What a delightful time I’ve had chatting with everyone over email and cheering you on as you make your blocks. Having block photos pop up in my email has been the such fun. Now that we are at the quilt top assembly phase, the photos popping into my email will only get more exciting! (Check out the Loves Me, Loves Me Not gallery ).

An alternate layout to the final one!

The layout for the throw-sized quilt places our large Crown and Star block in the center, the four Wedding Ring blocks at each of the corners and then distributes the remaining blocks (Ohio Star, Milton Falls Star, Florence Star, and Rosetta Star) along each side of the quilt. The quilt pattern details a specific layout for where to place each of the blocks along the side but most definitely lay the blocks out on the floor, a bed or a design wall and decide what layout you like best. I personally played around with several – including the one pictured – before deciding on my final layout.

A couple of tips for finishing your throw-sized quilt top:

• The instructions for sashing and outer border (page 3 for throw-sized quilt) call for strips cut at two different widths. The wider (3.5″) strips are for both the border around the Crown and Star block along with the outer border. The smaller (2.5″) strips are for the sashing between blocks.
• The outer border requires the joining of multiple strips to match the dimensions of the quilt. Your strips can be joined on the diagonal – as you would join binding strips – or the ends can be sewn directly together with a 1/4″ seam
• Carefully measure the height and width of the quilt center in three places, average these together and then cut the joined strips to match this dimension instead of what is listed in the pattern
• Securely pin the outer border strips to the side of the quilt before sewing using lots and lots of pins!

Our final giveaway will have four Grand Prize winners. (Prize details will be shared later this month.) The winners will be randomly chosen from those who submit a photo of a finished quilt top (either throw-sized or baby-sized) by May 15, 2023 and meet the eligibility guidelines listed below.

Eligibility Guidelines

• The participant must email a photo of their finished quilt top prior to 8 p.m. ET Monday, May 15, 2023. The quilt does not need to be quilted or bound – a quilt top (also called a “flimsy”) is acceptable.
• The final quilt layout does not need to be a exact replica of the pattern layout but the quilt must contain a large Crown and Star block and at least four unique smaller blocks from the pattern.
• 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, April 17, I’ll share tips about baby-sized quilt assembly.

It’s time to finish your blocks as we will start adding sashing and assembling the quilt top next week. To give you a bit of extra incentive, we’ve also got another giveaway sponsored by Fat Quarter Shop and Oliso!

To be eligible for our latest giveaway, email qal@quiltfiction.com a photo or photos of (at least) two blocks – two Rosetta Star blocks or one Rosetta Star and one Crown and Star – prior to 8 p.m. ET Monday, April 10, 2023. We’ve been sharing photos of all the blocks in our Loves Me, Loves Me Not gallery and we look forward to seeing your blocks added to the gallery.

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 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 Rosetta Stars blocks, or one Rosetta Star and one Crown and Star prior to 8 p.m. ET Monday, April 10, 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 share tips for quilt top assembly for the throw-sized quilt plus give a sneak peak on the details behind the Grand Prize giveaway. Which version of the quilt are you making? Let us know in the comments!

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.

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

You will need one Crown and Star block for either the throw-sized quilt or the baby-sized quilt. 

In our story Friendship Album: Forget-Me-Not, Dorothy, like many of us, has many quilt projects underway including a quilt which uses the Crown and Star block. In Dorothy’s quilt, the block is small and she is a bit dismayed to have to work with so many small pieces, blaming Eula for talking her into using this block! For our quilt, we’ve gone with a larger version which makes the block fun to sew and also the focal point of the quilt.

There are two versions of this block – one with corner triangles for the throw-sized quilt and one without the corner triangles for the baby-sized quilt. (More information can be found on page 13, step 6 in the pattern.) These corner triangles frame the Crown and Star block quite nicely in the throw-sized quilt but they are optional. If you aren’t certain you want them as part of your block or perhaps aren’t sure what fabric to choose, assemble the block skipping step 6 and add them later once you start laying out the blocks and the sashing.

Ready to sew? Share photos of your Crown and Star block 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, April 3, we will start a catch-up week and open up our fourth sponsor giveaway. To be eligible, share a photo (or photos) of our two newest blocks – either two Rosetta Stars or a Rosetta star and the Crown and Star block – by April 10. The rest of the April will focus on assembling the quilt top. Keep in mind that a final photo of your quilt top will be due by May 15 in order for a chance at the grand prize giveaway. (To enter the final giveaway, your quilt does NOT need to be quilted – just the quilt top (a.k.a. the flimsy) is required.)

Char and Loyce were the winners of our third 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.