Road 66 - the second row

I had a lovely comment from Katie. She wrote "I noticed some half hexagons along the upper edge. I assume that the tails are left out as in diamond construction. But how do you keep the longer edge tucked under. Mine always wants to pop out. Is there a trick to this?" I was unable to email my answer because Katie is a no-reply blogger. This simply means her email address isn't linked to her blogger profile. For those of you who are new to blogging it also means that if you enter contests or giveaways by leaving a comment, you won't be entered because there is no way to contact you should you win. If you are looking to fix this there was an excellent tutorial on Quiltville's Quips & Snips. But I digress! Katie is asking about the construction of my Road 66 quilt which is named after the quilt in Di Ford's book Primarily Quilts.

The answer to Katie's question is that the tails are sticking out of the half hexagons (inside the red circles) for two reasons: the first is the shape of the paper and the second is to accommodate the border that will be added. The half hexagon has a "diamond" point and that is a sharp angle (30 degrees) and the tail is created because the point is narrower than the seam allowance This is not the case with a hexagon which is a 60 degree angle which is wider than the seam allowance. I could have basted my diamond and half hexagons so that all of the seam allowances are folded in such a way that there are no tails.

I wrote about that basting method here. The diamond would look like this from the right side. Notice there are no tails.

This is what it would look like from the wrong side. I generally use this method because it gives me a sharp point which makes joining the pieces much easier. Having to deal with that tail and move it out of the way is fiddly work so if the seam allowances are neatly folded in they aren't a problem.

However, I've left the tails when I prepped the diamonds and half hexagons of my Road 66 quilt because I want a straight outside edge on my quilt so that I can add two borders, one narrow and one wide. When I remove the papers and fold out the seam allowance I'll have a nice straight edge to which I can attach my borders. If the seam allowance are tuck away neatly on the wrong side as in the pictures above I run the risk of catching the edge of the fabric so that there is a little pucker and the seam allowance won't open properly.

So row 2 of my quilt is now stitched and ready to be added to row 1. Three more rows to go and I still have to make filler half hexagons for the top edge! Sew, sew, sew!

So one final comment: I reply to every comment left on my blog although as of late I've been slow in replying due to other commitments. However, if you don't hear back from me it means you are a no-reply blogger. Unless you update your profile or send me your email address I will have no way to contact you. Rest assured I do read and appreciate every comment left!

That is it for today; until I post again, happy sewing!
Karen H

Mixing browns for the border and some reader questions about English paper piecing

The Green Parrot hexagon quilt is coming along nicely. You may recall that I added the dark brown border to the sides of the middle section. If not, here it is.

The same dark brown will border the entire quilt however I didn't quite have enough fabric (I was 10" short) so what I did was cut all of the hexagons that I could with the fabric I had and divided them into two equal piles, one for the top section and the other for the bottom section. I placed the top section on the floor and started placing the dark brown hexagons working from the middle top out towards the corners. I also placed some on the sides working up towards the corners. When they were all positioned I counted the number of hexagons I needed for the corners and cut them out from the new dark brown fabric. I stitched all of the brown border hexagons together into one long noodle and attached it to the top section.

The browns are different but because they will be placed strategically it will appear as though the addition of this fabric was intentional rather than out of desperation!

I've also cut out the olive-brown hexagons for the next round and I've basted them, stitched them into a noodle and attached the noodle to the left side of the middle section. There is not as much as an ombre effect as I would have liked however the fabric is a repeat of what is already in the quilt and I like the way the border looks. The final round will be the pale green from the centre (or at least that is my plan at this moment in time but that could change)!

I had a lovely email from a reader who is going to start her first hexagon quilt and she wanted some guidance on English paper piecing. The first bit of advice I always offer is to start out by making one hexagon rosette. While you may like the look of hexagons and English paper piecing you may find that it isn't your cup of tea. Before you cut up a stack of fabric make sure that it is something you will enjoy.

I was asked about basting the hexagons. I prefer to baste from the back so that the thread does not pierce the paper. This allows me to use my papers multiple times. I published a little tutorial here. Basting from the back will feel awkward at first but stick with it. If you baste through the paper the basting thread must be removed but if you back baste the thread stays in. You just pop out the paper! One advantage of this method is that the seam allowances remain held down in place.

If you thread baste through the paper you don't need a lot of stitches. You will notice in the example at the top that there are four stitches (see picture on left) and one of those four is just an extra stitch to hold the basting in place before I clip the thread which does not get knotted at the end in this method.

