Island Batik August challenge
Hmm, I have a quilt named Starlight, what a coincidence. The Island Batik August Challenge is to make a lap size or larger quilt using any star block pattern. The fabric I chose are from the IB Crystal Ball line and IB gray solid for my background. Such a gorgeous spray of greens, purples and blues don’t you think? The strips sets include 40pc 2.5″ x wof strips, 20 prints. see disclosure
Starlight is a paper pieced pattern with 16 blocks and border finishing at 52″ x 52″ . My quilt for this challenge will only include 9 blocks though.
After sorting the strips into light, medium and dark fabrics I paired them for placement. Every time I reach the sub section point in my piecing I begin to second guess myself. Such as, maybe I should have used a different background, I should have paired this strip with that strip… 
After joining the blocks I’m much happier. The original quilt was pieced with a regular cotton and there wasn’t much contrast in the fabrics. So having 20 different fabrics from the strip set to play with I was able to choose the look I wanted.
80 hst cut and stitched in an hour and 15 minutes
AccuQuilt is an industry partner of Island Batik and generously gifted all IBA’s with their own GO! Qube bundle. Given my newly discovered love for hst’s (thanks to the GO!) I decided to duplicate the sawtooth border from Nostalgia Twist. The dies accurately cut fabric the first time saving me time and waste. Best of all, no squaring up the blocks after they were pieced or dog ear trimming.
The thing I like the most about the cutter ? In Nov 2017 I insulted an old hip injury so standing in place for an extended amount of time is still painful, the cutter solves that problem. Then there’s the neck pain (same injury) from looking down over a cutting mat even though the height of my cutting station is ergonomical. It really takes very little time to cut an entire quilt using the AccuQuilt.
The fabrics I chose for the hst were Swirl French Blue Crystal and the same gray solid I used as the background fabric.
Once the hst were in strips I laid them around the top and decided a solid border then the hst would look better. So I added a 2.5″ border between the stars and hst strips and was much happier with the appearance.
My Crystal Ball tells me it’s seeing a lot more hst’s in my future. It also says they will be right up there with flying geese as a favorite. Now if it would only tell me I will be retiring by age 50.
Batting
Although the star below was not part of this quilt, there was enough of the same batting shown to quilt this top. It’s the Hobbs Heirloom 80/20
which is a low loft batting.
Hot off the machine with large floppy feathers.
Materials used
Island Batik Crystal Ball strips and yardage.
40wt Aurifil for piecing
AccuQuilt 2″ hst die from the 8″ GO! Qube
My own design, Starlight. The pattern does not include the hst blocks that I have added to today’s finish.
What I learned making this quilt.
Always make sure you have removed dissolvable thread from your bobbin. Yes I really did that. In the middle of piecing the center block I stopped and switched to dissolvable thread to sew backing onto leaders. Later I picked up where I left off. OOOPS.
I really loved the variety of colors and prints in the Crystal Ball collection. Yay me, I still have enough remaining to make another quilt.
Would you like to win a pdf pattern of Starlight?
Starlight pattern giveaway has ended. Winners drawn, Patricia from NY, USA, Joann from Cape Cod, USA and Raewny from NZ.
For your name to be entered, leave a comment stating what country you are from. Drawing will be old school, names placed into a bowl and 1 drawn. The winner will be announced by email and in Put your foot down on August 15th. Entries will be accepted until Wednesday August 14 at noon central standard time. Good luck!
Be sure to keep scrolling to view links and schedule for the Island Batik Beat the heat blog hop all month. And don’t forget to enter for a chance to win some fabulous fabrics.
I’m glad to see the GO! is saving you time and agony. Two of its main strengths in my opinion too. Lovely quilt, and great use of the fabrics you have to play with.
I love it for hst’s. My Sept hop quilt has 31 hst’s for a 64 patch block, x 4. Completed in record time.
This gem stone design is absolutely perfect for the Crystal line of fabric. EXCEPTIONAL!
Thank you Sally
Lovely quilt! I especially like the little stars in between the bigger ones.
Thank you Susan
Coming to you from the good ole USA. I absolutely love your quilt, great pattern with(of course) great fabric;)
I love seeing your fast production of detailed precise quilts. I am from Australia and would love to win a copy of your star pattern. Jane
Wishing you lots of luck on the drawing and thank you for the kind words and stopping by.
USA – Love the twinkle your stars have.
They do seem to twinkle don’t they. Thank you for stopping by and good luck on the drawing.
This is a gorgeous star quilt and the extra border in blue was a good idea. Glad you caught the oopsie in time to correct it. I’m in western NY, USA.
Oh me too, it would be awful not to have noticed it, finish and launder then to have it fall apart. Thank you for stopping by and good luck in the drawing.
I love this star block! It is the best star I have seen, I collect star patterns to make a quilt with different star patterns. This pattern makes a beautiful quilt all on it’sown and the fabric is just awesome!
Thank you Connie
I love the Island Batik Ambassador posts…Always inspirational…and love the colors in your quilt. Also I appreciate the “What I learned” statement. A good day is one on which we learn something new…Greetings from hot and humid Cape Cod
So true. In this case, it’s also a good day when we know what we did wrong before it’s too late. Thank you for stopping by and good luck in the drawing. ps, It’s hot and humid here in the midwest too.
Another super Island Batik blog hop. Those stars with the fabrics sparkle together. I am way down south in New Zealand, but maybe not the lowest south of all the Batik lovers.
I hope you will visit all the blogs in the hop, there will be some gorgeous fabrics and quilts shared. And a lot of giveaways. Good luck on my giveaway and thank you for stopping by.
Your oopsie with the dissolving thread sounds exactly like something I would do! LOL Your quilt looks fantastic. I really like how those stars pop off your background. It’s a beautiful pattern! Thanks for sharing on MCM!
Thank you Beth. I have a procedure setup now to prevent the thread mistake from happening again. Who’d of thought “a procedure” could have applied to thread?
HOLY MOLY, Girl! 80 HSTs cut AND pieced in an hour and a half? I can’t even pick out the fabric I want to use for one applique leaf in that amount of time, let alone cut it out and stitch it down! Your Starlight is gorgeous, and the precisely pieced stars remind me of ice crystals. Beautiful colors and fabrics. Oh, and I’m in the United States. 🙂
Oh I know, before AccuQuilt I may have been lucky to cut and piece one hst I was happy with in an hour unless I cheated by making a paper template :). The fabric was just perfect for this design. Good luck on the drawing!
I am from Alabama in the USA.
I remember, glad you you came back to enter. Good luck!
I love your stars too and think they look great in those fabrics/col;ours. Greetings from New Zealand!
Thank you and thank you for stopping by. Good luck in the giveaway.
I love the quilt. The stars are outstanding.
Thank you, I like this version best with the Island Batik fabric.
Your stars just sparkle!!! I love it! From the good ole USA
Thank you Sheila, wishing you luck.
Love your stars….
Thank you so much
I love the challenge quilt with your Island Batik fabrics. The stars in the Startlight pattern show great contrast. Yes, I would love to win a copy of your Starlight pattern.
Sandie from Canada.
Thanks Sandie. Don’t forget to visit the other blogs and enter to win some fabric.
Love your quilt. I’m from PA, USA
Thank you Susan. Be sure to stop by the blogs or the IB blog to enter the fabric giveaway. Good luck.
I love your star quilt. The Crystal Ball fabrics worked perfectly for the stars.
Thank you Gene. I think the Crystal Ball played very well with the gray sold, I LOVE the combo. Such soft glowing colors.