Having a Starry Time Blog Hop - Sawtooth Star

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{Giveaway has ended, the winner is comment #49 Dawn! You've been e-mailed}

As quilters, we all know that half-square triangles (HST) are very common in blocks and patterns. We also know that they can be pretty tedious to cut, piece, and square up, esp when you have a whole quilt full of them. I'll admit to avoiding HST quilts because they are so tedious. But not anymore!

Triangles on a Roll make HST so easy! It's actually really fun to sew them! Today I'll show you how to make a traditional HST star block, using Fat Quarter Shop's 3" Finished Square Triangles on a Roll. They come in many sizes and can be used in different ways. Yesterday we saw Rita at Red Pepper Quilts use the 2" version for a portion of her quilt block.

The Fat Quarter Shop produced this video showing different HST methods. You can see a quick demonstration of the Triangles on a Roll starting around the 5 min mark. 

Now onto my Sawtooth Star tutorial. I will be providing instruction on how to make 2 coordinating 12.5" finished squares.
 - Cut Two 2x4 squares off the paper roll, for a total of 8 squares.. Cut directly on the solid line.

 - Cut Four 8" x 15.5" Rectangles in coordinating fabrics. I chose 2 solids and 2 prints.

 - Match up a solid with a print, layering the darkest fabric on the bottom, then the lighter, topped with the paper. You want the fabrics right sides together, and the paper positioned so the lines are facing out.

 - Pin all 3 layers together. Avoid pining where the dashed lines are so you don't have to worry about sewing over your needles.

 - Sew down the dashed lines, following the direction of the arrows. I removed the pins as I went, so I could make sure the fabric stayed flat.

 - Stop and pivot when you reach a solid line

 - Sew on all of the dashed lines. Repeat with your second stack.

 - Now it's time to cut apart your HST, which squares them up in the process. Yay!
    - Start by trimming off the thin strip on both long sides of your piece, and any off the top if you didn't square it up previously, just follow all the solid lines.

    - I found it easiest to just leave the whole thing in one spot, and cut across all of the solid lines in one go. Repeat with the second stack. 

   - Yay look at all those HST.

 - I leave the paper on for pressing, it helps your seam line stay nice and crisp. Press towards the dark side or away from the paper. After you press open, trim off the dog ears and remove the paper.

 - Layout your blocks. I changed mine up so they were coordinating, but different

 - Sew your HST into rows, then join your rows to complete your blocks.

Don't forget The Having a Starry Time blog hop continues throughout the week, with chances to win on each blog. Thanks for stopping by!

Monday March 18th - Rita at Red Pepper Quilts

Tuesday March 19th - Lindsey at Happier Than A Bird Quilts -hey that's me!

Wednesday March 20th - Jane at Want It, Need It, Quilt

Thursday March 21st - Jenelle at Echinops & Aster

Friday March 22nd - Hadley at Flying Blind on A Rocket Cycle

Saturday March 23rd - Alyce at Blossom Heart Quilts