In a traditional log cabin block there is a red center which in this case is a dark fabric. That means the first two strips that are added should be light, then 2 darks, 2 lights, etc. until you have the same number of logs on all sizes. Having made about 30 log cabin quilts over the years and teaching it many times I know that you get the best layouts with the last 2 strips being dark.
Several people mentioned they wanted to know more about that and I felt I needed an example so I had to wait until I had more blocks sewn. The main design is usually the dark fabrics. In the layout on the left, I stopped with the last 2 strips being light. The star is disjointed with 4 floating bow ties and a diamond in the center surrounded with a white border. The path represented by the column on the left is also not joined at the center so it will be floating diagonals. On the right, I ended with dark as the last 2 strips and the star is joined together and easier to read as a star. There are other layouts in which this would be even more pronounced and I know this because when watching the students try different layouts, the ones that ended in 2 light strips had a limited number of layouts that worked. Personal preference will prevail however so if you don't agree with me it's OK.
