Sewing a half square triangle star quilt block - process of making a patchwork dress

A half square triangle (HST) is a fundamental and versatile quilt block used to make interesting quilt designs and patterns. They are a cornerstone of many quilt designs, being simple for beginners and offer endless creative possibilities for experienced quilters too. A HST consists of a square made up of two right-angled triangles, typically of different fabrics, joined along the diagonal line. They allow you to create intricate designs without complex piecing. They also help in utilizing those fabric scraps too!

I have used this quilt block to make a patchwork dress, more about this can be found after the sewing tutorial!

In this tutorial, I'll be showing you how to make the star block using 4.5" squares with 3 different printed fabrics and 1 plain. There are lots of great HST size charts online if you are looking to make this block in different sizes.

I had made these blocks with a dressmaking project in mind and used a denim chambray as my plain fabric (hence why it curls up at the corners!)

For one block, I have cut -

Four cream floral 4.5" squares

Four denim 4.5" squares

Two nay floral 4.5" squares

Two white floral 4.5" squares

Four denim 4.5" squares

1. Place with right side together and draw a line diagonally from one corner to another.

2. Sew 1/4" down either side of the drawn line.

3. Cut along the drawn line.

4. Open and press.

5. Repeat with the remaining square pairs. Trim these squares to 4.5"

6. Arrange the half square triangles in a star shape as shown below. Place the 4.5" plain squares in each corner.

7. Sew together in rows and press.

8. Sew the rows together and press.

Different Construction Methods:

Two-at-a-Time Method (as shown above): Start with two squares of fabric, place them right sides together, and sew a seam 1/4 inch on either side of the diagonal line. Then, cut along the diagonal line to create two HSTs.

Four-at-a-Time Method: Place two squares of fabric right sides together, sew around all four sides with a 1/4 inch seam, then cut diagonally in both directions to yield four HSTs.

Eight-at-a-Time Method: Similar to the four-at-a-time method, but you begin with larger squares and cut them into more pieces to get eight HSTs at once.

How I made a dress using this block:

I used this block to create a patchwork dress using the 'Fawn Dress' sewing pattern from Common Stitch Patterns. This is a simple shape with different sleeve and skirt lengths and great for beginners.

I used the bodice pattern piece from this to create the shape of the top using one block for the front and one for the back of the dress.

I also added an extra row of squares to each side of the block to make it wider to fit the pattern piece.

I cut out a lining piece to the same size -

and repeated with the back piece.

I then quilted the lining and outer with wrong sides together just by sewing vertical and horizontal lines following the patchwork.

The shoulder seams were sewn, then bias binding added around the neck and arm holes.

For the skirt, I used 8 quilt blocks with horizontal sashing with cornerstones to add some length! The skirt is quilted and lined in the same way as the top.

I hope that you enjoyed reading this post and seeing my process to make a quilted patchwork dress using a star quilt block design! (and yes, it is a very warm dress!)

Happy sewing, Kym x