Civil War Quilt – Block 2

North Star or Sawtooth Star

This is Block #2 in a block-of-the-week Civil War Quilt series offered by Barbara Brackman at Civil War Quilts.

Go to Barbara’s post to get the block picture and measurements for an 8-inch finished block.  For new quilters, this is how I assembled the block.

For this quilt, I chose to use as the center a picture of my oldest daughter in Civil War garb, taken in Gettysburg.

I scanned the picture, printed it on Inkjet Printable Fabric (Precious Treasures), then trimmed to 3-1/2 inches.  I used some neutral fabric to form a frame around the picture and to bring it to the correct 4-1/2 inch size.  Of course, any fabric you choose can be used as the center square.

Place the pieces on a mat, using the picture from the Civil War Quilts post as a guide.

Sew the center section of row 1, using 1/4-inch seams.

Press seam toward dark fabric.  Sew remaining triangle to center.

Press and trim.

Sew a 2-1/2 inch light block to either end of the center piece to complete row 1.

In row 2, complete the two side pieces as above.  Then, sew each completed piece to  a side of the center 4-1/2 inch square.

Complete the bottom row …

….and join the three rows.  Press and trim to an 8-1/2 inch block

Be sure to check out the very interesting story and photographs that Barbara includes with her free patterns.

Civil War Quilts

Note: I find it helpful to copy and paste the picture and measurements from the post and print it out for reference while I’m working.  When the block is completed, I place it along with the reference sheet in a plastic sleeve and file in a binder.