Star Crossed

Materials

The fabrics shown are from Timeless Treasures’ Paisley and Christmas collections

  • 70cm Marble Mania 1006 Cactus – a Light Green marble
  • 40cm Paisley 8296 - a Cream background with red, green, gold paisley print
  • 40cm Paisley 8296 – a Black background with red, green, gold paisley print
  • 60cm Christmas 8156 – a Dark Green with lighter green leaf print, gold outline
  • 60cm Christmas 8156 - a dark Red with a red leaf print, gold outline
  • 115cm square of backing fabric
  • 115cm square of wadding

Note: When cutting strips and then cutting into smaller pieces, always retain the spare fabric as you will need it later. Pin on a label giving the width to make it easier to cut the sections from the right pieces

Finished Size

107cm (42in) square

Skill Level

Intermediate

Star Blocks

  1. For the four corner stars, cut a 3 7⁄8in strip across the 44in width of your fabric from the light green, the cream, the black, the red and the dark green. Cut into 3 7⁄8in squares. From these strips you need eight light green, eight cream, eight black, four red and four dark green squares.
  2. With RS together, put the squares into the following pairs:
    • Four black with four light green
    • Four black with four red
    • Four cream with four light green
    • Four cream with four dark green
    Draw a diagonal line, corner to corner, on the wrong side of one fabric per pair. Stitch 1⁄4in from each side of this line on each pair. Cut along the line, open and press. See Figure 1.
Figure 1
Figure 1: Sewing the half-square triangles
  1. Cut a 2 3⁄8in strip each from the cream and the black fabric. Cut sixteen 2 3⁄8in squares from each strip. Pair up the cream with the black, RS together, draw a diagonal line, stitch both sides of the line 1⁄4in away, cut along the line, open and press.
  2. Cut a 3 1⁄2in strip from the light green and the dark green. Cut twelve 3 1⁄2in squares from light green and four from dark green. Cut a 2in strip of the black and cream. Cut sixteen 2in squares from each. Using Figure 2, layout your pieces to match the diagram. Sew the small units in the centre of the block first. You now have all the units to make the four corner star blocks. Join together in strips of four squares, then join into the completed blocks. Match the seams carefully.
Figure 2
Figure 2: Corner star blocks
  1. For the centre star block, cut the following:
    • One 3 7⁄8in strip of light green and cut four 3 7⁄8in squares from it
    • One 3 7⁄8in strip of cream and cut four 3 7⁄8in squares
    • Four 2 3⁄8in squares and four 2in squares from the cream (using your previously cut 2 3⁄8in strip of cream)
    • One 2 3⁄8in strip of black and cut four 2 3⁄8in squares and four 2in squares
    • One 3 1⁄2in strip of dark green and cut four 3 1⁄2in squares from it
  2. Layer the light green and cream 3 7⁄8in squares as above, drawing the diagonal, and sewing in to each side of the line. Cut on the line, open and press. Do the same with the 2 3⁄8in cream and black squares. Construct the rows of the block in the same way as the corner star blocks following Fig 3. Connect the rows into the block.
Figure 3
Figure 3: Central Star block

Finishing and Assembly

Figure 4
Figure 4: The connecting blocks
  1. Make the four connecting blocks. Cut two 3 1⁄2in strips of light green and one each of red and dark green. Cut into 12 1⁄2in sections. Use leftover strips cut for previous piecing as well. You will need eight 12 1⁄2 x 3 1⁄2in strips of light green, and four each of red and dark green fabrics. Sew into blocks as shown in Figure 4. Sew the blocks togther into the completed quilt top. See photo 1.
  2. Cut four 1 1⁄2in strips each from your red and dark green fabrics. Sew the red strips to the dark green strips lengthways. Add to the quilt on all sides as borders, mitring the corners carefully so they lie flat.
Photo 1
Photo 1
  1. Layer the finished quilt top over the wadding and a backing on a flat, clean surface. Pin or tack the layers together. Quilt by hand or machine. Trim the backing and wadding to match the quilt top.
  2. For the binding cut four 2in strips of the red. Join into one long strip by sewing together on the diagonal. Trim off the corners which extend beyond your stitching, leaving a 1⁄4in seam allowance and press the seams open. Press in half lengthwise, bind the quilt with this folded double binding by sewing it to the front of the quilt, raw edges together, and then mitre the corners. Include a 4in hanging sleeve along one back edge of the quilt, if you would like it to be a wall-hanging. Sew the top edge of the sleeve into the binding and finish the other edge by hand. Turn the binding to the back of the quilt and finish by hand.
  3. Block the quilt by pinning tightly into the carpet or onto a design wall and spraying lightly with water. Allow to dry. Add a label including your name and the date that the quilt was made

First published in Popular Patchwork January 2006