Stars of the City: October Blocks
- vafibrearts
- Oct 3, 2023
- 7 min read
Hello Friends and Welcome Back!
This week, I had been planning to post a project update. After sharing an update to my seasonal goals last week, I thought it would be the perfect time to catch you all up on my ongoing project progress!
But October snuck up on me, and instead of a project update, it's time to share the next instalment of the Stars of the City block of the month quilt along!
(We'll just save the project update for next week!)
Last month, in September, we focused on fabric selection. Personally, I really enjoy this step of the quilt making process, so I shared a few suggestions on how to choose your colours and prints. Check out that post here!
I had a lot of fun selecting a new colour scheme for the Stars of the City quilt I'll be making alongside all of you, and am really excited to be sharing it!
But now that a new month is upon us, it's finally time to start piecing!
The schedule for this BoM pattern will alternate between piecing blocks one month, and piecing Drunkard's Path units the next. If one or the other feels like a lot of work to do all in one month, you can always wrap up your piecing the following month. This quilt along is meant to be fun and enjoyable, so set your own pace if the block release schedule doesn't work for you!
With that said, we'll be starting off October by piecing two blocks; Harbour at Dawn and Square in a Star!
Pattern Notes
As a quick reminder before we get started;
Seam allowance should measure ¼” unless otherwise specified.
Press each seam before sewing the next.
October Blocks
The first block, Harbour at Dawn, features square in a square and flying geese
units, both made using the stitch and flip method, as well as two at a time half square triangles.
Harbour at Dawn contains the largest single piece of fabric G at 4½" square, be sure to cut this piece first!
The second block, Square in a Star, also makes use of the stitch and flip method, as well as two at a time half square triangles, and four at a time quarter square triangles.
Depending on the finished quilt size selected last month, you'll need to make a different number of blocks. Find your quilt size below and piece accordingly;
To make either throw sized quilt, make one of each block.
To make an XL twin sized quilt, make one of each block, then select your favourite block and make a second one (three blocks total).
To make a queen sized quilt, make two of each block (four blocks total).
Harbour At Dawn
Cutting Instructions
To make one block, cut the following:
Fabric B: 2 squares at 2½”
Fabric C: 4 rectangles at 2½” x 4½”
Fabric D: 1 square at 3"
8 squares at 2½”
Fabric E: 1 square at 3"
4 squares at 2½”
1 rectangle at 2½” x 4½”
Fabric F: 2 squares at 4½”
4 squares at 2½”
Fabric G: 1 square at 4½”
2 squares at 2½”
2 rectangles at 2½” x 4½”
Fabric H: 4 squares at 2½”
1 rectangle at 2½” x 4½”
Piecing Instructions
Select one 4½” square of fabric G, two 2½” squares of fabric F, and two 2½” squares of fabric H. Draw a diagonal line on the backs of the fabric F and H squares.
Place a fabric F square on one corner of the large fabric G square with the drawn line oriented as shown below. Sew directly along the drawn line then trim excess fabric, leaving ¼” for seam allowance.
Repeat in an adjacent corner with the remaining fabric F square, then in the other two corners with the fabric H squares.
Trim to 4½” to complete the square in a square unit.
Set aside.
Repeat the steps above using one 4½” square of fabric F, one 2½” square of fabric D, two 2½” squares of fabric E, and one 2½” square of fabric G, placing the fabric D squares in opposite corners as shown:
Trim to 4½” to complete the square in a square unit.
Make two, set aside.
Select one 2½” x 4½” rectangle of fabric E and two 2½” squares of fabric D. Draw a diagonal line on the backs of the fabric D squares.
Place a fabric D square on one end of the fabric E rectangle with the drawn line oriented as shown below. Sew directly along the drawn line then trim excess fabric, leaving ¼” for seam allowance.
Repeat in the opposite corner with the other fabric D square.
Trim to 2½” x 4½” to complete the flying goose unit.
Set aside.
Repeat the steps above using one 2½” x 4½” rectangle of fabric G, one 2½” square of fabric F, and one 2½” square of fabric H.
Make two, one with the fabric F square on the left and one with it on the right as shown:
Trim to 2½” x 4½” to complete the flying goose units.
Set aside.
Select one 2½” x 4½” rectangle of fabric C and one 2½” square of fabric D. Draw a diagonal line on the back of the fabric D square.
Place the fabric D square on one end of the fabric C rectangle with the drawn line oriented as shown below. Sew directly along the drawn line then trim excess fabric, leaving ¼” for seam allowance.
Trim to 2½” x 4½” to complete the half goose unit.
Make two, set aside.
Repeat the steps above, once again using one 2½” x 4½” rectangle of fabric C and one 2½” square of fabric D but this time placing the fabric D square on the opposite end of the unit as shown:
Trim to 2½” x 4½” to complete the half goose unit.
