- Background (muslin)
- Dark (indigo)
Block No. 91 · star
Martha Washington Star Quilt Block
Part of: Star Quilt BlocksFlying Geese Quilt BlocksQuilt Blocks For BeginnersPatriotic Quilt BlocksTwo Color Quilt Blocks
Martha Washington Star frames a little pinwheel with four flying-geese points. Each quarter of the center pinwheel is a quarter-square-triangle unit with a single dark triangle, so the pinwheel spins inside a sawtooth star of the same dark fabric.
Version note: Both sources agree on a 4x4 grid with background corners, flying-geese star points and a center pinwheel of four QSTs, each with one dark quarter.
- Level
- Confident Beginner
- Grid
- 4 × 4
- Pieces
- 32
Chart
Cutting for a 12" block
4 × 4 grid. All cuts fall on 1/8" ruler marks. Unfinished block: 12 1/2".
| Fabric | Shape | Cut | Size | Then | Pieces used |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Background | Square | 4 | 3 1/2" square | Use as cut | 4 |
| Background | Quarter-square triangle | 1 | 7 1/4" square | Cut twice diagonally (4 triangles each) | 4 |
| Background | Quarter-square triangle | 3 | 4 1/4" square | Cut twice diagonally (4 triangles each) | 12 |
| Dark | Half-square triangle | 4 | 3 7/8" square | Cut once diagonally (2 triangles each) | 8 |
| Dark | Quarter-square triangle | 1 | 4 1/4" square | Cut twice diagonally (4 triangles each) | 4 |
Method
Piecing steps
Step 1: Cut every patch listed in the cutting chart for your size. Plain areas are cut as the larger squares and rectangles shown; do not subdivide them. Columns count from the left and rows from the top, starting at 1, in grid cells.
Step 2: Make the flying geese: sew a sky triangle to each short side of a goose triangle (cut from the quarter-square parent), pressing toward the sky. Make 2 trimmed to 6 1/2" wide by 3 1/2" high, 2 trimmed to 3 1/2" wide by 6 1/2" high.
Step 3: Make 4 quarter-square triangle units: cut the QST parent squares twice diagonally, sew the triangles in pairs, then join the pairs. Square each unit to 3 1/2".
Step 4: For the center, make four QST units, each with one dark and three background triangles. Turn them as in the diagram so the dark triangles form a pinwheel, then sew them into a four-patch.
Step 5: The background goose triangles point toward the center; the dark sky triangles form the star points.
Step 6: Make section 1: sew the background square at column 1, row 1, the background goose at column 1, row 2, pointing right and the background square at column 1, row 4 in a column, top to bottom. Press and check it measures 3 1/2" wide by 12 1/2" high.
Step 7: Make section 2: sew the QST at column 2, row 2 (top background, right background, bottom dark, left background) and the QST at column 3, row 2 (top background, right background, bottom background, left dark) side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 6 1/2" wide by 3 1/2" high.
Step 8: Make section 3: sew the QST at column 2, row 3 (top background, right dark, bottom background, left background) and the QST at column 3, row 3 (top dark, right background, bottom background, left background) side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 6 1/2" wide by 3 1/2" high.
Step 9: Make section 4: sew the background goose at column 2, row 1, pointing down, section 2, section 3 and the background goose at column 2, row 4, pointing up in a column, top to bottom. Press and check it measures 6 1/2" wide by 12 1/2" high.
Step 10: Make section 5: sew the background square at column 4, row 1, the background goose at column 4, row 2, pointing left and the background square at column 4, row 4 in a column, top to bottom. Press and check it measures 3 1/2" wide by 12 1/2" high.
Step 11: Complete the block: sew section 1, section 4 and section 5 side by side, left to right. Press and check it measures 12 1/2" wide by 12 1/2" high.
Step 12: Press the finished block. Every join above runs edge to edge, with no set-in or Y-seams.