Book excerpt: Learn to make star quilts that truly shine using variations on traditional blocks and the mix-and-match patterns in this skill-building guide. Quilt designer and teacher Barbara Cline has helped countless crafters expand their creative horizons. Now she helps you reach for the stars with 9 wall-hanging projects. Plus she demonstrates how the featured star block patterns can be transformed into 27 different quilts! Beginning with the classic Lone Star block, Barbara explains the basics of layout and diamond piecing, offering tips and tricks that save time and avoid common pitfalls. Arranged in order of difficulty, each new quilt project offers new challenges with step-by-step instructions designed to build skills as you go. Barbara also shares many valuable life lessons and shows you how to achieve the fine workmanship found in the quilts made in her Mennonite community.