I’m having so much fun with this HQAL (Hand Quilt-A-Long). My chosen project is a Grandmother’s Flower Garden. I love the simplicity of the pattern and as it is my first EPP project, it’s perfect. This month I finished two of the flowers. One of them has pieced hexis:
I’m actually becoming a little addicted to these.
They are very fun to do even if they are a little fiddly. You can see that all of my points do not match exactly. I am hoping in time and with practice that part will improve. I also made a flower with non-pieced hexis:
After working with all those little pieces, this one seemed like a breeze and to almost sew itself!
I’m working my way through The New Hexagon book by Katja Marek. The link takes you to Amazon but I purchased this book along with a couple of others at a quilt show. I’m sure I paid more, but it was so much fun to go to the show and talk with the vendors and see all the fun, cool stuff that it was worth it! This is the second pieced hexi in the book. It’s called Carol and I found this one to be easier to put together than the first one. I thought it would be interesting to show the way I’m doing this (maybe there’s an easier way?). First I copy the pattern and then, since the hexis in the book are 3″ and mine are 1.5″, I make another copy at 50%. Whew!! Thank goodness that math is easy!
Then I trace the pattern pieces onto pattern paper with space between them. After that I use a sharpie and trace on each piece of the hexi through the pattern paper onto the card stock (or old manila folders. We have boxes of used ones from my father-in-law) the desired number of times. In this case I needed six hexis so I traced each piece six times and cut them out. Then I chose my fabrics and away I went!
Right now I working on another non-pieced flower, but I think the next one will be the third pieced hexi from the book. They really are so much fun! If you’d like to join in, the details are below and please take a look at all the other talented hand quilters who are participating.
Hand Quilt Along Links
This Hand Quilt Along is an opportunity for hand quilters and piecers to share and motivate one another. We post every three weeks, to show our progress and encourage one another. If you have a hand quilting project and would like to join our group contact Kathy at the link below.
Kathy, Lori, Margaret, Kerry, Emma, Tracy, Deb, Connie, Susan, Nanette, Sassy , Edith, Sharon, Karrin, and Gretchen
I am also linking up with Kathy over at Kathy’s Quilts for Slow Stitch Sundays and Kate at Life in Pieces for 15 mins a day of stitching.
I have stitched every single day this week – so 7 out of 7 days!! It’s so funny, not that long ago I was berating myself for not finding the time to stitch. Now that I have this goal of “only 15 mins per day”, somehow I manage to stitch. And not just for 15 minutes – I’m getting in about 45 mins to an hour in the morning before anyone gets up and during two shows on TV (my husband likes to watch his shows at night) in the evening. It’s really been nice!
