Quilt Along: Florence Star

It’s time for our fourth block – the Florence Star!  (Miss our earlier posts? You can find more information about the Milton Falls Star, Ohio Star, and Wedding Ring block.)

You will need two Florence Star blocks for the throw-sized quilt and one block for the baby-sized quilt.

If you’ve been following along in the Friendship Album: Forget-Me-Not story, you’ll know that Florence’s wedding didn’t go as planned. She has moved forward and is busy expanding her business offerings. (I really want to say more but I promised no spoilers!) Given the importance of Florence to our story, we needed a Florence block in our quilt. As it turns out I’d already named a block after Florence –  a few years ago, a friend and I hosted a hand piecing quilt-along and named five of the blocks after the characters in Friendship Album 1933.

This construction of this block uses basic units – flying geese for the outer star and half-square triangles for the center. If you are pressing seams to the side, pay attention to the pressing diagrams (look for the small arrows) so units nest during construction.

Ready to sew? Share photos of your Florence Star on Instagram and in the Quilt Fiction Facebook group and use tags #lovesmelovesmenotqal, #quiltfictionqal, and #storyguildqal. Add your blocks to our Loves Me, Loves Me Not gallery by emailing them to qal@quiltfiction.com.

Next Monday, March 13, we will start a catch-up week and open up our third sponsor giveaway. To be eligible, share a photo (or photos) of our two newest blocks – two Milton Falls Star blocks, two Florence Star blocks, or one of each – by March 20.

Colleen and Anne-Marie were the winners of our second giveaway – congratulations!

Don’t yet have the pattern? You can buy the pattern at the Quilt Fiction Shop.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or email qal@quiltfiction.com.

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Quilt Along: Milton Falls Star

It’s time for our third block – the Milton Falls Star!  (Miss our earlier posts? You can find more information about the Ohio Star, Wedding Ring block, fabric requirements, cutting tips, and fabric color options.)

What’s in a name?

What we today recognize as the Ohio Star block (our block 2) historically has also been identified (to name a few) as the Variable Star, the Texas Star, and the Lone Star. Today, in honor of the setting of Friendship Album: Forget-Me-Not, we are calling this variation the Milton Falls Star.

While construction for the Milton Falls Star is quite similar to the Ohio Star, fabric placement makes this block shine!  You will need two blocks for the throw-sized quilt and one block for the baby-sized quilt.

Assembling the quarter-square triangle follows the same basic steps as the hour-glass unit –align, test, press, trim – but uses two different half-square triangles instead of identical ones.

Align your half-square triangles so that like colors are not touching (left above photo). Follow the instructions in the pattern (see page 9) when trimming the quarter-square triangle. You will be trimming away slightly more than a quarter-inch (right above photo).

Ready to sew? Share photos of your Milton Falls block on Instagram and in the Quilt Fiction Facebook group – use tags #lovesmelovesmenotqal, #quiltfictionqal, and #storyguildqal. Add your blocks to our Loves Me, Loves Me Not gallery by emailing them to qal@quiltfiction.com.

Next Monday, March 6, we will make the Florence Star and I’ll share a sneak peak of our next giveaway!

Don’t yet have the pattern? You can buy the pattern at the Quilt Fiction Shop.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or email qal@quiltfiction.com.

Quilt Along: Catch-up Week and a Giveaway

I’m very excited to kick off our second giveaway sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop and Oliso!

This week is also our first catch-up week to give everyone time to make their Wedding Ring and Ohio Star blocks and – perhaps for some quilters – get ahead on the next block.

We’ve been sharing photos of Wedding Ring and Ohio Star blocks in our Loves Me, Loves Me Not gallery. (Photos of other blocks will be added to the gallery as we introduce them in the quilt along.)

Aren’t they lovely? It is fun to see how the blocks look with different fabric choices.

To be eligible for our second giveaway, we need to see a photo of YOUR blocks in the gallery! Just email qal@quiltfiction.com a photo or photos of (at least) two blocks – two Wedding Ring blocks, two Ohio Star blocks, or one of each – prior to 8 p.m. Monday, February 27, 2023.

Two winners will be randomly chosen from those meeting the eligibility guidelines below.  One winner will receive a Felt Pressing Mat from Oliso.  (This prize can only be shipped to US or Canada addresses.)  One winner will receive a $35 gift certificate to Fat Quarter Shop.

We have the best sponsors!

Eligibility Guidelines

  • The participant must email a photo or photos of two blocks – two Wedding Ring blocks, two Ohio Star blocks, or one of each prior to 8 p.m. Monday, February 27, 2023
  • The participant must be a member of Story Guild (at any membership level, including free) and have downloaded a copy of the Loves Me, Loves Me Not pattern
  • Each winner will be chosen randomly and notified via email. Winner will have 72 hours to claim their prize by responding to our email – if we don’t hear back, we may draw another name. Once all prizes for a specific giveaway have been claimed, the first names of the winners will be announced.

Next Monday, we will start sewing the Milton Falls Star, a variation of the Ohio Star created by fabric placement.

Don’t yet have the pattern? You can buy the pattern at the Quilt Fiction Shop.

If you have any questions, feel free to leave a comment or email qal@quiltfiction.com.