Needlecrafts Quilting Quilting Basics

Pictures of Star Quilts to Inspire Your Next Quilt Project

Completed quilt with stylized elements of American flag, patchwork tools
MaxCab / Getty Images

Star quilt block and quilt patterns are top choices when quilters are looking for a new pattern, so it's a good thing that there are thousands of star designs to choose from. You may find ideas for your next project in this star quilts photo gallery.

  • Large star blocks are perfect for medallion quilts, where a large quilt block is placed at (or near) the center of a quilt before being surrounded by other designs.
  • Sampler quilts are good choices for stars, too -- choose a star quilt block pattern for each open slot in the sampler.
  • Select a single star block that you love and sew a batch of them side-by-side.
  • You might decide to separate a batch of star blocks with sashing and cornerstones.
  • Try using star quilt blocks in a strippy setting by creating vertical columns of stars that are separated by either plain strips of fabric or patchwork dividers.
  • Horizontal strippy set quilts are often called 'row' quilts -- horizontal rows replace vertical columns. 

Browse this star quilts photo gallery for inspiration and experiment with stars to find a layout you love.

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    Denim Friendship Stars Quilt

    Denim Quilt
    Karen Klemme
    • From Karen: This is my third Levi quilt (using a "ribbon" pattern) for my third son, Stephen, as I continue to recycle the family bluejeans.
    • Note from Janet: You can use the Friendship Star quilt block pattern to make a similar quilt, but put half-square triangle units at its corners instead of squares. There are lots of variations to the Friendship Star block, all known by different names.

    Karen's quilt appears to be made entirely from half square triangle units.

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    Celebration of Freedom Quilt

    Picture of Quilts
    Judy

    From Judy: "This was the quilt I made for the Moda Challenge. It won at Big Horn Quilts, where I entered it, but didn't go any farther."

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    Heavenly Star Quilt Photo

    Star Quilts
    Shrabar

    From Shrabar: "My quilt is full-size different stars."

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    Union Star Quilt in Pinks and Browns

    Star Quilt
    Kathy Stockbridge

    From Kathy: ​"I work with many young teachers and most of them are getting married and starting families. I made this for one of the teachers.

    I found a very old pattern for the Union Star and decided to sew with lots of calicos but to update its look with brighter, newer colors, too. Pink and brown are such fun colors for girls these days!

    I quilted roses in the center of the blocks, and her baby was named Ryan Rose. I didn't know that at the time I did the quilting!"

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  • 05 of 35

    Love and Architecture

    Quilt Galleries
    K. Estepani

    From K.: "This is only my second quilt. It is queen sized medallion quilt, and I designed it myself for my son Ben who is a student of architecture.

    I was inspired by the center panel from Benartex's Gotham fabric line when I decided to make something special for Ben's 21st birthday. The quilt was a labor of love, and he was thrilled."

    Patterns to Use in a Medallion Quilt

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  • 06 of 35

    Butterfly Stars Quilt

    Stars Quilt
    Lisa Anderson

    From Lisa: "This was my first real quilt, made during a basic quilting class. I loved the cheerful, bright colors in the butterfly fabric, and did my best to choose coordinating fabrics. The quilt hangs in my sewing room."

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  • 07 of 35

    Lone Star Quilt Photo

    Lone Star Quilt
    Sarah76010

    Sarah says: ​"I hand-pieced and hand-quilted this quilt over the course of a few months in 2009. We had to take several road trips from Texas to Ohio because of a death in the family and for vacations, so I quilted while we were on the road, in the hotel room, etc. This is my first Lone Star quilt."

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  • 08 of 35

    Irena's Quilt

    Quilts
    Michelle Johnson-Weider

    From Michelle: "I made this quilt from the All Hallows quilt block pattern. It is for my kids' older sister in Russia; her favorite colors are pink and black. I quite like the pattern and will use it again."

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  • 09 of 35

    Paper Pieced Star Quilt Photo

    Paper Pieced Quilts
    Linda Pelini

    From Linda: "I am a beginner quilter and took a class in paper piecing that was presented by a member of our quilt guild. I fell in love with paper piecing and am now on my fourth quilt."

