Card Trick

Card Trick is a classic optical illusion block that interlaces four fabrics to create the look of playing cards held fanned out. I love the way the points of each fabric are really highlighted, and the precision it’s possible to get with the design.

We’re focusing on the skill of making QUARTER-square triangles, but unlike the quarter-square triangles in our Ohio Star block, in Card Trick, each unit of the block is unique. So while there are shortcut techniques to make half- and quarter-square triangles, in this case we’re making each unit of the block one at a time. This will ask us to handle our fabrics differently, and to pay careful attention to fabric placement and alignment in order to make the visual effect at the heart of Card trick.

Take the time to review the skills we’ve learned so far, and apply them as we work through Card Trick: stabilizing fabrics with a spray before cutting; carefully using our ruler to cut accurately; matching and nesting seams; sewing to maintain our points; and trimming units to ensure they align when rows & columns are joined.

And have fun! This is an exciting block that leads you beyond beginner territory into more intermediate-level patchwork. Good job!

Download the Card Trick Quilt Block Pattern
Castle Geyser erupts with hot water and steam with pools of thermophilic bacteria and is a cone geyser in the Upper Geyser Basin of Yellowstone National Park, Wyoming, United States.

We’ll be working with half- and quarter-square triangles and LOTS of gorgeous color in the 2022 Murder Mystery Quilt! Join us and refine your quilting skills with one brand-new exclusive block per month for the whole year–and make new quilting friends along the way.

Now that you’ve conquered squares and triangles, let’s master RECTANGLES and triangles in the next block, Diamonds!