Two Gardens of a King blocks and quilting hexagons

I've completed two more test blocks for Missie's Gardens of  a King quilt which was inspired by the King George coverlet.  This is the original quilt' Missie's quilt is a smaller less complicated reinterpretation of the quilt. There are literally hundreds of little pieced circular blocks in the original and to think that the maker did this without access to modern fabrics, notions and tools!

The two blocks I'll share today are identical in design however the colours and orientation (direction) have been changed and the result is two blocks that look different! I fussy cut the brown diamonds and the red print triangles for some extra visual interest in the following block but it would have been just as interesting without the fussy cuts.

Once again I fussy cut the brown diamonds for the second block but that was it! I am very pleased with how this block turned out!

All of the blocks were made using Missie's English paper piecing with starch method. The pieces are cut out and prepped with starch and a small Clover iron. I've been using my Dritz Petite Press and it works really well. To learn the basics of this technique you will find a little tutorial here. The following picture is a look at some of the pieces Missie has prepped for sewing.

Missie's pattern for Gardens of a King will be available in the near future. She also offers a brand of freezer paper that she swears by, C. Jenkins Freezer Paper. I was skeptical but thought I would give it a try.

In the past I've just used Reyonds Freezer Paper that I bought at the grocery store and while it works the Jenkins paper is head and shoulders above in weight, quality and performance. The templates made from the Jenkins paper are sturdy and reusable. I think I'll return my Reynolds Freezer Paper to the kitchen and just use it as it was intended in the kitchen. The Jenkins paper will be my paper of choice for sewing!

I written several posts about quilting hexagons and Angie used some of the ideas to quilt her hexagon quilt. I think it looks amazing from the back and front! This is the back. Isn't it fabulous? I love a light backing to show off the beautiful machine quilting!

If you want to see Angie's hexagon quilt from the front you can see it and read about it here! Speaking of hexagons can you believe that Friday I will publish the pattern for Block 13 in my Value Proposition Hexagon Quilt Along? I hope you'll enjoy it as much as the others. I've got all of my blocks sewn together and have found a fabric that I think I'll use for the border. I'll write about it in an upcoming post!

Until I post again, happy sewing!
Karen H