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  • 10 of 35

    Pretty in Purples Star Quilt

    Star Quilts
    Quiltaholics.com

    From LK: "This was a weekend mystery done on the Quiltholics Web site and designed by the owner of the site in three sizes. Mine is a smallish quilt and can be done in one day. Just right for beginners. Special thanks to Deb for her time and efforts."

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  • 11 of 35

    Intertribal Dance Quilt

    Native American Quilts
    Roberta

    From Roberta: "This queen size quilt features 3 different embroidered dancers in 3 different colors on 3 sides. The idea was to have the dancers dancing around the star (or centerfire) while showing them to be dancing around the sides of the bed.

    The gentleman who quilted this piece is Milton Wells of Stillwater, OK, a wonderful quilter.

    You can see the details of the quilt on the following pages."

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  • 12 of 35

    Roberta's Pow Wow Quilt

    2006 Pow Wow Quilt
    Roberta

    From Roberta: ​"This quilt is an oversized king quilt that was donated for auction at a 2006 Pow Wow. It sold for $1200.00."

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    Mexican Star Quilt

    Star Quilts
    Daesy

    From Daesy: "The Mexican Star Quilt measures about 42x42 inches and was made to hang in my daughter's cubicle at work."

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  • 14 of 35

    Bright Skies Quilt

    Quilts of Valor
    Michelle Johnson-Weider/Rona Duncan

    From Michelle: "I made this quilt from the Handy Andy quilt block pattern. The quilt was given to Quilts of Valor in early February 2010."

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  • 15 of 35

    Stars and Crossings #1

    Star Quilt
    June Moore

    From June: ​"I designed this quilt in EQ5 several years ago. After I made the blocks, I realized that I could make one more block and have two Quilts of Valor, so that is what I did. This is the first quilt, and it measures 70" by 70"."

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  • 16 of 35

    Mystery No More Quilt

    Mystery Quilt
    Marrilee Miles

    From Marrilee: ​"This quilt was made from a John Flynn Wheel of Mystery kit. I was learning curved piecing and how to use the Curve Master foot at the same time.

    The quilt measures 49" x 59."

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  • 17 of 35

    Feathered Star Cardinal Quilt

    Christmas Quilt
    Charlie Andrus

    From Charlie: "My quilt was designed with the Feathered Star pattern and has a machine embroidered cardinal in its center. The quilt is machine pieced and machine quilted. The Feathered Star is my favorite quilt pattern, and there are so many variations of it."

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  • 18 of 35

    Anything Purple Quilt

    Anything Purple
    Lorraine Taylor

    From Lorraine: ​"I made this quilt for a friend (it was my second quilt) who wanted "anything purple."

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  • 19 of 35

    Peg's Double Pinwheel Quilt

    Pinwheel Quilt
    Pegscreations

    From Peg: ​"This queen size quilt is strip-pieced, with 5-/12" blocks. 

    Here's a Double Pinwheel quilt block pattern. It's constructed differently than Peg's, but the end result is very similar."

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  • 20 of 35

    Kitty Quilt

    Kitty Cat Star Quilt
    Joan McKinney

    From Joan: "I found fabric with excellent cat graphics and searched for patterns with a large block in the middle where the cats would fit nicely. By turning some of the triangles in this layout, I created a secondary image of large diamonds."

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  • 21 of 35

    Amy's Star Quilt

    Star Quilts
    Nancy Bush

    From Nancy: "I made this queen size quilt for my niece's 21st birthday. Her favorite color is burgundy."

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  • 22 of 35

    Dry Sink Table Runner

    Stars Table Runner
    Jackie

    From Jackie: "I created this table runner expecting it to be perfect for my dining room table. Luckily for me, my inability to guesstimate a total length made the project a perfect choice for a dry sink."

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  • 23 of 35

    Chell's Star Quilt

    Pinwheel Quilt
    Dorisy

    From Dorisy: "This is a quilt I made for my daughter and the first project I hand quilted by myself. It started out with a bunch of pinwheel quilt blocks but turned into a Christmas present. I made matching shams with leftover pinwheel blocks. She loved it. The quilt is made to fit a double bed. I am so proud of it."