Make two, set aside.
Select one 3" square of fabric D and one 3" square of fabric E. Draw a diagonal line on the back of the lighter square.
Place the squares right sides together and sew ¼” to either side of the drawn line. Carefully cut along the drawn line to yield two half square triangle units.
Trim to 2½” to complete the half square triangles, set aside.
Select the three square in a square units, two fabric G flying geese units, and one 2½” x 4½” rectangle of fabric H. Assemble them into the block centre as shown:
Using the remaining units and fabric B squares, complete the block as shown:
Trim to 16½” x 8½” to complete the Harbour at Dawn block.
Square in a Star
Cutting Instructions
To make one block, cut the following:
Fabric B: 2 squares at 2½”
Fabric C: 1 square at 5½”
2 rectangles at 2½” x 4½”
2 squares at 2½”
Fabric D: 2 squares at 5½”
Fabric E: 1 square at 5½"
Fabric F: 4 squares at 2½”
1 square at 3”
Fabric G: 1 square at 3”
1 rectangles at 2½” x 4½”
Fabric H: 1 rectangle at 2½” x 4½”
Piecing Instructions
Select one 5½” square of fabric C, two 5½” squares of fabric D, and one 5½” square of fabric E. Draw a diagonal line on the backs of the fabric D squares.
Place a fabric D square and fabric C square right sides together. Sew ¼” to either side of the drawn line. Carefully cut along the drawn line to yield two half square triangle units.
Trim to 5”, set aside.
Repeat using the remaining fabric D square and fabric E square.
Trim to 5” and draw a diagonal line crossing the seam on the back of both half square triangle units.
Place one fabric D/E half square triangle right sides together on a fabric C/D half square triangle with the seams aligned and the fabric D triangles on opposite sides as shown. Sew ¼” to either side of the drawn line. Carefully cut along the drawn line to yield two quarter square triangle units.
Trim to 4½” to complete the quarter square triangles.
Make four, set aside.
Select one 3" square of fabric F and one 3" square of fabric G. Draw a diagonal line on the back of the lighter square.
Place the squares right sides together and sew ¼” to either side of the drawn line. Carefully cut along the drawn line to yield two half square triangle units.
Trim to 2½” to complete the half square triangles, set aside.
Select one 2½” x 4½” rectangle of fabric G and two 2½” squares of fabric F. Draw a diagonal line on the backs of the fabric F squares.
Place a fabric F square on one end of the fabric G rectangle with the drawn line oriented as shown below. Sew directly along the drawn line then trim excess fabric, leaving ¼” for seam allowance.
Repeat in the opposite corner with the other fabric F square.
Trim to 2½” x 4½” to complete the flying goose unit.
Set aside.
Select one 2½” square of fabric B, one 2½” square of fabric C, and one
2½” x 4½” rectangle of fabric C. Assemble them into a corner unit as shown:
Trim to 4½” square to complete the corner unit.
Make two, set aside.
Select the two half square triangles, one flying goose unit, two 2½” squares of fabric F, and one 2½” x 4½” rectangle of fabric H. Assemble them into the block centre as shown:
Using the remaining units and fabric B squares, complete the block as shown:
Trim to 16½” x 8½” to complete the Square in a Star block.
Full PDF instructions for both blocks, with a few additional tips, can be downloaded here:
If you'd like to share this pattern with a friend, please send them here to download the file too!
Stars of the City and Stars of the Lily Pond
The original sample of the Stars of the City quilt was inspired by the sunset sky, using a gradient of colours ranging from dark indigo through purple, pink, orange, and yellow. The white was added as an accent colour to help the beautiful, intricate shapes of the piecing stand out!
I really loved working with these colours! They're really different than anything I've used in a quilt before, so were a very exciting change for me!
While making my sample quilt, I was inspired by another beautiful sight from nature, water lilies!
While lilies don't reflect the original celestial theme of the pattern, a lot of the star shapes in the blocks are also reminiscent of flowers, so the shift from one theme to the new one wasn't a particularly long stretch! Inspired by both themes, I've decided to call this quilt Stars of the Lily Pond!
Friends, I am so excited to finally begin piecing this quilt with you! Making these blocks in a second colour scheme has given them both a totally different effect, and I'm sure that each of your colour schemes will show off just how many different ways these stars can shine!
Once you've put your blocks together, I'd love to see how they turn out! You can share photos on social media using #starsofthecitybom or in the comments section below! And if you have any difficulty along the way, or just want someone to chat with, you can always reach out to me!
You have the full month of October to put these blocks together, so take your time and piece at your own pace! And be sure to visit me again on 07 November for the next instalment of the Stars of the City BoM!
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