Maren’s quilt top is finished

I will be taking it to the US with me on the 21st of  September when my daughter and I go up for the quilt show in Jacksonville, Florida – I am entering my batik hexagon quilt. While we are there I will mail it to my quilter Jackie.

I had planned on using the same pink batik for the backing – but it is a brighter pink than I thought it would be (I ordered it online from Jackie’s store.) I love it for the borders but that is quite enough pink for one quilt!  I am not sure what I am going to do – but I will probably pick a backing fabric from Jackie’s store and she will keep it up there in Connecticut until the top arrives.

It turned out to be 50 inches square – I think that’s a nice size :-)

Eighteen Alabama Beauty blocks

Nine more blocks finished – now to sew them together in a group of nine.

I am very pleased with the way they are turning out. The red “butterflies” are prominent – which I had planned on – but you never know with these Kaffe fabrics – often what I have in mind doesn’t always work out. The yellow/orange print backgrounds are forming the secondary  circles quite nicely – I really wasn’t sure they would

Without sashing

I’ve finished unpicking the sashing and the blocks are ironed. Today I will start putting them together. The original quilt didn’t have sashing – that was my idea – I thought it would look more feminine with the white. The secondary x’s formed when the edges of the blocks meet really change the look. I am very happy with it now.

Yesterday I ordered a beautiful pink batik from my quilter Jackie’s online store for the border and the backing. I auditioned a bunch of fabric for the backing – thinking I wanted a pastel floral – but I decided to just use the same fabric for both since there is so much going on in the quilt.

With and without the sashing

I’m not happy with the sashing. Damnit! OK – where’s my seam ripper?

I’ll just order a nice pink batik for the border and a pastel floral for the backing.

It’s much funkier looking without the sashing. Funky is good. Maren – the recipient of the quilt is certainly funky! And – it looks like she likes pink.

Twenty five x and + blocks

My friend Carol thought that I was not going to like the 4 blocks by 6 blocks size. And she’s right! It’s too long – so I’m back to my favorite square format. The turquoise one I didn’t like is in the middle – bottom row – it’s not too bad – what do you think?

As always I’m open to suggestions – this is still in the moving around stage – I need to live with it awhile (and consider your suggestions) before I start joining them.

I should start cutting some 2 inch by 5 inch strips for the piano keys border and the white damask strips for the sashing. A perfect time to use my Alto’s Quilt Cut 2.

Border fabrics for x and + quilt

And I haven’t even pulled the non Kaffe stripes and batiks!

Last five x and + blocks

I’ve been thinking about eliminating one and making it a rectangle – 4 across and 6 down. I don’t like the third one down – the turquoise is too bright – it jumps out at me – it’s the first one I look at – it has got to go!

Now on to the sashing. I have several ideas for the borders – all involving lots of fabric – darn – I wish I hadn’t put away the 175 fabrics I used in the blocks – now I’ve got to track them all down for the scrappy border!

Five more x and + blocks

#16 to #20. Only 5 more to go.

This is a rectangle – but the last 5 blocks will make it a square. I have to take down my 100 octagons from the design wall to make room for the 25 + and x blocks plus the sashing.

Still pondering the border and binding. The borders are my least favorite part of the quilt making process. A border can make or break a quilt – and I agonize over it more than any other step.

In picture framing I tend to be very conservative – I believe a mat and frame should never steal the focus from the picture/painting. Fancy pieced borders are very pretty and are perfect for some quilts – but mine are so busy and colorful I think the borders should be plain and simple.

The sashing is going to be one and a half inch white floral damask (the little squares in the blocks are one and a half inches.) Maybe a piano keys border using all of the prints and batiks I used in the blocks. That way I wouldn’t have to order fabric from the States. I’m sure I could dredge up something for the binding.

Four more x and + blocks

Numbers 12 – 15. Ten more to go!

Japanese x and + blocks # 6, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11

The remaining 14 blocks are finished up to this point – so they should go together quite quickly. Although getting the eight points to match up perfectly is NOT easy. I have taken quite a few apart which slows me down – but I’m not in a race to finish – so I don’t mind. I just want it to be right.