Perfecting the Product

One thing I don't like about making these stars is using a template. You can rotary cut diamonds ordinarily, but to make the stripes or plaids chevron into the center you have to use a template. I started by tracing around the template, but even though I cut inside the line, it still wasn't totally accurate, and some of the stars have these little bumps.

Then I checked my copy of Sally Collins' book Mastering Precision Piecing, and tried her technique of cutting around the template with a small rotary cutter. She says the secret of not shaving the template is to keep the cutter on the fabric until the cut is complete, not lifting it. This seems to work. I bought a small rotary cutting board for this process, and the price was worth it.

Here's a better looking star I made with the new cutting technique.