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Eight inch quilt blocks are commonly used in quilts that are made up of one block only and the parts are easily divisible by four. Also, by setting the blocks in different layouts, you can create many different new designs -- sometimes with just a simple rotation of the block. This is not to say that larger or smaller versions of the same quilt block cannot be used in your quilt. Once again, you are the designer.
Jewel Box
Free Quilt Block Pattern
The Jewel Box quilt block has been around for a very long time. It is a simple four patch featuring only the simplest of patches used in quilting -- the square and half square triangle. This quilt block is a perfect choice to use up all of those tiny scraps you have been saving. My personal opinion is that quilters used "jewel" coloured fabric scraps and thereby created the name of this block (but I am only guessing). In any case, the more scraps you have the better.
My version of this quilt block uses a single, light background fabric, but you may choose to use a variety of fabrics for this. The only requirement is that there is lots of contrast between the background fabric and all of the other fabrics used. (*Note - many quilters choose a dark fabric for the background instead, and then, of course you also must have lots of contrast with the remaining fabrics.)