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  • 24 of 35

    Grandma's 1930's Quilt

    Star Quilt
    Kyrana

    From Kyrana: ​"I used a wool blend batting and flannel backing (not prewashed), which gave the quilt a really nice antique affect once it had been finished and washed.

    The quilt is approximately 70" x 90", and will be used for Grandma to sleep under on her sofa."

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  • 25 of 35

    Georgia Snowflake Quilt

    Star Quilt
    ScrappyJ

    From ScrappyJ: "This quilt is made from Christmas scraps that I got from my mom's sewing room. The pattern is from one of my quilt magazines. I think the quilt was sewn in pastels in the book and was called Grandmothers Choice."

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  • 26 of 35

    Dora for Anna Quilt

    Star Quilt
    Judy

    From Judy: "A quilt made using Dora the Explorer fabric for a little girl named Anna."

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  • 27 of 35

    Friends for a Cure Quilt

    Star Quilts
    Judy

    From Judy: "A bunch of us who were on Alex Anderson's message board made the friendship stars in this quilt. I put the quilt together, quilted it and submitted it.

    When it was auctioned on eBay, a dear friend was bidding on it to get it back for me. I didn't know who was bidding on the quilt and I was bidding against her! She ended up winning, and the quilt was given to me at a retreat last summer. BIG surprise!"

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  • 28 of 35

    NM Star Quilt

    Star Quilts
    Dee in Tex

    From Dee in Tex: "There was a discussion several months ago on the forum about an antique quilt that was rescued from a thrift shop where it was being used to mop up spills -- it was jokingly titled "the mop quilt."

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  • 29 of 35

    Use Up Your Christmas Stash Swap Quilt

    Christmas Stash Swap Quilt
    Momof11

    From Momofll: "This quilt was made with blocks I swapped in the "Use Up Your Christmas Stash Star Swap" in the quilting forum. This is half of the blocks I received."

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  • 30 of 35

    Four Star Quilt

    Star Quilts
    Becky Davis

    From Becky: "Living in Suriname, South America, I often feel fabric challenged because 100% cotton fabric is rare, and quality cotton fabric is even rarer.

    One day I found a whole rack of cotton batiks. I had to buy some of each. The geometric print in the focus fabric for this quilt was large, bold and a bit random, so I used it to make large stars.

    The finished quilt measures 52" x 67"."

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  • 31 of 35

    Sanderson Star Quilt

    Star Quilts
    Keridog

    From Keridog: "This is a copy of the original Sanderson Star made by Elizabeth Sanderson from the North of England. My friend Helen drafted the pattern for me. I hand quilted it on my large floor frame last year. It is around 84" square. The quilt is made from RJR quilter's sateen."

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  • 32 of 35

    Scrappy Stars Quilt

    Star Quilt
    Chas826

    From Chas826: ​"This is my first quilt ever. I was searching online and found your Scrappy Stars pattern and decided to try it out. I have to admit I was sold when I read "this may be the easiest quilt block ever."

    I wanted to make a quilt for my grandmother (pictured) who has made me dozens of quilts over the years. I enjoyed it so much that I am searching for my next pattern as we speak. Thank you for making the instructions and diagrams so easy to read for this beginning quilter!"

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  • 33 of 35

    Floating Stars of Hope Quilt

    Star Quilt
    Diane Martin

    From Diane: ​"We used the Scrappy Floating Stars pattern to make this quilt. Eight quilters from the Nite Owl Quilters Guild met on Quilt Pink day and finished the quilt top. It was sent into American Patchwork & Quilting for auction. The quilt measures 60" x 74."

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  • 34 of 35

    Star-Fling Quilt

    Star Quilt
    Robicole

    From Robicole: "This quilt was made from quilts swapped in the Star Fling block swap in the quilting forum."

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  • 35 of 35

    Arrows and Chains Quilt

    Star Quilts
    Pamela Martini

    From Pamela: "The Arrows and Chains design is one of my favorite quilts. This version fits a twin size bed and was hand quilted."