It’s time for our second block – the Ohio Star! (Miss our earlier posts? You can find more information about the Wedding Ring block, fabric requirements, cutting tips, and fabric color options.)
Including the Ohio Star block into a quilt celebrating a novel set in Ohio was an easy choice to make. A bit of research also suggested the block was first introduced in the early 1800’s so its not hard to imagine one of our Milton Falls quilters making the block. In chapter 8, Eula shares a beautiful quilt made by her Aunt Elizabeth that features a variation of an Ohio Star block.
The Ohio Star is constructed by using half-square triangles (HST) to create hour-glass units. You will need two blocks for the throw-sized quilt and one block for the baby-sized quilt.
Assembling an hour-glass block is somewhat of a magic trick. Starting with two squares of fabric, you make two half-square triangles using the two-at-a-time method. Then you take these two half-square triangles and sew them together and get two hour-glass blocks ready to be trimmed. Magic!
The photo below shows the key steps where the magic occurs:
Align the seams and alternate the fabric when sewing the two half-square triangles together then carefully.
Test fabric placement and alignment by folding back a corner of the pinned unit to reveal the hour-glass.
Press the two hour-glass units well.
Trim! The pattern (see page 9) has the instructions to trim the hour-glass unit. In this photo, you can see that slightly more than a quarter-inch is trimmed off.
Next Monday, February 20, we will start a catch-up week and open up our second sponsor giveaway. To be eligible, you will need to share a photo of two blocks – two Wedding Ring blocks, two Ohio Stars, or one of each – by February 27. More information on how to share will available next week. The giveaway sponsors are Oliso and Fat Quarter Shop. (Winners are notified by email.) Mary and Lana were the winners of our first 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.
Ready to make your own magic?
Be sure to email us photos of your blocks so we can add them to the “Loves Me, Loves Me Not Gallery.” Just send them to qal@quiltfiction.com and we’ll take care of the rest (and you’ll be automatically entered into the next giveaway drawing!) You can also share photos of your Ohio Star block and the hour-glass magic on Instagram and in the Quilt Fiction Facebook group – use tags #lovesmelovesmenotqal, #quiltfictionqal, and #storyguildqal.
‘Loves Me, Loves Me Not’ QAL Gallery
