Tool School: Nancy Zieman’s No-Hassle Triangles Gauge

What is it? – Quilting is truly an art form and over the years thousands of recognizable patterns have evolved. And each one of those has several if not an infinite number of variations. And how many of those do you think include triangles? It’s got to be in the thousands too. Colors, prints, batiks, fabric styles and block orientations all contribute to an unending array of designs. So what’s the problem? What’s the hassle? The hassle is making all of those little triangles and making them perfect in both symmetry and size so everything fits together and we get the designs we want. It’s hard to do, no two ways about it and some quilters avoid it just because it is so hard. But what if there were a way to take the hassle out of it, make triangles easy? Well that’s exactly what Clover and Nancy Zieman teamed up to do. The result? The No Hassle Triangle Gauge. This is a nifty little tool that solves all of the triangle problems. It’s constructed out of sturdy plastic with a securely locking slide. The markings on the shaft not only show you how to measure and mark your fabric but will even tell you what size to cut your blocks. Now you can make half square and quarter square triangles perfect every time. And it’s fast. You never cut a triangle, you just end up with them.

What does it do? – The No Hassle Triangle Gauge allows you to achieve your triangle dreams with ease, either half square or quarter square. No guess work. No Mistakes.

• For half square triangles you refer to the left side of the gauge. There you will find five different sizes of blocks. Reset the locking slide to the diagonal line below the size desired for your quilt design. The two numbers above will tell you what size to cut your blocks and what size the final triangle block will be. Once the blocks are cut, superimpose the triangle gauge within a double stacked block and mark the center line. Sew your scant quarter inch on either side of the marked line and then cut, unfold and press. Voila! You now have a perfect half square triangle.
• For quarter square triangles you refer to the right side of the gauge where five size blocks are also indicated. Proceed to form half square blocks as above. Once complete simply match up two half square blocks and repeat using the markings on the left side as before. Now you have perfect quarter square triangle blocks. What could be easier?

How do I promote it? – The No Hassle Triangle Gauge is a class, maybe several for different quilt patterns. Gotta’ do it though. If you only put it up on your peg board chances are your customers may not realize exactly what it can do. Promoting your class with samples and a simple story board will get the word out too. Make a few blocks and leave them and the gauge out on your cutting table or near checkout to generate questions. Make sure everyone knows how to do a demo. Show it with a quilt you’ve made at a meeting of your quilt guild. Everyone will want one. The No Hassle Triangle Gauge is one of our very best selling products. It can easily be one for you as well. If your customers can effortlessly make perfect triangles for their quilt blocks, just think what else they will be buying! Clover helps you sell everything else.

See the latest Tool School video on Nancy Zieman’s No-Hassle Triangles Gauge