And my next question - seam allowances.

[crafter]

There will be even more I'm sure.

If I am doing a design like an eight point star (Le Moyne Star, say).  There doesn't appear to be a seam allowance to join the blocks together  If I join them it will cut off the points by 1/4 inch.

I have Linda Clements' The Quilter's Bible but it doesn't seem to explain.

[BrendaP]

You have to have seam allowances - unless you fuse everything to the backing using Bondaweb/WonderUnder or whatever.  My latest quilting book is about doing just that.  Whilst there are some spectacular designs in the book (and it's giving me ideas for my project Linus quilt)  I think that fused fabric would only be OK for wall hanging, I'm not sure that it fabric would survive well in a washing machine.

Back to the seam allowances.  If your pattern is a number of peces which exactly fit together then you will need seam allowances.  An easy way to draw 1/4" all around is to tape two regular hexagonal pencils together then if you trace the (sewing) lines with one the other will draw in the cutting lines.  Once you've got the new pattern pieces you can measure them carefully and then cut the fabric to thoe sizes with a rotary cutter.

[BrendaP]

If I am doing a design like an eight point star (Le Moyne Star, say).  There doesn't appear to be a seam allowance to join the blocks together  If I join them it will cut off the points by 1/4 inch.

If your pieces have seam allowances for joining to make a block then those seam allowances will also be there around the outside of the block ready for when the blocks are joined together.

[Acorn]

The seam allowances for the sides will cross at a place short of the point, creating another point - the distance between the seam allowance point and the edge of fabric point won't be a quarter of an inch, it will be a bit more.

[crafter]

Thanks ladies.

I was in the dentists chair this morning when the penny dropped.  Doh.  Idioit!