Improv Curved Piecing Tutorial

I haven’t sewn curves in a quilt since I attempted a Denise Schmidt quilt pattern years and years ago. One block took me so long that I put it away and never made any more (though it was very cool!)

Working on my improv house quilt, though, I really wanted to try some curved pieces for a border and I’m so glad I attempted it because improv curves are so easy and much faster than I thought they’d be! No fussy templates or precise cutting needed, these little quarter circles can be incorporated into a drunkard’s path design, or used in many other ways.

Here’s a tutorial I filmed for how to make them!

Improv, or liberated quilting is such a fun experiment in creativity. If you’re unfamiliar with improv quilting, it’s exactly what it sounds like. Sort of creating as you go, with as much or as little of a plan in advance as you want. I’ve written another post about getting started with this style of quilting if you think you want to give it a try!

Often, the improv approach saves a ton of time with certain techniques and these curves are definitely one of those times! Not having to cut pieces out in advance is a huge time saver, and not needing them to be perfectly aligned when sewing is another. Instead, we cut the blocks free style and cut them larger in order to be trimmed down to size after sewing, sort of like with half square triangles.

My house quilt has been such a great creative endeavor for me and I’ve been able to try a lot of things I haven’t tried before! Liberated quilting is such a great way to incorporate lots of techniques into just one project. Almost like a sampler quilt.

If you haven’t been keeping up with my house quilt project, you can watch the wonky house tutorial here. The half square triangle tutorial is here, along with tons of ways to arrange them. And stay tuned for a coming video with the finished quilt top!