May 17, 2010 – Freedom Star Block #20 – Dolley Madison’s Star Block
May 20th is the birthday of Dolley Payne Madison, the fourth First Lady of the United States. She is most remembered for protecting many White House valuables, including a portrait of George Washington, as the British Army was approaching Washington DC during the War of 1812. For more information on her life visit the Dolley Madison Project .
This week’s block is a traditional block the Dolley Madison Star published by the Chicago Tribune in 1975 and attributed to the Nancy Cabot column from the 1930’s written by Loretta Leitner Rising.
Click here for complete directions or click on Free Block Patterns – 2010 Block of the Week “Freedom Stars.
Happy Quilting!
Betty Dietz
Dolley Madison's Star Block
May 10, 2010 – Freedom Star Block #19 – Mother’s Fancy Star Block
Mother's Fancy Star Block - Freedom Star Colors
I hope everyone had a great day yesterday, honoring their mother and their Grandmother!!
Today’s block is an older block, possibly published as early as 1895. This block was first published under the name of Mother’s Fancy Star in 1935, by Carrie A. Hall and Rose G. Ketsinger in “The Romance of the Patchwork Quilt in America” Please see Barbara Brackman’s Block Base for EQ6 for more information.
This block is easily made up from a center star unit using Easy Flying Geese and 9-patch checkerboard units in the corners. Click here for complete directions or click on Free Block Patterns – 2010 Block of the Week “Freedom Stars.
Happy Quilting!
Betty Dietz
Mother's Fancy Star Block
April 19, 2010 – Freedom Star Block #16 – Earth Day Star Block
Earth Day Star Block
Forty years ago Senator Gaylord Nelson (Wisconsin) started a grassroots movement to help save our planet. The first EARTH DAY was celebrated on April 22, 1970. On that first Earth Day, over 20 million individuals and thousands of schools participated. I remember planting a tree with my classmates.
Today Earth Day has been expanded into a full week of activities designed to help make people aware of the fragile state of our home planet, and it is celebrated by over one billion people in 190 countries.
For information on how to get involved visit Earth Day Network and for information on events in your neighborhood visit Envirolink or the Nature Conservancy
I have re-designed and re-named a traditional block originally named Illinois Star published by Aunt Kate’s Quilting Bee Magazine between July 1962 -July 1967 (Barbara Brackman, Block Base for EQ6)
Earth Day Star Block - Freedom Stars Colors
Have fun using your favorite applique method to create this Earth Day Star Block. Click here for complete directions or click on Free Block Patterns – 2010 Block of the Week “Freedom Stars”
Happy Quilting,
Betty Dietz
April 12, 2010 – Freedom Star Block #15 – Crossed Star Block
Crossed Star Block
Are you working on your taxes? Are you seeing nothing but plus and minus signs. My husband is working on our taxes, they seem to get more complicated every year!
This is such a stressful time of year, so I have re-named and re-designed a not too difficult block called Star and Cross. This was one of the many pattern attributed to the Nancy Cabot column in the Chicago Tribune in the 1930s (Barbara Brockman, Block Base for EQ) This block was originally pieced with some tricky templates. I have made it simpler, although the only way I could get it to work without any set-in seams, was to make yet another paper-pieced pattern. I hope you take some time out from your tax calculations and sew out this beautiful block.
Some of you may have noticed a new look to the website. I wanted to add a Photo Gallery, so some items on the top line have been re-arranged. Be sure to look around at the other features on this site, like the Delmarva Quilt shops!
Click here for complete directions or click on Free Block Patterns – 2010 Block of the Week “Freedom Stars”
If you have been following along, please send me pictures of your blocks and I will post them on this website.
Happy Quilting,
Betty Dietz
April 5, 2010 – Freedom Star Block #14 – April Star Block
We are just back from the most enjoyable and relaxing Easter weekend at Pieceful Cottage. The weather was fabulous!
On Saturday, we took a car ride over to the Delaware beaches and explored Rehobeth Beach and Bethany Beach. Two very nice beach towns on the Delaware shore. I was surprised at how crowded they were already on April 4th. I can remember when nothing at the beach was open until Memorial Day and most of the shops and restaurants put up their shutters just after Labor Day!
On Sunday afternoon we spent a little time sanding and refinishing the teak wood trim on our little 27 – foot O’Day sailboat. She is named the “Simple and Free” after our favorite Chicago tune from the 70’s! We keep her in a marina just 5 minutes from our cottage so we have easy access to her. If we are lucky, we get her out 3 – 4 weekends each season, I wish we could have more time on her. It is so much fun to go sailing on the Chesapeake. Oh well, retirement is not too far away for us!!
