{Classic Quilt Blocks} Ohio Star - Block Variations + A Free Block Pattern

Classic Quilt Blocks have been sewn for centuries, are easily recognised and are every quilters favorite. Let's celebrate these gorgeous blocks and add them to our quilting projects!

Welcome to the final week of my Ohio Star Classic Quilt Blocks series. I hope you've enjoyed learning more about this gorgeous block, and you've sewn a few of your own using my step by step tutorial. 

To end the month, I like to do something fun to celebrate, and today I'm looking at variations of this classic block and how they work in quilt design. Some of these blocks add secondary patterns to the design, and others are a simple tweak that takes the block to a new level, creating a visually stunning quilt. 

These blocks are examples only and intended to inspire you, but at the end of the post I have a block for you to sew. There are so many ways to add a little more charm to this block, so let's take a look at some of my favorites.

The most obvious place to tweak is the plain corner squares of the Ohio Star. The possibilities are endless, and they create wonderful secondary patterns. In this example I've added a HST to each corner which will add a larger square to the overall design.

I added two shades of grey to the HST's (opposite corners) and it give the secondary square a little more character as it's not a solid block. Scrappy HST's would look great as well!

Dividing the HST's adds an extra pop of colour and creates a pretty mosaic pattern in the quilt. Make the sections even narrower, and watch your design come to life! You could create a gorgeous scrappy quilt with this block, so fun!

Add a simple four patch in each corner square, and some sashings and cornerstones to create a stunning quilt. I love this version! This simple tweak allows you to be creative with colour and add some scrappiness between the stars.

Add some HST's to the four patches and watch this Ohio Star Block blossom. Isn't this the prettiest? It adds a lot of depth to the block and this simple tweak changes the whole look. Play around with the colour values to create stunning blocks that demand attention!

Don't forget the plain centre square - it's perfect for adding something extra to your block. A simple economy block will create more visual interest and it softens the centre of the star. You can fussy cut some pretty fabric for the centre block and let it float inside those gorgeous star points.

How about another QST as the centre block? I really like this one, it mirrors those gorgeous star points and creates a lovely flow in the block. Pretty isn't it? And very easy to achieve.

I hope these examples show you just how easy it is to adapt this block and create some wonderful quilts with secondary patterns or some extra visual interest. Don't stop there though, you can combine any of these options into the one block and create something unique.

OK now for the fun part, let's sew one:

How pretty is that? I've added a simple nine patch to the centre and some strips in the corner squares to create a stunning Ohio Star variation. These simple tweaks give the block more impact and adds another element to a quilt design - see how it looks in a quilt with some sashing and cornerstones. Too cute!

Look stunning doesn't it? I'd love to see this in a scrappy mix of fabrics. The block pattern uses traditional piecing methods plus the stitch and flip method for the corner squares - there's a few ways to piece those strips, but I picked this method because I thought would be the easiest one for you.

I've drafted this up as a 9" (finished) block pattern and if you'd like to sew this version of the Ohio Star block then simply click on the link to download the free pattern. 

I hope you have fun playing with the Ohio Star block. It's a versatile block and as you can see it makes gorgeous quilts, even without the tweaks. 

That's it for this month's Classic Quilt Blocks series. I have another block ready for next month and it's a classically simple and stunning by itself and so easy to combine with other blocks we've already looked at. The first post goes live on Friday September 4, so stay tuned!

Happy quilting :)