Wonky Stars – Bright Beginnings

This month I am getting into my Island Batik Ambassador challenge really early. What a Star!

If you think that the enthusiasm is caused by new supplies, you’d be spot on! A new box of goodies from Island Batik always gets the creative juices flowing. The Island Batik Ambassador Challenge for me for August is to make a project featuring a star block of my choosing. I have long wanted to do something with wonky stars, so now is the time.

I’ve already finished my August flimsy, and I didn’t even change my mind about what I was doing, or with which fabrics! Wonders will never cease. And I’ve even put together a little tutorial about how to make these wonky stars with minimal maths and no geometry lessons. Don’t get me wrong; I love maths and geometry. But I love sewing more. 😀

Wonky Stars in Blue, Blue and more Blue

When I opened my latest Island Batik shipment, one of the first things that caught my eye was this beautiful stack of blue. While it was all bundled up like this I didn’t notice the ladybird print at first – if you watched my unboxing video in that post, you can hear my delight when the brain finally clocked them, lol.

Here they are again all spread out. I love the propeller print in the bottom right corner too. And the mushrooms that are a bit hidden in the centre, under the gardening tools. This fabric was given to me by Island Batik to use as an Island Batik Ambassador.

The combination of the Star challenge with all these blues and the garden motifs keeps me thinking the phrase “Night Garden”. However, my project will most likely go by the more conventional name of “Shine Bright”, for reasons that will become evident when it is finished. Which is not today, by the way. You need something to look forward to…. August is still as fresh as a daisy (and yes there is a daisy print among these).

Star Light Star Bright

As I mentioned in the intro, my Island Batik challenge for August is to make a project featuring stars. Half the Ambassadors are doing stars this month, while the other half are doing a big Spring fabric feature hop. In November, we will swap roles. I have Summer catalog feature fabrics, so I will show you those in November, and treat you to stars this month.

Specifically, I am doing wonky stars.

Wonky Stars

The wonky stars that I am talking about are a semi-freeform version of the sawtooth star block. I am sure there are others.

I have fallen in love with these wonky star blocks. I’ve made 20 of them over the last few days, all different sizes. The smallest have finished centres of 3/4″. The biggest blocks finish at 7 and 1/4″. I have added coins for reference… I’ve even tried to be internationally friendly! Left to right we have an Australian 10c, New Zealand 50c, US Iowa quarter (Hello Iowa friends!) and a Euro (it’s a German-issued one, hello German friends!). In the process I learned about the 50 State Quarters project, very interesting. And also about coin orientation vs medallic orientation (you can google that one). Sadly I don’t have any Canadian coins, sorry Canadian friends. Someone send me your quarter, and I’ll include your 25c worth next time. 🙂 Anyway, the centres of these stars are smaller than a 10c/50c/quarter/Euro in AUD/NZD/USD/EU.

The hardest thing about making these stars is cutting the pieces, but I have that down to a fine art now too. Here’s the method that suited me best.

How to Make a Wonky Star block…. any size from about a 2.5″ finished block up to 8″ square

Step 1

Decide on the finished size of your wonky star block. Choose something between 3″ and 6″ to make it easy on the first go. The easiest sizes are divisible into 1/4″ multiples, so if you want to go really easy chose one of these: 3″, 3.75″, 4.5″, 5.25″ or 6″.

Divide the finished size by 3. If the number doesn’t go evenly into a 1/4″, choose the closest 1/4″ bigger or smaller, it doesn’t really matter which, it’s a personal preference thing.

Add a half inch seam allowance to the result and cut your centre fabric square to this size.

Step 2

Cut four more squares the same size as the centre square with seam allowance in Step 1. These are cut from the fabric for your star’s points. I made my star points of the same fabric as the centres but you don’t have to.

Cut these four new squares on the diagonal once each to get 8 half square triangles (HSTs) total.

Step 3

If the original block size can be split evenly into three, cut four more squares the same size as the centre square with seam allowance from Step 1, but this time from the background fabric.

