Drafting for the Creative Quilter

8-POINTEDSTARBLOCkS 57

Star of the Magi Block

Drafting of this block results in
multiple layers of lines; use colored
pencils to help clarify each step. To
help minimize the number of lines,
carefully look at the block diagram and notice, as you
draft, where lines stop in the finished design. You need
four shapes: two triangles, one diamond, and one house.

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To lessen confusion when drafting, after you have

drawn a line to connect two points, do not move

your ruler until you know where you should place it

next.

TO DRAFT A 6 ̋ (FINISHED) BLOCK:

1. Draft a 6 ̋ LeMoyne Star (page 54); do not erase any
   lines.


2. Connect A to B across the corners.


3. Where the horizontal and vertical lines meet the
   edge, label those 1, 3, 5, and 7.


4. Where the diagonal lines going to the corner inter-
   sect with the AB diagonal across the corner, label those
   2, 4, 6, and 8.


5. To create 4 of the roof tops, align your ruler edge
   with points 1 and 3. With a red pencil, connect the
   points, stopping the line when it meets the diamond
   from each side of the block. Repeat to connect 3 to 5, 5
   to 7, and 7 to 1.


6. To create the remaining 4 roof tops, align your ruler
   edge with 2 and 4. With your red pencil again, connect
   the points, stopping the line when it meets the diamond
   line. Repeat to connect 4 to 6, 6 to 8, and 8 to 2. You
   have now revealed the 8 roof tops, corner triangles, and
   small triangles around the edge of the block.


7. To create the small diamonds, you must first divide
   the large diamond into 4 diamonds. To do so, you
   must find the midpoint of each side of each diamond
   and then connect the midpoints. The midpoint is at
   the point where the rooftop meets the side of the dia-
   mond. Starting at the top edge and working clockwise,

label the midpoints 9–24. Using a light touch with your

blue pencil, complete the line from number to number.

Connect 9 to 16 and 10 to 19. If you look closely, you will

see the large diamond is now divided into 4 smaller dia-

monds. Continue as you connect 11 to 18, 12 to 21, 13

to 20, and 14 to 23. Then connect 15 to 22 and 17 to 24.

This process reveals the smaller diamond and the sides of

the house.

8. With your orange pencil, connect the lower tips of
   the 8 small outer diamonds to create the octagon. At this
   point, all 4 shapes are revealed.


9. If you look closely at the block diagram and your
   drafting, you’ll see that when you divided the diamonds,
   as the lines traveled through the octagon, 8 more dia-
   monds and 8 triangles formed the small center star.

B

8 23

22

21

7

20

19

18

17 16

5

15 4

14

13

12

11

10

(^249)
1
2
3
6
A
A B
A
B
B A
Draft a LeMoyne Star, using a different color for each step.

10. Erase all unnecessary lines, leaving only seamlines.