Thursday, May 5, 2022

Snowball Stars Quilt Tutorial

Just so you know..... this is an easy quilt to cut and piece, but it is not a quick quilt to cut and piece! It is, however, well worth the effort because it is very pretty.



Finished size approx. 70" x 86"

The cutting and piecing instructions below include rotary cutting as well as AccuQuilt cutting.

Rotary Cutting

Snowball Fabric - assorted fabrics totaling 80 @ 6-1/2" squares.

Background Fabric - 4 yds

1.  Cut 48 strips @ 2-1/2” x WOF

  • Sub cut 32 of the strips to make 502 @ 2-1/2” x 2-1/2” squares for blocks and sashing.
  • Sub cut 16 of the strips using the Tri Rec triangle ruler to make 396 triangles.

2.  Cut 3 strips @ 6-1/2” WOF

  • Sub cut to 36 @ 2-1/2” x 6-1/2” for border
Star Points and Binding - 2-1/2 yds

1.  Cut 20 strips @ 2-1/2" x WOF
  • Keep the fabric folded wrong sides together. Using the Tri Rec rectangle ruler, sub cut 396 sets of left/right triangles.
2.  Cut 8 strips @ 2-1/2" x WOF for binding.

Star Centers/Cornerstones - 1/2 yd

1.  Cut 7 strips @ 2-1/2" x WOF.
  • Sub cut to 99 @ 2-1/2" x 2-1/2" squares. 

AccuQuilt Cutting

I cut the fabrics with my AccuQuilt cutter using the following dies:

  • Snowball 6" finished die (55330) 
  • The 2" finished square from the Mix & Match 4" Qube (Shape #1) OR the Mix & Match 8" Qube (Shape # 2)
  • From the GO! Qube 4" Companion Set Angles:
    • 2" finished triangle in square Center (Shape #13)
    • 2" finished triangle in square Sides (Shape #14)
Cut Time, Quilt More

Snowball Fabric - assorted fabrics totaling 80 @ 7" squares. Use the Snowball part of the Snowball die to cut the snowballs.

Background Fabric - 4-1/2 yds

1.  Cut 12 strips @ 3-1/2" x WOF for snowball corners. Use the triangle part of the Snowball die to cut 320 corner triangles.

2.  Cut 17 strips @ 3" x WOF. Use the 2" finished triangle in square center to cut 396 center triangles for the Tri Rec units

3.  Cut 7 strips @ 5-1/2" x WOF. Using the 2" finished square die cut 182 @ 2-1/2" squares for the sashing.

4.  Cut 3 strips @ 6-1/2" x WOF. Sub cut to 36 @ 2-1/2" x 6-1/2" for border.

Star Points and Binding Fabric - 2-3/4 yds

1.  Cut 29 strips @ 2-1/2" x WOF. Keep the fabric folded wrong sides together. Use the 2" finished triangle in square sides die to cut 396 sets of left/right rectangles for the Tri Rec units.

2.  Cut 8 strips @ 2-1/2" x WOF for binding.

Star Centers/Cornerstones - 3/4 yds

1.  Cut 4 strips @ 5-1/2" x WOF. Use the 2" finished square die to cut 99 @ 2-1/2" squares for the cornerstones.

Piece the Snowball Block


Snowball Blocks - Make 80


Rotary Cut
1.  Mark a diagonal line on the wrong side of 320 background fabric squares.

2.  Using the stitch and flip method, sew one square to each corner of the snowball fabric.

3.  Trim 1/4" from the stitched line.

4.  Press toward background fabric.

AccuQuilt Cut

1.  Stitch one snowball triangle to each of the 4 long sides of the snowball fabric.

2.  Press toward background fabric.

Piece the Tri Rec Units


Tri Rec Units - Make 396

Using the 396 background center triangles and the 396 pairs of left/right star point triangles, piece 396 Tri Rec units.

Piece the Sashing Units


Sashing Units - Make178

Using 2 Tri Rec units and one 2-1/2" square, piece 178 sashing units as shown above.

Top and Bottom Borders

Using 2 background squares, 9 Tri Rec units and 8 background 2-1/2" x 6-1/2" rectangles, piece the top and bottom borders as shown below.


Top and Bottom Borders - Make 2

Horizontal Sashing

Using 2 Tri Rec units, 8 sashing units and 9 star center squares, piece the horizontal sashings as shown below.


Horizontal Sashing - Make 11

Snowball Rows


Snowball Rows - Make 10

Using 2 of the 2-1/2" x 6-1/2" background rectangles, 9 sashing units and 8 snowball blocks, piece the snowball rows shown above.

Piece the Top

Start with the Top Border then alternate a Horizontal Sashing and a Snowball Row.

Continue alternating a Horizontal Sashing and a Snowball Row, piece the quilt top as shown below. End with the Bottom Border.



Happy quilting!
Carol