Hand Piecing - Periwinkle Stars

Several years ago I wanted a travel project. Something I could work on while riding on long road trips. I came across this design called Periwinkle Stars. The quilt I saw was also pieced in the "snowball" part (the ivory fabric), so it could be straight-stitched on the sewing machine. On my quilt, the snowball is a whole, single piece of fabric. That's because it's my preference, when hand-piecing, to join pieces that are more challenging to accomplish on a sewing machine. Set-in seams, like those on this quilt, require a little more precision which I am able to accomplish when I stitch by hand.

With no specific size in mind, I cut out oodles of snowballs from a solid ivory fabric. Then, using my scraps and scraps from quilter-friends, I pieced the stars, being sure to have a light and a dark for contrast. Notice how each star alternates the placement of lights and darks.

Now the quilt top is 80" X 90"! I briefly entertained the idea of calling it enough, but one of my favorite quilt effects is a geometric pieced center surrounded by a border of softly curving applique. So, bordered it will be!