If the finished size did not go evenly into 3; subtract the centre square without seam allowance size from the original size. Now divide that answer by two. Round up to the nearest 1/4″ (if not already a whole 1/4 fraction). Add a half inch seam allowance. Cut four squares this size from the background fabric.

Step 4

Cut four more squares from the background fabric, 1/2 inch larger in both dimensions than the four squares in Step 3.

Step 5

Right-sides together, lay a HST over the corner of one of the squares cut in Step 3 so the longest edge (hypotenuse for us maths nerds) crosses a corner as shown. You can use as much or as little of the HST as you like at any angle, as long as when the triangle is folded back over the seam allowance, it covers the corner of the background square underneath entirely. Sew a scant 1/4″ seam. Press.

Trim off the excess background fabric corner under the folded-over point fabric.

Step 6

Lay a second HST over an adjacent corner of the background fabric and repeat Step 5.

Step 7

When you have all eight points sewn down to the background squares, trim the pieces back to the size of the original square that the points are now sewn to.

Step 8

Sew together as a conventional ninepatch.

Trim to final desired size. Admire your work.

This method will work for smaller and bigger sizes than stated but needs tweaking. For larger blocks the seam allowance becomes a bit wasteful as it scales up with the block unnecessarily. And for tinier blocks, the seam allowance becomes too scant, so more fabric allowance needs to be specifically added in. But between 2.5″ and 7″ the changes in included seam allowance as you scale up and down can be wantonly and joyfully ignored.

What am I doing with all my Wonky Stars?

Oh, my Wonky Stars! That sounds like a mild expletive, doesn’t it? In the genre of “Oh, my Giddy Aunt!” …. haha. I digress, no expletives were harmed in the making of this project. After I made 20 wonky star blocks varying from 2.25″ to nearly 8″ in finished size I sewed them together with rectangles of the Blueberry Patch fabrics.

I then sewed these five sections into one long strip. Look, now my random looking stars are sewn into two arms of a galaxy. It wasn’t initially intended, but I am now (star) struck that perhaps this is the Milky Way.

I love two things about this project so far. These fabrics remind me of recycled jeans quilts in the colouration, but without the heaviness of denim. I have always wanted to do a denim project, but this is a close second as batiks are more versatile for detailed work.

And I love how uncomplicated this looks. It sooooo wasn’t simple to sew. I didn’t even bother counting the number of partial seams required to get this sewn up. One…., two….., lots!

And where to from here….? Well, that would be telling, and I said I wouldn’t. 😀 But I promise I will show you as soon as I have some more progress.

I hope you are loving Blueberry Patch as much as I am. You can see more of these fabrics, and plenty more besides in the Beat the Heat blog hop starting next week.

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Island Batik Beat the Heat Blog Hop

Here is the “Beat the Heat” Blog Hop schedule for the half of the Ambassadors who received Spring Fabric collections. Make sure you follow along each day, as there will be prizes to win.

First off the block on Monday are Leanne and Sherry with Blueberry Patch, the same fabrics as I am using this month. Can’t wait to see what they’ve made with them!

Monday August 5

Leanne Parsons & Sherry Shish

Tuesday August 6

Bill Locke & Lisa Nielsen

Wednesday August 7

Sandra Walker & Terri Vanden Bosch

Thursday August 8

Pamela Boatright & Kathleen McCormick

Monday August 12

Karen Neary & Carol Moellers

Tuesday August 13

Michelle Roberts & Tish Stemple

Wednesday August 14

Anne Wiens & Gene Black

Thursday August 15

Tina Dillard & Bea Lee

Monday August 19

Joanne Hart & Carla Henton

Tuesday August 20

Connie Kauffman & Vasudha Govindan

Wednesday August 21

Vicki Schlimmer & Mania Hatziioannidi

Thursday August 22

Gail Sheppard

Monday August 26

Maryellen McAuliffe & Jennifer Strauser

Tuesday August 27

Connie Kresin Campbell & Joan Kawano

I will update this list with direct links as the hop progresses. Enjoy!

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