Riley Blake Black Tie - Downloadable PDF

Riley Blake Black Tie Quilt Pattern by Jina Barney – Free Downloadable PDF

The Riley Blake Black Tie pattern, designed by Jina Barney and available as a free downloadable PDF, produces a striking 46" x 46" square quilt built entirely from a repeating geometric block. With its sophisticated palette of black, cream, gray, and red, this design evokes the elegance of formal formalwear — a perfect project for quilters who love bold, graphic results. The pattern is suitable for quilters with a working knowledge of half square triangles and basic block construction.

What Is Being Made

The finished project is a 46-inch by 46-inch quilt composed of 16 Black Tie Blocks, each measuring 8" x 8" finished. The blocks are arranged in a 4-row by 4-column layout, creating a cohesive, repeating pattern across the quilt center. Borders are added around the assembled center to bring the quilt to its final dimensions. The overall aesthetic is formal and graphic, making it an ideal lap quilt, wall hanging, or decorative throw.

The Black Tie Block – Design and Construction

Each Black Tie Block is the heart of this pattern. Every block is assembled from the following components:

• 4 Half Square Triangles (HSTs) – each trimmed to 3¾" square
• 4 cream rectangles measuring 2" x 3¾"
• 1 red dot center square measuring 2" x 2"

The combination of diagonal HST units with rectangular sashing pieces and a centered accent square creates the distinctive bow tie or black tie motif that gives the pattern its name. Careful attention to the direction of the black stripe fabric is noted in the instructions, as fabric orientation affects the visual accuracy of the finished block.

Techniques Used

Half Square Triangles (HSTs)

The primary piecing technique in this pattern is the construction of Half Square Triangles. HSTs are one of the most versatile units in quilting — formed by sewing two squares of fabric together diagonally and cutting apart to yield two mirror-image triangle units. In this pattern, the method used is the two-at-a-time HST technique:

• A diagonal line is drawn from corner to corner on the wrong side of a 4¼" cream square
• The cream square is placed right sides together with a 4¼" assorted print square
• Seams are sewn ¼" on either side of the drawn line
• The unit is cut along the drawn line to yield 2 Half Square Triangles
• Seams are pressed toward the printed fabric
• Each HST is then trimmed to 3¾" square for precision

This process is repeated to produce 4 HSTs per block, and the full quilt requires 16 blocks, meaning a significant number of HSTs are made throughout the project. Accurate trimming is essential to ensure all blocks line up cleanly during quilt top assembly.

Block Assembly

Once the HSTs are complete, each block is assembled by sewing together the 4 HSTs, 4 cream rectangles, and 1 red dot square in a precise arrangement. The quilt photo is referenced for fabric placement, which is important for maintaining the directional consistency of the bow tie motif across all 16 blocks.

Quilt Center Assembly

Completed blocks are laid out in 4 rows of 4 blocks. Blocks are sewn together into rows first, and then the rows are joined to complete the quilt center. This straightforward row-by-row assembly is a classic quilting construction method that keeps alignment manageable.

Borders

Borders are added around the assembled quilt center to reach the final 46" x 46" measurement. The pattern specifically instructs quilters to measure through the center of the quilt before cutting border pieces, a best