The small areas between the sashings are called posts. They can be squares or rectangles. Posts might be cut from the same fabric or all different fabrics. Often they are used to produce a secondary design OR to unify different blocks in a quilt.
In the pink quilt above, the blue and yellow squares are the posts. The sashing is white and blends in with the background allowing the pink stars to stand out. In the basket quilt below, the pink posts stand out more than the baskets blocks.
Posts can also be “decorated”. In the basket quilt below, the gold center posts have triangles added to form a star. In the “Eye Spy” quilt, the posts are surrounded by the white sashing fabric to make them stand out.
