There is something about this block, with its contrasting colors, all those various shapes within it, and all those not-so-perfect points, that just thrills me. I wonder if it were a different color if I would have become so taken with it early on. Purple, or more accurately violet, has always been one of my favorite colors.
I made this block a couple of years ago as a part of a block-of-the-month (BOM) project in a Craftsy class, taught by Amy Gibson. I named this quilt, shown at right, Periwinkle Blue. My double star block is prominently located in the top left. This quilt was my first real free-motion quilting project--a quilt-as-you-go class also by Craftsy, and taught by Leah Day, who is arguably the best free-motion quilter and instructor ever.
This quilt marked my first intoxicating step into the world of free-motion quilting, for which I cannot and do not want to escape. I was hooked. While the quilting on this project is rather flawed, it was so inspiring.
In fact, speaking of flaws, can you find the huge mistake in the quilting in the above block? Despite my glaring error, I still love this block.
In fact, I love it so much that I have incorporated it into a table runner. I have made several of these for various friends and family members. In fact I have ongoing as we speak.
Each one is different and I just love how they turn out. Here is just one example one of the many colors I've used. This was a birthday present when my mother turned 85. The funny thing is, I figure I've made five of these. That is three blocks each, plus two that I put into quilts. I have made 17 of these blocks. The latest one that I completed will go into the teal and yellow quilt I am working on now.
Truth is--I screwed it up. This isn't a terrible mistake, but it is a mistake none the less. I didn't realize it until after I quilted it. I've quilted all of these the same way, so I should have noticed while I was doing it--but I didn't. I have no idea where my head was, but it was only after looking at it completed that I noticed the outer ring of star points is upside-down. It can hardly be called a double star when the star that would make it a double is not there. I suppose these are the kinds of things to laugh about, not to fret over. I don't suppose it matters anyway. The block is still beautiful. It is still one of my favorites.
If you would like the instructions to make this block, you can find a link to it here.
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