Fairy Frost Friday and FREE Pattern

I have been sewing with Michael Miller's Fairy Frost fabrics since they first hit the market. They are still as lovely - and relevant - as the first day! They are the perfect blenders with a bit of "bling" added with the subtle metallics on top of each color. Here are two stacks (with Marble in the background) that came into my studio in June of 2021.

Fairy Frost Fat Quarters

 I've shared several blog posts using these lovely fabrics. If you want to revisit them, do a Search for "Fairy Frost" or "Michael Miller" in the sidebar. Today I'm talking "diamonds", though the ones below were used for my Flying Swallows class sample.

Fairy Frost diamonds for Flying Swallows quilt

I used these along with some Fairy Frost background fabrics to make my quilt center. Isn't she lovely? These are 45 degree diamonds and half-square triangles (no y-seams, btw). You can see my other Flying Swallows quilts in my Etsy shop.

Flying Swallows center using Fairy Frost

Now to my post today. I saw a new pattern at the Michael Miller Facebook site that uses 45 degree diamonds to make a simple LeMoyne Star. (The pattern is FREE - stay with me). But, I refuse to make my LeMoyne Star blocks using a y-seam. I also wanted to make it bigger than the pattern shared. It's called Shimmering Stars and uses ONLY Fairy Frost - no other prints. I was truly intrigued.

Shimmering Stars by Marsha Evans Moore for Michael Miller fabrics

Marsha's pattern calls for diamonds cut from 2-1/2" strips. I cut mine from 3-1/2" strips and from there everything else changed. Why not? Now you can have TWO patterns!

I cut my diamonds using my trusty acrylic ruler and the 45 degree lines. No templates for me! I knew where I was going because this is how I teach my One Day Lone Star, Flying Swallows, Big Block Stars, etc classes. All use 45 degree diamonds.

Cutting perfect 45 degree diamonds from 3-1/2" strips

Then I did a little math and figured out what size small and large squares I needed to get the half-square triangles for my technique. I will need to make four of the top left unit. That means:

• Four diamonds from light pink (cut from 3-1/2" strips)
• Four diamonds from dark pink
• Four large white Fairy Frost 5" squares (cut in half for 8 triangles)
• Four small white Fairy Frost 4" squares (cut in half for 8 triangles)

This is how I stitched the units. Notice the diamonds are mirror images of each other in relation to how the small and large triangles are added. This is IMPORTANT!

Two parts of one quarter block

Now, I flip that light pink unit over as shown below. This way it will form the quarter unit. BUT NOT UNTIL I TRIM THESE!!

I cut those white triangles a little oversized. The larger ones seem to be perfect, but the smaller ones (cut from 4" squares) need a little bit shaved off. Also, working with 45 degree diamonds requires ABSOLUTE PRECISE 1/4" SEAMS! (Ask me how I know!) I always tell my students: always cut and sew a sample block before cutting out an entire quilt!

Quarter unit shaved. This measures 7-3/4". You have to keep the 1/4" seams where the white triangles come together. Sometimes you have to fudge a smidge as shown at bottom pink diamond.

Let's see the rest of the steps - two units for the star top.

Here are the four quarter star parts. I'm having some questions in my head. This looks too "matchey - matchey."

Four star quarters. Yes, a lot of seams come together.

Here she is sewn and I am POSITIVE I do not like this arrangement. What?!

Fairy Frost LeMoyne Star. 17-3/4" (unfinished)

Before I show my final reveal, let me give you the fabric info again. I used a total of four colors, with a light and dark in each set, for a total of 8 different fabrics (A, B, C, D)

• Four 3-1/2" diamonds from EACH of the 8 fabrics. Easily gotten from scraps or fat quarters.
• Fat quarter of two white Fairy Frost fabrics (because I only had fat quarters) OR 1/2 yard of light background

I was inspired by my Snow Crystals quilt made SO long ago. It is a vintage block and creates the illusion of a fifth block in the center, though it's really made with the parts of four LeMoyne Stars. I converted this to foundation paper piecing and was a workshop for several years.

Snow Crystals, 2007. 33" x 33". Appeared in Supersize 'Em Quilts (2009, Martingale)

I made all my four color star units. Then I auditioned them on my wall. Then I mixed them up! Here's what I did with that pink block - I took it apart and moved a 1/4 blue unit in. Yes, I have a plan!

I didn't mix up the colors as much in my Fairy Frost quilt. I just replaced a quarter unit.

A little twisting and turning.

I did this with all four stars. Here she is! Now to plan a border.

Fairy Frost Snow Crystals: 29" x 29"