That's wonderful Pam - get crackin' girl!

K x

I am crackin' ! Just hope these little stars don't make me crack! So many little pieces to cut that I got 8 of them cut out and started sewing them together for a change of pace.

They're so small at 6"! I changed the type of star in the first border.

Oh, your HSTs are a joy to behold! Have you made those stars EVEN MORE complex? Weren't they going to be squares in the centre?!

K x

Yes, I suppose I did make them more complex. Thing is, the pattern I found online of the squares in the middle were for different sized blocks and I wanted 6" and had the one for THIS 6" star so... changing them was the "easy" thing to do. :-)

I know what you mean about the snowball block. I have attempted that on several quilts and always wonder "why"... I think it is one of the hardest I have found to match.
Yours looks great... nice block... keep going. Quilter1234

You are so good at figuring this stuff out I've noticed. I don't know what program you do your quilt designing in, but I'm in awe of it. I have EQ6 and haven't even scratched the surface of using it to it's full capacity...

I have EQ4 but have rarely used it. I used it for a Giant Dahlia design just so I could put the actual fabrics in and see it before doing it.

The pictures I have posted of designs are just done in MS Paint. There is probably a much easier way to do it in EQ but I find it easy to just draw them.

Either that or I'm lazy in trying to figure out the EQ program AND it should be updated to version 6. I'm sure there is a lot more a person could do there like automatically figure out sizes and such. I do think it is quite an involved program and I didn't, and still don't, find it easy to navigate.

Let me know how it goes for you.

I don't think I've done a snowball before. It seems simple enough with the directions to place a square on the corner with a line drawn point-t-point and sew on the line. I saw a formula to figure out the size of the square: Take the size of the snowball square and divide by 3. A 9 inch snowball would need a corner square of 3 inches.

I haven't tried it.

Looks really great!! I love feathered stars, just haven't had the guts to do one yet!! They are awesome!! Skeat

this is the first one I have done and it's not hard, not like doing circles or something. I just sewed very carefully, and slowly. It's not one I would want to try and do quickly. I seem to choose hard ones and maybe it's a case of "fools rush in" but, it usually works out in the end.

If not... I can just scrap it. :lol:

I've had piecing days like that, Pam, when NOTHING goes together right. The next block will probably be MUCH easier. I agree, though, that the square in the corner is MUCH easier than cutting triangles. No stretchy diagonals.

PPam wrote:
Do you ladies find that as we get older we get more exact? I know when I first started that things being off were no big deal to me... at least I did it! Now, the challenge is making it the best I can.

YES, i look back and think, when I was sewing for my kids, I wanted seams to match up, but was not as perfectionistic as I am getting to be now! Along with learning how to do stuff, we learned, I want to be good at this, I want to be able to show my hard work to others, and share.
The more I do it, the better I expect to become, but I forget, it's not gonna happen in one day. I fight with things too, and when I finally get tired, and it's somewhat the way I want it...I let it go, resolving that next time, I will remember all the things I learned this time! Yes, YES, YES! :wink:

Ppam wrote:....This is the layout that came to me at work today. Then I thought "Feathered ... cabins?" Thinking "feathered" made me think of "tarred and feathered". Starred and Feathered!

I think that is brilliant! (applauding)...wtg! you just keep doing these really hard, but awesomely beautiful works of art, pam. It gives ppl like me, something to aspire to! :P

I'm thinking that the small stars I chose for the first border are more than I want to do. I've completed 3 of them, another 5 are in the HST stage, and I just don't like working with them.

The pieces are small and the block is so small that they are very bulky. There is no room for error or fudging, or nudging, into submission. If it's too frustrating and not enjoyable to work on it's going to turn into a UFO and I don't want that.

I may try and complete these first 8 and then assess how it's going. I worked on it for quite awhile last night just to get two more blocks done.

Ah yes, Pam, if it doesn't feel 'right' you don't have to do it - no quilt police looking over your shoulder!

nope, no police, but you can still call it, 'starred and feathered'. I love that! :D

I worked on it last night and got another block done and the green and brown squares cut out for the rest of them.

I'm just going to do it and not worry about it so much. I'm breaking it down into manageable parts of doing 7 of each type at a time. There are 28 of these 6" blocks, 7 mulberry and green, 7 mulberry and blue, 7 brown and green, 7 brown and blue.

I think it will help when I receive the padded pressing/blocking board that I ordered yesterday. My concern on the blocks is that they are so small that the slightest error makes them get out of size. After experimenting with using a scant 1/4" I found that even that much off makes the block a bit larger than 6 1/2" and I don't want that either because it will cut off my points if I leave it like that!

As you say, there is no quilt police. I can only do what I can do and I'll have to let go of the thought that it has to be perfect. I'm sure my daughter won't be judging it. :wink: