Jewel Stars

I'm fairly new to Flickr.  I've been aware of it for awhile, but it wasn't until recently {thanks to lots of browsing while sitting on the couch, nursing} that I've really spent much time perusing!  When I first decided to start working on an actual paper piecing project, I spent a lot of time looking at projects on Flickr and  I was really drawn to this specific formation:

Source

I think part of my attraction to the piece was that the pattern is so retro and fun, but could really be stunning if the blocks were made with some soft, modern fabrics.  The blocks aren't as complicated and time consuming as my Rose Star Blocks ...

... but not quite as mindless as the hexies ...

... and they look like they'll go together faster, since they don't have quite as many connecting pieces.

These blocks appear to go by a variety names (Texas Star, Star Flower, Irregular Pentagon, Jewel Flower, Jewel Star), but I couldn't find a template for any of them anywhere, which only left me a few construction choices:

1. I could purchase the pre-made templates from PaperPieces.com ... but I'd have to wait for them to be shipped, and even though they're fairly reasonable, I'd need a ton and have already blown my crafting budget {for the next few months} on new fabric.
2. I could purchase the e-files for the templates from InstantPiecing.com ... but the files include a 1/4" seam allowance.  Again, since I need so many blocks, this potentially wastes
3. I could figure out how to make my own template.

I knew that I wanted to use a 1 inch hexagon as my flower center since this works well with a 2.5" scrap of fabric - perfect for my use with my charm packs - so I went to http://incompetech.com and made my own hexagonal graph paper.  From there, using one of my quilting rulers, it was really easy to create my own template!  Here's the result ....

... and here's the resulting block!

If you're interested in making your own jewel star, please join my brand new Flickr group: Jewel Stars - English Paper Piecing and share your finished blocks with us!

Just to make life easier, here is a full-scale copy of the template:

English Paper Piecing - Jewel Star Pattern

Just print this baby out on card stock -- making sure that the printing size option in Adobe Reader is "ACTUAL SIZE." -- carefully cut it apart, and then go to town!  I'm hoping to have a tutorial posted some time in the next week, and have some other .pdf documents to share soon for mass production of the shapes.  Can't wait to see some more finished blocks!

Oh! Almost forgot - I'm linking up over at Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday.  So many great projects out there!