This week’s block is an older block listed as Long Pointed Star and published in the The KC Star 4/1/42, as noted in Barbara Brackman’s Block Base for EQ6. Another name for the block is the April Star (attributed to Nancy Cabot – 1930’s) and I thought that it would be appropriate for Easter. I have shown it colored two ways, first in the red, white/gold and blue of the Freedom Star Blocks and also in pink, green and blue for spring.
Click here for complete directions or click on Free Block Patterns – 2010 Block of the Week “Freedom Stars”.
If you have been following along, please send me pictures of your blocks and I will post them on this website.
Happy Quilting,
Betty Dietz
April Star Block - Freedom Star colors
April Star Block - Spring Colors
March 29, 2010 – Freedom Star Block #13 – Fool’s Star Block
Fool's Star Block
April Fool’s Day is this Thursday…so get ready to play some goofy April Fool’s jokes on your friends and loved ones.
I have made a simple pieced block for us to make in honor of the day. This block is adapted from a traditional block named Fool’s Square. The original block was based on a 10 inch square, I have adapted and re-created the block so it will work for a 12 inch square and easily join in with the rest of our Freedom Star Blocks. When made up in spring colors, I think the star points look like tulips!
Click here for complete directions or click on Free Block Patterns – 2010 Block of the Week “Freedom Stars”. (Corrected on March 30th).
If you have been following along, please send me pictures of your blocks and I will post them on this website.
Happy Quilting, Betty Dietz
Fool's Star Block - Spring Colors
March 15, 2010 – Irish Star Quilt
Wow! Look what happens when you put nine of the Irish Star Blocks together – and add a border in the same dark green. I love the way that you now see the gold chain and you lose the definition of the original block. This would make a great wall hanging or gift for a friend.
Happy Quilting,
Betty Dietz
Irish Star Quilt
March 15, 2010 – Freedom Star Block #11 – Irish Star Block
Irish Star Block
In Honor of St. Patrick’s Day – March 17th and for everyone who claims to be Irish this week, I have designed an Irish Star block based on a traditional block named Irish Logs.
My maternal grandfather’s name was McGoldrick, my grandmother’s maiden name was Loughery, My paternal grandfather was named Tucker (although possibly English in origin, he always claimed to be Irish) and my grandmother on that side was a Keeley. So I figure I have a lot of Irish blood in me and I usually manage to celebrate on St. Patrick’s Day!
Click here for complete directions or click on Free Block Patterns – 2010 Block of the Week “Freedom Stars”.
I have also made a Freedom Star version of the same block in Red, Blue and Gold.
Happy Quilting,
Betty Dietz
Irish Star Block - Freedom Star Version
March 8, 2010 – Freedom Star Block #10 – Alaska’s Star Block
Filed under: Block of the Week, Free Patterns, Uncategorized, quilting
Alaska’s Famous Iditarod Race is under way. For the next 10 – 17 days, 71 teams of dog sledders will race from Anchorage to Nome, Alaska a distance of more than 1000 miles. This is one of the world’s last great road races. The Iditarod trail was originally used as a mail and supply route to the most rural mining towns in Alaska. In the late 1800’s, over 300,000 people risked life and limb traveling to the rugged Yukon Territory, many in search of gold! The only way to get there was by dog sled. Today the race is run to commemorate the tough, rugged settlers in this the coldest State of the Union. If you want to track the race you can go to the official Iditarod Race Site.
Alaska was purchased from the Russian Empire on March 30, 1867, for $7.2 million , that is about 2 cents/acre. The land was originally a government owned territory and officially became the 49th state of the U.S. on January 3, 1959.
Alaska's Star Block
Today’s block is a variation of the Alaska block published in the magazine Hearth and Home (1885-1930) . As Sited by Block Base (TM)
Click here for complete directions or click on Free Block Patterns – 2010 Block of the Week “Freedom Stars”.
Happy Quilting,
Betty
February 23, 2010 – Going to the Quilt Show!
Tomorrow morning I will be heading off to the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival. I will be traveling with quilt friends, of course! There will be four of us piled into my car. We plan on making a day of it, stopping off in Fredericksburg to check out a quilt shop and have lunch, before making our way to the hotel.
This year I have signed up for one class on Thursday and I will be tending our raffle quilt on Friday. The rest of the time, I will be shopping and taking photos of all the great quilts in this year’s show. As I walk through the show, I find it hard not to take a photo of each and every quilt. It seems as though each one is prettier than the last. I have been taking photos of quilts for over 20 years, and I have quite a collection. It is easier now we have gone digital. At least the photos are organized on my computer and in a format that is much easier for viewing. When reviewing the photos…even just two or three days after the show, I am always surprised at how many quilts I have already forgotten. But that is probably just a result of my aging and memory loss!
We are looking forward to a great girls weekend away, much shopping and fabric purchasing. I will have my computer with me and I will try to get a post up each evening, if I can get an internet connection.
Happy Quilting!
Betty Dietz