Star Crossed Block Tutorial

I was super excited to get a package in the mail last week from Betz White, a fellow former Betsy.  Last fall, she introduced her new fabric line, Stitch, for Robert Kaufman, and she sent some along to me to play around with.  I had a lot of fun finding the block I wanted to use, and I'm really happy to share this tutorial with you.  This block has been called many things over the years, dating as far back as 1907, from a Friendship block to a Hearth and Home block, but I think Star Crossed might be a better name for it, so that's what I'm calling it.

For a 10 1/2" block, you'll need:
2 contrasting printed fabrics
1 background fabric

Cutting Instructions
focus fabric:
two 2 1/2" squares
one 2 1/2" x 6 1/2" rectangle

contrast print:
eight 2 1/2" squares
two 4 1/4" squares

background:
four 2 1/2" squares
two 4 1/4" squares

note: all seams are a scant 1/4" unless otherwise noted

Block Assembly
1. First, let's make some HSTs.  Pair up one background 4 1/4" square with a contrast print square, and sew all the way around.  Bring your newly sewn pair of squares over to your cutting mat and make two diagonal cuts as shown below, cutting from corner to corner.

2. Press seams open for your new HSTs and bring them back to the cutting mat.  Using a ruler with a 45 degree angle marking, line up your HST along the center seam and trim to 2 1/2".

3. Lay out your HSTs along with the various 2 1/2" squares as shown below.

4. Sewing in pairs, stitch the squares of each row together, then sew each row together to finish the block.  Press seams open and voila, a finished block!

 

If you make one of these blocks, I sure would love to see it!  You can add it to my Flickr group, Stitching with Don't Call Me Betsy!

You can find Betz's awesome Stitch line at Fat Quarter Shop, Sew Mama Sew, as well as Fabric.com, and you'll be seeing more of it as I work on this quilt!  Thank you, Betz, I've really enjoyed playing with your fabric so far!