Floating Stars, One of the Easiest Quilts You Ever Make

By Janet Wickell

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About the Floating Stars Quilt

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Easy Quilt Patterns for Begining Quilters - © Janet Wickell

Scrappy Floating Stars. Photo Credit: © Janet Wickell

So is Floating Stars the most boring quilt block you've ever seen? It doesn't even look like a star, does it? But hold on, because first impressions are most definitely deceiving. The quilt you'll create from the Floating Stars quilt block pattern may be one of the easiest projects you'll ever make.

The Floating Stars quilt block pattern was originally written for a scrappy block swap, but can be used for any project you wish to sew.

Each set of materials will make nine blocks that finish at 4" square. Cut additional sets to make the total number of blocks required for a quilt.

Light background fabric:

(1) 4-1/2" wide strip cut from selvage to selvage; cut into nine 4-1/2" squares

Dark star tips:

(18) 2-1/2" squares cut from a scrappy assortment of quilting fabrics

Star Block Size Options

Vary the size of the blocks to suit your needs. For instance:

3" background squares with 1-3/4" squares for tips, finishes at 2-1/2"
3-1/2" background squares with 2" squares for tips, finishes at 3"
4" background squares with 2-1/4" squares for tips, finishes at 3-1/2"
5-1/2" background squares with 3" squares for tips, finishes at 5"
6-1/2" background squares with 3-1/2" squares for tips, finishes at 6"

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How to Sew Easy Floating Stars Quilt Blocks

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Assembling the Scrappy Floating Stars Block. Photo Credit: © Janet Wickell

Each Floating Star square has a quick pieced triangle in opposite corners. Stars emerge when the squares are sewn together -- see an example on page 3.

Stars aren't the only possibility for these little triangle-tipped squares. They could also be used to sew an X's and O's quilt, even though lights and darks are typically reversed in that layout.

Draw a diagonal line on the reverse side of each dark star tip square. The line should stretch from one corner to the opposite corner.

Align the square with a corner of the background block, edges matched exactly and right sides together. Press to help the fabrics "stick" together or secure with a pin placed away from the marked line.
Sew a seam on the marked line.
Remove from the machine and cut away the excess triangles remaining past the seam. Leave an approximate 1/4" seam allowance.
Repeat Steps 1-4 to sew a second square to the background's opposite corner as shown.
Press the block just as it was sewn to set the seam. Press seam allowances towards the background (towards the corner if background is very light).

That's it. Simple... right? Now sew more Floating Stars and use chain piecing to make them go together even faster.

Jump to the next page for a quilt layout example.

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Sew Star Blocks Together

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Scrappy Floating Stars Quilt. Photo Credit: © Janet Wickell

Arrange the Quilt Blocks

When you've made all the blocks you need, stick them up on a design wall or arrange them on a flat surface. Place blocks side by side in rows as shown. Step back and evaluate the quilt's layout.

Should some very dark or very light quilt blocks be rearranged to sprinkle them throughout the quilt, or to make blocks form a more consistent appearance?
Do you like the way colors are either balanced or clustered?

Leave the room for a bit then return. Do you still like the layout? Keep playing with it until you're happy with the way your quilt blocks are arranged. Don't get into too much of a hurry to sew the Floating Stars together. Sleep on it and take another look when you wake up.

When you're ready, sew the blocks side-by-side into rows. The intersections where star tips meet the backgrounds should butt together nicely for a perfect match,

Press new seam allowances in adjoining rows in opposite directions. Sew the rows together, butting seams to match block edges.

See the next two pages for border ideas.

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Scrappy Floating Stars Border Options

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It's easy to use half blocks to add a border and give the Floating Stars quilt a more finished appearance along its outer edges.

Cut a 2-1/2" x 4-1/2" background rectangle for each star block on the quilt's perimeter.
Cut the same number of 2-1/2" dark squares.
Make sure your quilt blocks are arranged as above, with dark triangles in the upper right and lower left corners of the quilt.
Count the number of blocks in the top row.

Gather one rectangle and one square for each of those blocks. Sew the square to the bottom left edge of the rectangle, using the same method squares were sewn to blocks. Complete the entire set, press and trim. Sew all together lengthwise into a long border as shown in the illustration.
Repeat to make another identical border set.
Sew one strip to the top of the quilt and the other to the bottom. You'll need to reverse the bottom strip end-to-end to make it match.
Count the blocks on each side of the quilt. Use the squares and rectangles to construct a border set for each side, with one difference: sew a square to the lower right corner of each rectangle to make units that are a mirror image of the first.
Sew the units into two border strips. Refer to the drawing. Sew a 2-1/2" background square to the end of each pieced border. Press.
Sew the new borders to the sides of the quilt, positioning them to complete the outer stars.