Lone Star First Saturday!

What a pleasant surprise! I am farther along on my Lone Star quilt than I realized! Happy New Year to me!! *big, goofy grin*

The first Saturday of the month is supposed to be the day when we check in and report our progress on our Lone Star Quilts. If you recall, Sue of Quilt Times and I are teaming up for a quilt along. Her desire to make a Lone Star quilt and my desire to finish an ages-old UFO of a variation called Broken Star have brought us together for the quilt along. Hope we get a few quilters out there motivated to begin and/or finish one of these stunning beauties!!

As Sue said, there are no rules for this quilt along. We just invite quilters who are interested in beginning or finishing one of these gorgeous quilts to click the Mister Linky button above, register your progress and perhaps share a few photos, as well.

Now, let me show you what has made me such a happy girl. I'd brought the tub down from the shelf, but hadn't really taken out and examined the contents until last evening. Whoa!! I'd made a lot of progress on this quilt!!

Of course, when a UFO is nearing 20 years old, one needs to take stock of the progress and determine a course of action. I truly had no idea what to expect as I delved into this tub. To find this thing so far along is a complete surprise. It makes me wonder why I ever quit on it in the first place! If, in fact, it was the bias edges and some occasional  "wonkiness," they aren't too bad as far as I can see, and I am uber-excited to get back to work and finish it!!

Doesn't that look great? I astonish myself! (I don't mean for that to sound like bragging.) This is the center section. That central blue star is not as flat as a purist might want it to be, but it pressed out rather nicely, and considering all things, I will be happy with it just as it is.

Here are three sections of the outer ring - the starburst, I guess I could call it. A few pictures down is the picture from the pattern book; you'll get what I mean. Not all the points are matching, but again, I am not objecting because it's really not that bad. The main thing is that they lay (mostly) flat and the look is definitely established, so why complain? (I have never been known to be a purist/perfectionist when it comes to quilting!)

Finally, I found 15 of these units ready to be sewn into the remaining starbursts. There are a total of 8 starbursts, each containing 3 of these units. The math works (thankfully!).

So, like Sue, I've not sewn a stitch this week on my Lone Star. I am, however, eager to get back to this and finish it! Pressing it (carefully!) and examining my earlier work was fun. I am so pleasantly surprised at how much of it was done once upon a time, and am ever thankful to Sue for providing the prod I needed to drag this UFO down off the shelf.

Here's the picture of the pattern from my book.

The book is by Better Homes and Gardens from 1989.

So come on, quilters! Begin the new year with a Lone Star quilt! Or, if you are like me, begin with finishing a Lone Star UFO! Hop on over to Sue's blog to see her progress. I have a significantly smaller following than she does, so I imagine there'll be quite a few folks already signed in on her Mister Linky. She has already done several posts today (sorry, Sue, to be such a slacker!!). Check hers out here, here and here!

Happy Quilting, Friends!