Are you looking for an amazing trim tool for flying geese and how to make four at a time flying geese? You’ve come to the right blog! I’ve fallen in love with the Wing Clipper I tool and will guide you how to use it during the four at a time flying geese method. If you know me I only add notions and tools to my sewing room when they are multipurpose and don’t take up a lot of space. I know there are plenty of other great tools out there for trimming flying geese. Many are full sets or possibly paper templates – I try to reduce waste and bulk in my sewing studio, so an all in one tool is a must.
Enter in the Wing Clipper I, I haven’t had the need to grab the Wing Clipper II trim tool yet. The difference between the two are the dimensions of the finished Flying Geese. Wing Clipper I is for full and half increments while Wing Clipper II is on the ¼ and ¾ inch increments.
For beginners here is a quick table of what size squares you need for this method. The best rule of thumb is that your geese square should be 1-½” larger than the finished flying geese width, the smaller squares should be 1” larger than the finished flying geese height. So if you’re finished flying geese block is to be 2”x4”, you’ll want the (1) 5-½” square and (4) 3” squares to create your four at a time block.
Finished Block Size |
(4) Small Squares [Pink] |
(1) Large Square [Green] |
1x2 |
2” |
3-½” |
2x4 |
3” |
5-½” |
3x6 |
4” |
7-½” |
4x8 |
5” |
9-½” |
5x10 |
6” |
11-½” |
6x12 |
7” |
13-½” |
8x14 |
9” |
15-½” |
Flying Geese: Four-at-a-Time Method
- Gather (4) small squares and (1) large square.
- Layer two small squares on top of one large square. Mark on the diagonal over the two smaller squares.
- Sew a ¼” seam on either side of the marked line. Cut on the line to yield two units per the diagram.
- Press the smaller squares open as shown in diagram.
- Gather one small square and one unit created in step 4. Layer the small square on what was the large square, matching the corners together. Mark a diagonal line as shown in the diagram
- Sew ¼” seams on either side of the marked line.
- Cut on the marked line, creating two units as shown in diagram.
- Press the units open that were created in step 7.
- Repeat Steps 5 through 8 with the other unit created in step 4, creating four flying geese.
- Now grab your Wing Clipper I tool and the four flying geese you’ve created. Position the flying geese so the geese are pointing towards you.
- I always line up the dimensions of the block first and then position the trim tool accurately so the V on the tool and the flying geese match. Trim the right and topside of the block.
- Turn the flying geese block so the geese is pointing away from you. Line the Wing Clipper I trim tool up with the left and bottom edge of the block matching the dimensions of your block (for this block I’m using 2-½”x4-½”) I then position the point on the tool to match the point of the geese block. Trim the right and top edge of the block.
- Repeat for remaining flying geese. Voila! You have 4 beautifully trimmed flying geese in no time!
I hope you found this review and process blog helpful! I love that I can use the straight edge of the Wing Clipper for all portions of creating the flying geese, from marking the diagonals, to cutting and then for it’s intended purpose of trimming. I don’t have any other tools out besides my rotary cutter and hera marker. Which keeps my sewing space to a minimal outside of fabric.
Happy Sewing!