10 June, 2018

Sew Berry Sweet

I had amassed a nice collection of various hexagons following our last block-of-the-month series. I knew how I wanted to set them together, and yet, they languished on the design wall. I had a stretch of a few days last week with nothing else on the calendar and began the process. I was excited about the prospects of this becoming a flimsy. 
Row by row I worked, since each block had been cut precisely using the Hex n More and the Sidekick rulers they fit together perfectly. I was on a roll. All of a sudden my roll was slowed; no, stalled... no, stopped altogether! This was my roadblock:
Where every other block measured 8.5", unfinished, this one measured a full 9"! What? How did this happen? I considered leaving it out and substituting another block. No, I loved this one just too much! I was stymied, where did I go wrong? I was left with no alternative but to take it apart, each segment of eight pieces each, and try to pinpoint my error. It didn't take long. 
My seam ripper got a workout. My Mom had gifted me with this a couple of months ago, a Clover retractable seam ripper.  She was cleaning out her sewing room and I became the lucky beneficiary of some really excellent notions. This little seam ripper worked extremely well, I highly recommend it, it fits nicely in the hand and has a sharp blade and won't poke when stashed in my portable sewing kit. Score!

So, here was the problem. I had completed each of the six triangle units but had failed to trim them down to size before assembling them into the block! Groan. I had been in too much of a hurry. See that little pile of trimmings above... something so small and seemingly insignificant was standing in my way! Once I got the problem identified and rectified it was full steam ahead! So, lesson learned. I know better.
One more product recommendation: (also a gift from my Mom) the Gypsy Pin Pal. It is adjustable to fit any wrist, it contains magnets and hold pins securely as I remove them when I stitch. This saves me numerous trips back and forth to my pin cushions or, even better, from retrieving dropped pins off the floor around the sewing chair. I love this clever invention. (I only recommend what works for me and am not promoting or receiving compensation!) If you are like me and have piles of pins placed on the flat surface around your sewing area after every row that's sewn you might want to look into this notion. It has not only made my life easier but my sewing space tidier-- win, win!
Speaking of the sewing chair-- look who waits for me between each trip to the ironing board as I attached the rows. My furry little companion. I sit on the front part of the chair, there's room for both of us!
"Sew Berry Sweet" ~ 76" X 76"
And finally, at long last, a flimsy. I had two yards of Cherrywood in a dark navy blue for the six inch outer borders all around to complete. Once I got that strawberry block fixed it was smooth sailing the rest of the way. I won't ever look at this quilt again without remembering. That pretty little strawberry block makes this almost-finish that much sweeter now, and contributed to this beauty's name!
Life is Good!

7 comments:

cityquilter grace said...

love that pin pal...just right for a friend's birthday! beautiful hexagons and worth the time to fix...

AnnieO said...

It’s a beauty! Glad only one block was recalcitrant :). The retractable seam ripper sounds great. I’m so used to using my pin cushion automatically without looking that it would take more brain cells to use my wrist, lol.

Quiltdivajulie said...

Been there and done that (not with the type block you have but with the one untrimmed block that somehow was missed). Lovely finish!!

Janet O. said...

I appreciate it when you share the tools that work for you. I have learned much from your experiences.
That is a really "sparkly" quilt. So many of the blocks look like a kaleidoscope view. Glad you were able to remedy the oversized block.

Shelina (formerly known as Shasta) said...

Oh what a beautiful quilt. Of course you had to keep the strawberry block. I am glad you figured out how to fix it easily. I have those rulers, still waiting to dwindle down the list before starting a hexi quilt.

Tanya said...

You definitely had to use that hexagon block with the strawberries! From The Strawberry Patch blog MUST have strawberries! (And such a beautiful block!)

KaHolly said...

Oh, my goodness! Such Quilty eye candy! I’ve missed a lot in my absence! I need to crawl out from under my rock more often! XO