This one came together just perfectly for my friends Alexa and Pete. 

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I started making these liberated stars (thanks, Gwen Marston!) for fun, totally without a plan. They're extra twinkly because the middle of each star is a sparkle square, one of my favorite special 3 1/2" squares made of TINY scraps. When I came across Sally Schneider's beautiful design in The Big Book of Scrappy Quilts, which alternates stars with courthouse step blocks, I knew I had found my layout! 

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I really love the little details on this quilt... pieced border and binding, little circle pops that appear here and there, the teeny tiny flowers and swirls in the binding and steps, the quilted roses, which appear every now and then - though mostly recede into the background. It's a special one, this.