Finally, I’m inspired to start a new quilt for myself.

I’d been reflecting on my favorite Gramma-Great quilt: the pink and white Carpenter’s Wheel block. All those diamonds are so enticing! However, I’m not ready to attempt Y-seams just yet. As luck would have it, my colleague pointed me to the magic-8 method for making half-square triangles and from there I searched how to assemble the block using these triangles instead of diamonds.

Last year, I purchased fabric without any intended project. I’d stumbled upon a delicate birdie print that I used for the wheel plus two coordinating solids.

The real magic happened when I cut squares for those magic-8’s. The birdie was centered perfectly on one square and I decided to use it as the focus in the center of the star instead of triangles.

For the background, I used both orchid & wisteria solid fabric, though I’m not certain I like the X the small squares form.

As long as I’m diligent about measuring 3” squares, everything comes together nicely. My first block is a pleasing, subtle wash of my favorite color. 🙂