Key ring

I experimented with makinf a few key rings this week. A while ago I made two of the rectangular wristlet type, using the hardware from Dritz, 

I used some ribbon that I had on hand that was an inch wide, just the right size to fit the clamp.

I also had some narrower ribbon and some large split rings on hand, 

so I made this other style...

the. decorative part is made from two layers of felt, with a fabric hexagon topstitched on to one of the layers of felt, (before it is assembled)

This shows how I made the connector part, 

I just topstitched the ribbon on to some wool felt, trimmed it so that the edges were neat, and then folded it around a ring and stitched throught the layers close to the metal.

the two on the left I used for the key rings below, and the one with the longer ribbon part I just left as is.

I finished them off with some simple embroidered embellishments.  I made some others that aren't embroidered yet, but they are nice to work on in the evening while we are watching t.v.-- currently we are going through the British series, Inspector Lewis.

I guess that I will be ready for Christmas with a bunch of stocking stuffers on hand.

Progress with the EPP

As the title today declares, I am making some progress with my English Paper Piecing project from the book The New Hexagon, by Katja Marek.   So far I have stitched up twelve little blocks:

there is quite a range in terms of different combinations of fabrics and shapes from one block to another,  although I can see which colours seem to be my favorites.

I am Still pondering what to do with them

Right now they are like little jewels...

I have also been thinking about whether there might be interest in forming a paper piecing club/club in the new year.   it would be something like a once/ month time... any suggestions or feedback?  

Machine Pieced Hexagons

This is Tuesday, and I am procrastinating.  I am late on writing the block pattern for Saturday's pick-up block, but am finding so many reasons to put off writing it.  I know it has to get done sometime today so that we can cut it tomorrow and have it ready, but these hexagons keep calling my name!!!!!

They are from a new line by Basic Grey called Persimmon.   I like the mix or coral, yellow and blue. 

So far I've cut out 53 hexagons, and a stack of white triangles,   I think I'll set the hexagons with the points running vertically rather than horizontally, because you could do either way,

It's a very basic setting, but I've been wanting to sew a quilt like this for a while now,

Do you remember when I did a series of four posts about using the Hex n More ruler?(If not, I will put the links below....)  well, this is another pattern you can use the ruler for.  I am making my hexagons pretty big---- they are cut from 8-1/2" strips, and the white triangles are from 4-1/2" strips, (with the top tip of the triangle cut off)
You can make this pattern with any size of hexagons...or you can piece some of the hexagons to mix in, like in this pattern by Thimbleblossoms, where some of the hexagons are pieced strips.  I think the hexagons in this pattern are from 6 or 6-1/2" strips,

If you are wanting to learn how to machine piece hexagons, we have an all-day class this Friday with Sandy!  This is the description....

  Machine Pieced Hexagons: the Hex n More Ruler
 Hexagons have been around for a while, but they are enjoying a revival with the modern quilt movement.  Julie Herman from Jaybird Quilts has really opened up the options with this wonderful shape with her Hex n More ruler. 
A hexagon has 6 sides so we sometimes use other shapes with it such as 60 degree triangles, trapezoids or kites to get the design we want or to make piecing easier.  These can also be cut from this ruler.
Featured projects are all by Jaybird Designs.  There is a wonderful selection.  You might choose a small project like Jawbreaker or Candy Dish, which make 20" and 16" cushions or table toppers.  You might want to try one of the lap sized patterns like Delight, Lotus, or Disco. 
Many of these patterns use large shapes which sew up quickly and make great use of some of those fun prints. 
Fabric requirements will be what are stated on your pattern.  Some patterns will use Fqs or 10" squares.  You might even get to use 2-1/2" strips. 
As well as your regular sewing supplies, you will need one of the patterns and a Hex n more ruler.  You can bring your own machine, or use one of the shop machines.  
    Friday, Oct 3, 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. 6 hour class, Instructor is Sandy, $45.00
    call the shop to register --- 933-3072

To see the previous posts on the Hex n More ruler....

part 1, hexagons offset with triangles
part 2, hexagons from strips
part 3, large pieced hexagons
part 4 to make the honeycomb pattern,

well, I guess now I will either go so some triangles to my hexagons, or write that pattern for block 3,

progress on Hexies

I've been working on this project on and off for a year or two.  It is done with English paper piecing.  

lots of bright colors set of with black and white

And having just spent a few days up at the lake with no Wi-Fi, I finished piecing the central unit. Hurray,  i even had some prepared hexies to use for something else...

I'd initially planned for the diamond shapes to run vertically, and to add a pieced panel above and below them. However I'm not that excited about the project to commit to all that work

Instead I've decided that the big diamonds will go from side to side

So I appliquéd the whole thing down onto some black borders. I suppose I have to figure out what to do next whether to add some bright borders or to quilt it as is,   

 Any ideas?

