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square quilt layout with sawtooth stars and uneven 9 patches

Stars in the Darkening Sky

Posted on October 6, 2019October 23, 2020

A month or two ago I made  16 patch blocks using 2 inch squares when I should have been using 2.5″ squares of fabric. I made a lot of blocks before I realised I had made an error. 

Not a world ending problem at all though some rather pithy language did occur at the time.  Truth be told, I like sewing together little squares of fabric. I used some of the 16 patches to make my Big & LIttle Patch Quilt but what to do with the rest?

I, of course, started cruising the web to come up with ideas on what do to do with the rest of the blocks (I made a lot of the wrong blocks). Finally I  saw this quilt on the web.  It’s described as alternating sawtooth stars and uneven 9 patch blocks. 

That gave me inspiration and  my creative juices started flowing. A dark grey background, scrappy centre sawtooth stars, scrappy centre uneven 9 patch blocks and a lighter grey corner blocks for the 9 patches. Yes that would work! 

Here are my first 9 blocks:

Definite possibilities but I did not want this to be a charity baby quilt and I still had scrappy 16- patch blocks. Another row and column were added. 

I liked the size better but didn’t like the fact that the corners were different on each side. That really bothered me.  So it grew again  Why, yes I had made that many incorrect 16 patches before realising my mistake . I added another row and column and the quilt was square:

Please excuse the craptastic picture. It’s the only one I have at this size. However, at 60″ square I had the same issue I have with all 5 foot square quilts. It’s to me, a weird, not very useful size. 

So back to making 16-patch blocks as i had finally run out.  A total of 10 more blocks, for a quilt that would finish 60″ x 84″.  That works as a large lap quilt. Great for snuggling on the couch on cold winter days. 

Laid out on the bed I liked this much more:

And finally the sewn together quilt top: 

I’m really happy with this.  We have obligations the next few weekends that take precedence over quilting (our wedding and honeymoon) but after that  we need to find a wide backing for this. Once that’s done I’m scheduling Marc and I for a few quilting sessions on the long arm machines at Whirls & Swirls .  I want this one on the couch sooner rather than later. 

30 thoughts on “Stars in the Darkening Sky”

  1. Nann says:
    October 7, 2019 at 8:46 am

    We’ve been playing tag on the Monday blog link ups, and I had to see what you’ve been working on. I really like that setting for the sixteen patch blocks!

    Reply
  2. Marie says:
    October 7, 2019 at 9:09 am

    Great decision to keep enlarging your quilt – it is so much more interesting with all of those blocks. And, you have the added bonus of using up all of those extra blocks.

    Reply
  3. maggie fellow says:
    October 7, 2019 at 9:53 am

    pretty quilt and a great way to use those blocks

    Reply
  4. Diann Bottrell says:
    October 8, 2019 at 10:36 am

    That’s a great design to use up your 16 patches! I love how the dark blue background makes the pretty colors pop! Have a wonderful wedding and honeymoon!

    Reply
  5. Roseanne says:
    October 8, 2019 at 1:08 pm

    Ooh-la-la, Yvonne. That is one pretty mistake. And I’m still chortling over how many wrong sized 16-patch blocks you made originally. No wonder there was some pithy language spoken. HA! Thanks for linking up, and I’m PINing your beautiful inspiration for anyone else who may have made a mistake or purposely makes 2″ – 16-patch blocks (like me, perhaps!). ~smile~ Roseanne

    Reply
  6. Michelle says:
    October 8, 2019 at 4:44 pm

    Absolutely beautiful! What an awesome mistake those 2” squares turned out to be. I love the scrappy goodness in this quilt. What a great design! Pinning.

    Reply
  7. Sharon says:
    October 8, 2019 at 8:22 pm

    Wow! What a perfect use of your blocks, love your creative setting!

    Reply
    1. Teresa Savage says:
      March 11, 2022 at 5:48 pm

      Love…love…love this quilt I have so many two inch squares that will make beautiful sixteen patch squares. I’m so glad you showed this quilt, now I know what to do with the oops I made. Would you kindly tell us the sizes of the other cuts as you can probably tell, I’m rather new to making up a pattern.thanks
      Teresa

      Reply
  8. Dione Gardner-Stephen says:
    October 8, 2019 at 9:07 pm

    This is glorious! I smile at the thought that in the end you were making more 16 patch blocks on purpose to finish it. How good it must feel to have two amazing quilts made from this “mistake” and no spare blocks hanging around. Thanks for linking to Colour & Inspiration Tuesday

    Reply
  9. Denise says:
    October 9, 2019 at 9:37 am

    Mismatched corners bother me too and I have to force myself to move forward instead of adding to. Your’s looks so cheerful.

