Autumn Stars quilt using the MSQC tutorialAn Autumn Stars quilt project using the tutorial from Missouri Star Quilt Company.

When Jenny released her tutorial on the Autumn Stars quilt, I was in love. Those colors floating on a light background were Amazeballs! I HAD to make one for me and I had just the right fabrics for it.

Several years ago I was in a frenzy to swap fabrics. So much so that I started the 2 1/2″ Strip Swap group and the 2 1/2″ Square Swap group on Facebook. I’ve long since handed over the reigns to a quilty FB friend and the groups are now dormant.  But my stash of pre-cut swap fabrics is legendary amongst my sewing circle.

Fast forward to autumn 2018 and I finally had time to make my Autumn Stars quilt. It feels so good to finally have a finish, even if it is just the top. It will get quilted. Eventually. As my FMQ skills progress.

Unfinished Autumn Stars Quilt blocksThe stars are a variety of autumn strips that I received in a swap. The background is from Makower UK and the Linen Texture line, Pattern 1473. I don’t recall which color it is exactly, but my best guess is Vanilla. Browser colors can vary from reality. Just know that it is a dream to work with and the color is rich and luscious.

For those of you who are like me and need an exact cutting list, I have made the calculations for you and they are listed below.

4×5 setting:

From your Printed Strips cut:

    • 30 – 2 1/2″ squares
    • 80 – 4″ rectangles
    • 80 – 6″ rectangles

From your Background Fabrics cut:

  • 80 – 4″ squares
  • 160 – 2 1/2″ squares
  • 49 – 2 1/2″ x 11 1/2″ rectangles
  • 8 – 2 1/2″ x WOF strips for border

How to snowball a rectangle for the autumn stars quiltJenny’s tutorial is for a quilt with a block setting of four wide by five long. My house is full of tall people, so I added an extra row to the bottom making the setting 4×6. The final measurement is  58″W x 84″L

This Autumn Stars project works up very quickly, especially if you chain stitch.  I had all of the blocks made in just a couple of days. I snowballed first the 4″ strips, trimmed and pressed them. Then repeated the steps with the 6″ strips.

creating mini half square trianglesIf you’re like me and save your quilt crumbs, don’t throw away those trimmed triangles. I used mine in another project: a Mountain Climbing candle mat.

After two days of piecing, I had my stars completed. I then laid the blocks on my design wall and configured the setting. My blocks were 11 1/2″ square unfinished so I cut my sashing pieces accordingly and placed the cornerstones in a random layout so that hopefully they won’t be too close to the matching block.

autumn stars quilt layoutUnfortunately life happened and the blocks hung on the design wall for almost two weeks before I got back to them. Which was ok, because I did get to play with the layout some in between and I am so happy with the final product.

The pieced blocks went together fairly quickly and within a couple of days the entire top was assembled and awaiting quilting. I am so happy with my Autumn Stars quilt!

For inspiration for your own Autumn Stars quilt, I have created a Pinterest board for you to follow and peruse.

Linking up with Funky PolkaDot Giraffe.

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