Block 8 whirligig

This is block eight of the sticks and stones color way of our Saturday surprise Sampler program. It is called Whirligig:

I mentioned yesterday that I was doing some backstitching on the cotton linen blend that is new at the stoRe.  I  Did make some hexagon frames for the two birds that I stitched.  now I need to decide which background to use, the gray or the blue. Right now I am prewashing them to see what they look like washed.   I backstitch around the edges so they won't fray in the wash.

I was sorry that I had to cover up a little bit of the owls tail. I suppose I should have made the frame first and then made the stitching to fit within it.  Oh well, I'll know for next time.

the Hex N More Ruler, part 4!

This is the fourth sample that I made using the Hex N More ruler.  (I will never forget what this ruler is called, because I have now typed it so many times!)

 Today I will describe how to make the honeycomb looking one.

 This is made from one repeated shape, a half-hexagon.

As in my other samples, I used 2-1/2" strips from which to cut my shapes.
Cut them in pairs, because you need two of the same fabric sewn next to each other to obtain the honeycomb effect.

 Lay out pairs of half hexagons to get the honeycomb effect.  This is the time when you can play around with color placement. 

 When you are happy with how the hexagons are placed, fill in the empty spaces on the edges with single half-hexagons:

 I sewed one column of pieces at a time!  This is something that you don't want to get jumbled up by trying to keep track of too many pieces at once.  Trust me on this.

 When pressing these columns, I alternated the direction that the seams go.  (up, down, up, down)

 Sew the columns together.  The seams should nestle together nicely when you"re sewing,

And that is what I have tried doing so far with this ruler.  I really do like it, I think it really makes cutting a breeze.  Also, I got lots of ideas for things to make with it while I was using it.  But, it is nice to test it out using samples in order to get the hang of it. 

By the way, a couple of years ago I could really have used it when I made this Half-Hexagon quilt. 

Man

I did it the hard way by figuring out the template on paper.  Also, when using paper templates you have to be pretty careful when you're cutting so that you don't make the template smaller as you cut...
This is a "low-volume" quilt, or a "blended" quilt, where the fabrics are not too far different in the range of value from light to dark.

Hex N More Ruler, part 2

Yesterday I posted about the first sample that I made with this ruler,

 The next thing that I tried was the pieced hexagon,

To make this shape, you need to cut 6 half-hexagon shapes and 6 triangles.

Again, I used 2-1/2" strips.  I cut the half hexagons using the 4-1/2" lines, deciding to make them all the same fabric.
For the center, I cut the 2-1/2" triangles: three of green and three of red:

 Sew the triangles to the top edge of the half hexagons, centering them so that the little triangles that stick out are equal in size. (see the green ones) or, you could use the cut off corner to help in placement ( see the red ones).

 I pressed the green seams one direction and the red ones the other direction, so that they would make less bulky intersections. 

 Sew them in sets of three,

 then sew the two sides of the hexagon together.

I must say, that was pretty easy. 

the Hex N More Ruler

Lately it seems that quilts using hexagons and equilateral triangles are very popular.  In the past I have made one or two projects with hexagons, but I always used templates to cut out the pieces, not a special ruler.
So, I decided to try out the Hex N More ruler by Jaybird Quilts to see if it made it easier to do.  The quick answer is yes, it does.  Not a big surprise, but it also seems to encourage a lot of new ideas for quilts!

   I decided to make some samples to show some of the types of designs that the ruler is used for.
I cut most of the pieces for the samples from 2-1/2" strips.  for the larger pieces, I had some co-ordinating fabric scraps from a previous project.
 I made 4 samples, and I think I will go through them step by step over 4 posts so that it is not so overwhelming for me to write.

First, though, this is the ruler:

 It comes with a sheep of instructions for how to cut the various shaped pieces.  You can cut from 4 different sizes.   I went with the size that was compatible with 2-1/2" strips.

Sample One;  Hexagons offset with triangles

 to do this, you need to cut two shapes: a large hexagon and small triangles

I started with the small triangles, because of the 2-1/2" strips, this is pretty easy. 
The ruler has the tip of the triangle removed so that cutting is standardized for strips that are a multiple of half inches instead of some strange measurement.  Also, it provides a guide to how to place the pieces for sewing -- more about that later. 
The hexagon size that co-ordinates with the 2-1/2" triangles is the 4-1/2" size. 
You cut the hexagons from a 4-1/2" strip.
Cut one side of the hexagon, flip the strip over and cut the other side.

 Sewing: 
The triangles will be sewn on two opposing edges of the hexagons.  You can line up the little cut off end of the triangle with the side of the hexagon, or you can just center the triangle on the edge. 

 here they are pressed, and they are now diamond shaped,

 then you just sew them together into a row, again, just being watchful where the intersections are

If you were making a quilt, you would make several rows, and sew them together, with the diamonds on the top and bottom of the hexagons.  This sort of piece would also make a nice border.

that's the first sample I made with the ruler,