    Reply
  10. Marsha Cooper says:
    October 9, 2019 at 8:01 pm

    I made a quilt very similar to this and loved it. This would be a great pattern for me to make the little 4 patches into 16 patches and go from there. By the time I get my huge box of 2.25 inch squares into 4 patches……

    Reply
  11. Jayne says:
    October 10, 2019 at 9:08 am

    Well, this is quite lovely! I had to laugh at how it grew and grew and grew! I would have been bothered by the mismatched corners as well and think you did the right thing. It’s really pretty with the dark background!

    Reply
  12. Alison V. says:
    October 10, 2019 at 11:39 am

    Very pretty!

    Reply
  13. Susan says:
    October 10, 2019 at 8:11 pm

    Pretty scrap quilt! The bright colors for the stars really do shine!

    Reply
  14. Ann Casey says:
    October 11, 2019 at 4:27 am

    What a lucky mistake you made! This quilt is full of life and colour and fun. Love it. And speaking of fun, have some at the upcoming nuptials.

    Reply
  15. Elizabeth V K says:
    October 11, 2019 at 7:01 am

    What a fabulous use of units that were made the wrong size. Love it! Thanks for sharing the story behind it.

    Reply
  16. Aldrich Sarah says:
    October 11, 2019 at 7:55 am

    I hope your wedding and honeymoon are everything you ever wished them to be. Live happily ever after.

    Reply
  17. Alycia Quilts says:
    October 11, 2019 at 3:03 pm

    Oh I am so glad you made the wrong size blocks for the first quilt – this is amazing!! Love the dark setting – it makes your colors pop!

    Reply
  18. Jenny Benton says:
    October 11, 2019 at 3:50 pm

    Of course you will be too busy to keep quilting, with your wedding and honeymoon coming up! Congratulations indeed!

    Reply
  19. Chantal L. says:
    October 11, 2019 at 7:59 pm

    It’s awesome! I love the secondary design that appears with the “4-Patch cornerstones”. Great job on using up lots of little squares. All the best for the wedding. ;^)

    Reply
  20. The Joyful Quilter says:
    October 11, 2019 at 9:11 pm

    What a fabulous super scrappy version of Angie’s quilt! LOVE it!!!

    Reply
  21. Nähbegeisterte says:
    October 12, 2019 at 10:10 am

    Hello Yvonne,

    I really like your stars, they just look awesome. (grins) The finished quilt will surely be gorgeous.

    Have a great Saturday and love greetings the sewing enthusiastic Andrea

    Reply
  22. Wendy Welsh says:
    October 13, 2019 at 6:03 pm

    Oh! I do like this, even if it started out as a result of a tiny mistake. I much prefer dark backgrounds to light backgrounds, and in this case the darker colour lets the bright colours shine. Thank you for linking up to the Peacock Party.

    Reply
  23. Jennifer @ Inquiring Quilter says:
    October 15, 2019 at 8:48 am

    Wow, this is the happiest of accidents! Love how this turned out and yes, I’d rush to get it quilted too so I could use it. I also adore the name. Perfect for this quilt. Thanks for sharing on Wednesday Wait Loss.

    Reply
  24. Melanie says:
    October 15, 2019 at 4:03 pm

    Love how the dark background makes the colors pop! Great layout you designed – and it will fit well on your black-frame bed. Good luck with finding the perfect backing 🙂 xo Melanie

    http://www.mellmeyer.de

    Reply
  25. Cindy Nelson says:
    October 16, 2019 at 4:45 pm

    Hello. Do you have the name of your 2 background colors? Thank you, Cindy. Nrsi2000@aol.com

    Reply
  26. Sally says:
    October 23, 2019 at 8:52 pm

    The dark grey with the colors is such a great combination!

    Reply
  27. Deb E says:
    October 26, 2019 at 3:40 pm

    Now that’s turning lemons into lemonade! I hate it when I make an error like that (and it happens way too often), and its usually after I’ve made LOTS of blocks, too. What a gorgeous result, though — you’ll have a beautiful sofa quilt to curl up under when its cold. I LOVE the bright colors against the blacks, it really makes those blocks sing!
    Congratulations on your wedding! Wishing you many, many happy & loving years together — my hubs & I have been married over 45 years now, the time has passed by SO quickly.

    Reply
  28. Mary H. says:
    October 10, 2020 at 10:17 pm

    I love this quilt. It looks both traditional and modern at the same time. Was there a specific pattern that you used?

    Reply
  29. Pingback: Stars in the Darkening Sky - Tutorial - Hand Crafted

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