt block patterns on this site, start here.
If you know the name of the block, you can shorten your search by using these alphabetical links:
Click here if you're looking for blocks with at least some paper piecing.
Click here if you're looking for the basic building blocks of quilting, i.e. Flying Geese, half square triangles, quarter square triangles, etc., along with several techniques to make each.
And finally, use these links to find blocks in these finished sizes:
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