Ohio star quilt block: quarter-square cuts for five sizes
Published 2026-10-15. Updated 2026-10-15.
An Ohio star is a nine-patch of five plain squares and four quarter-square triangle units. The four side units are the star. For a block that finishes at 12 inches, The Fabric Hut cuts five squares at 4½ inches for the corners and center, and four squares at 5¼ inches for the star points, two light and two dark. Trim each star-point unit to 4½ inches before you sew the rows. The unfinished block should measure 12½ inches.
What to cut for five sizes
The grid is three by three, so a finished block that divides by three is nine equal units. The Fabric Hut states the formula: add ½ inch to the unit size for the plain squares, and add 1¼ inches to the unit size for the star-point squares. Every number in the table is inches. A is the five plain squares. B is the four squares you pair to make the star points.
| Finished block | Unit | A, cut five | B, cut four |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | 2 | 2½ | 3¼ |
| 8 | see note | 3⅛ | 3⅞ |
| 9 | 3 | 3½ | 4¼ |
| 12 | 4 | 4½ | 5¼ |
| 15 | 5 | 5½ | 6¼ |
The 8-inch row is the exception. Eight does not divide into three whole inches. The Fabric Hut takes those two cuts from Barbara Brackman's Civil War Sampler, block 19, and says they run slightly small on purpose. She asks for a scant quarter-inch seam through that block.
A 5-inch charm square can make the 9-inch block, because the largest piece in that row is 4¼ inches. It cannot make the 12-inch block, which wants 5¼-inch squares. A 10-inch square can yield one 5¼-inch star-point square and one 4½-inch corner for the 12-inch block, with fabric left over.
How to make the quarter-square units
Do not cut the triangles first if you can avoid it. The Fabric Hut starts with the four B squares, two light and two dark. Pair light with dark, draw one diagonal, and sew a quarter-inch seam on both sides of the line. Cut on the line and press toward the darker fabric. That is the same two-at-a-time step as a half-square triangle. You now have four half-square triangles.
Pair them again, seams nesting, light against dark, and draw the other diagonal. Sew a quarter-inch seam on both sides, cut, and press. Two pairs make four quarter-square units. Trim every unit to the A size before you sew the block. Squaring the finished block later cuts the points off if the units were never square.
Riley Blake's free tutorial sews one size of this block. The star-point squares start at 5½ inches, the quarter-square units are trimmed to 4½ inches, and the unfinished block measures 12½ inches. The throw in that post uses 20 of these blocks. The full cutting list for the throw sits in a printable the post offers after a newsletter signup. The block steps themselves are on the page.
Assembly
Row one is corner, star point, corner. Row two is star point, center, star point. Row three repeats row one. Every hourglass points at the center. The Fabric Hut presses rows one and three toward the corner squares and row two toward the center, so the seams nest. Pin through the crossing of the seams and stitch through that point. The tip of each star point sits a quarter inch in from the raw edge. A seam a thread too wide eats the point.
Named variations
Field Guide to Quilts draws the basic block on a 6 by 6 grid so the four side units can hold quarter-square triangles. The page says the design collected names that once meant specific fabric placements. Godey's Lady's Book published the classic block without a name. The Ladies Art Company published it as Eight Point Design, number 323, in 1897. The name Ohio Star was in use by the early 1930s, after Capper's Farmer in 1927.
The same page separates a few variations. Mosaic Patchwork and Clara Stone's Happy Home in 1906 share one light-and-dark arrangement. Carrie Hall's Variable Star, in her 1935 book, is three fabrics: light background, dark inner triangles, and medium outer triangles and center. Swamp Angel, named by Nancy Cabot in 1938, is another Ohio star variation. Aunt Eliza's Star is Ladies Art Company number 13 in the 1897 catalog. These are placement changes, not a new grid.
A sawtooth star uses the same nine-patch seats and puts flying geese in the side units. Each point is one triangle aimed out. An Ohio star point has a triangle aimed out and one aimed in, which is why the star looks narrower.
From one block to a quilt
The Fabric Hut sets 20 blocks that finish at 12 inches, four across and five down, for a top of 48 by 60 inches before any border. Thirty blocks, five by six, give 60 by 72 inches. Nine 12-inch blocks make a 36-inch square. Plain blocks between the stars, or sashing, cut the piecing and give the points room. The free sheet on that page has the cutting table, the star-point steps, and the pressing order, and it says nothing on the sheet has to print at full size because the block has no templates.
What this page will not settle
Cut the background from one bolt if the stars should read as one quilt. The Fabric Hut page says the background repeats in every block, and a bundle of different lights will make the points look uneven from across the room. The star-point squares are the place for scraps: each block can take a different dark. Fat quarters cover a scrappy set where no one fabric has to cross the whole quilt.
The points fail when the seam allowance changes from unit to unit. Trim the quarter-square units to one size before the rows, and keep one seam allowance for the whole block. This page does not pick fabrics.
Link: north point quilt, $8.99, coming soon.
What is an Ohio star quilt block?
It is a nine-patch: five plain squares and four quarter-square triangle units. The hourglass in each side unit points at the center square.
What is the Ohio Star quilt pattern?
The block is the pattern. Set the blocks in a grid, with or without sashing. The Fabric Hut page gives a free cutting sheet for five sizes and no templates.
Is there a free pattern for the Ohio Star quilt?
Yes. The Fabric Hut prints a free cutting sheet. Riley Blake's blog posts a free tutorial for one 12-inch block and a throw of 20 blocks.
What are some variations of the Ohio star block?
Field Guide to Quilts lists Mosaic Patchwork, Variable Star, Swamp Angel, and Aunt Eliza's Star as named variations of the same nine-patch idea, with different light and dark placement.