Make 8 at a time Half Square Triangles at Once Like a Boss with Cricut

Cricut Half Square Triangles Tutorial

 

The only thing better than making 8-at-a-time half square triangles (HSTs) is making them with Cricut!

With just a few tools and a Cricut Maker, it's easy to turn a few squares of fabric into 8 beautiful half square triangles all at once.  Of course, you still have to sew them together, but using Cricut is a fun, FAST, and accurate way to make HST's.  

 

The Cricut Maker can streamline the process of marking and cutting fabric for 8-at-a-time half-square triangles in several ways:

1. Precision Cutting: The Cricut Maker offers precise cutting, allowing you to cut fabric with accuracy. 

2. Efficiency: Instead of manually marking and cutting individual fabric pieces, letting Cricut do it saves you time and effort. 

3. Customization: You have the flexibility to customize the size and shape of your half-square triangles in the Cricut Design Space software according to your project requirements. You can easily adjust the dimensions and layout to fit your specific needs.

4. Consistency: The Cricut Maker ensures consistency in cutting, reducing the likelihood of errors between fabric pieces. This is particularly important when working on quilting projects where precise measurements are essential for achieving accurate results.  

Today, I'm going to show you how to make 3" HSTs (2.5" finished once sewn into a quilt block or other project).  Rather than marking and cutting the fabric like I used to with a rotary cutter and a washable fabric pen, now I let my Cricut do it!  While my Cricut Maker is marking and cutting my fabric, I can save time by working on another part of my project.  

For (8) 2.5" HSTs, you need:

Cricut washable fabric marking pen

Pink Cricut Fabric Grip Mat

Cricut Maker

Fabric

Thread

Sewing Machine

Rotary cutter or Scissors

Iron

 

Load Cricut Maker 

We're making (8) 3" HST's.  They'll have a finished size of 2.5".  We'll need fabric that is at least 7" square.  I used (2) 10" squares of contrasting fabric from a previous project. 

We'll use the pink Cricut Fabric Grip Mat. It's made specifically for cutting fabric.   Put the fabric right side down on the mat.  Make sure it's properly aligned on the mat.  I ironed and starched the fabric square before putting it on the mat.  

Make sure your Cricut Maker is loaded with the Cricut washable fabric pen on the left and the rotary blade on the right.  

 

I started in cricut designspace software by making a 7" square.  I then added the following lines: a horizontal line, a vertical line, and several sets of diagonal lines. Make sure they are set so that Cricut will draw, not cut, the lines. 

Initially I made the diagonal lines in a different color, (raspberry color in the photo below) then later changed it back to match the other set of lines.

The raspberry-colored lines are 1/4" on either side of the diagonal lines.

Finally, I added another 7" square in a contrasting color, then saved my project.

Now, turn on the Cricut Maker.  Open your saved project and click "Make".  

 

Next, click "Continue" and select the type of fabric you're using.  I used cotton.  

 

Mark & Cut 

Load the mat with fabric into the Cricut Maker. Then, press Go in Cricut designspace.  It's only necessary for Cricut to mark the wrong side of one of the fabric squares.  Once the first mat is done, load the second one. (For illustration purposes, only the first mat is shown in the video.)

Sew & Trim

Sew on either side of the diagonal lines.  Trim along remaining unsewn blue lines. 

 

Press

Press to set seam, then press toward dark fabric.