If folding over the seam allowances is a challenge try finger pressing them over the paper before you start basting. Eventually you will find that this step is unnecessary because you will know that the edge is folded over right at the edge of the paper.

An alternative to thread basting is starch basting the seam allowances. There is an excellent tutorial on this method at Traditional Primitives. She uses freezer paper hexagons and once the seam allowances are starch basted she removes the hexagon and reuses it!

Starch basting method from Traditional Primitives

I was asked if I press the hexagons after they are basted and the answer is a big "no"! You may find that there are slight variances in the size of your hexagons. If there is a soft crease you can ease in the extra bit of hexagon but if there is a hard crease from pressing it makes easing very difficult. I find that I never have to press my hexagon quilts until I am ready to baste them for quilting. They are handled so much that the folded seam allowances are well pressed with my fingers.

That's it for today. If you will be in the Toronto area next weekend it is Quilts at the Creek and I'll be doing a trunk show Saturday and Sunday. It is always a great show and a beautiful venue!

Until I post again happy sewing.
Karen H

Basting "made fabric" hexagons and more red fillers

I showed you the filler pieces that I am making for the red border of my hexagon quilt Birds in the Loft. Angie asked if I had any tips for turning the seams over and stitching because she thought they might be tricky. They aren't!

I thought I would share with you how I baste these pieces step, by step. You will find the piecing instructions here. I shortened the stitch length on my machine and sewed the pieces together with a 1/4" seam allowance. I pressed the stitches to embed them in the fabric before I pressed the red fabric away from the yellow. This helps reduce bulk.

The excess fabric was trimmed leaving a generous seam allowance. I find that 3/8" works well but you can leave it even larger. A seam allowance of 1/4" or less is more challenging so go big. If it is too big you can always trim it down!

I like to start at the left hand corner of the made fabric. The first step is to fold over the seam 1 and then fold over seam 2.

I take two stitches to hold the fold. I fold over seam 3 being sure to tuck it under seam 2. I take one stitch to hold the fold.

I fold over seam 4 again tucking it under the previous seam. If you sweep the seam allowance up under seam three you will feel that it lays nice and flat. Take a stitch to hold the fold.

Fold over seam five again tucking it under the previous seam and take one stitch to hold the fold.

Fold over seam 6 tucking it under the previous seam. Take a stitch to hold the fold and the take three stitches to hold the last fold which is part of seam 6. There's no need to knot the thread; three stitches will hold just fine!

Here you can see the basted made fabric hexagon from the back and the front. I started sewing at the green circle and stopped at the red. Notice that there is no basting thread between these two points. The stitched in the corners that hold the folds are sufficient. When I am ready to remove the paper I just run my fingernail on the right side and push up gently so that the paper pops up. I then can slide it out through that little spot where there is no basting thread!

I've also updated my design sheet for Birds in the Loft so that you can see where I am going with my border design.

I'm now creating more "made fabric" hexagons for the rest of the border. They are slightly different from those shown above in that the yellow stripe cuts the hexagon in half. The process is the same: I sew a red to either side of a yellow strip using a 1/4" seam allowance. I press the seam to embed the stitches and then press the red away from the yellow.

I use my Elmers Washable Glue Stick to adhere the paper to the made fabric, trim the corners and then baste the hexagon.

I'm using all of the red scraps so some of the hexagons will be made with two reds. It will all work in the end!

For now I've got lots of sewing and basting to do. Once the hexagons are ready I will sew them into units that I will share will you when I reach that point!

Until I post again, happy sewing!
Karen H

More about basting hexagons and more about quilting Good Golly Miss Mollie

Chantal left a comment in which she asked if the basting method I wrote about yesterday would work with 2" hexagons. I think that it would provided that the seam allowances were turned and finger pressed before basting but I'm just guessing as I've never worked with 2" hexagons. What would work is Missie Carpenter's method which uses freezer paper and starch. You can read about it here. I've tried it and it works beautifully so be sure to check it out!

James P left a comment and asked "when you're turning over your fabric edge to baste, how can you tell you are against the paper piece? Using normal paper I would think it is too thin to feel an edge". I'm answering the question here because James is a no-reply blogger. I reply to every comment so if you don't hear from me that would be the reason. Now as for the paper I use regular 20lb bond printer paper and I can feel the edge. If I am unsure I will pinch the fabric between my fingers to press in the fold and then lift the seam allowance to ensure that the fold is against the paper. Sometimes however the weight or texture of the fabric is more challenging so what I'll do is finger press all of the seam allowances before I baste. This is what it looks like once it has been finger pressed.  The basting goes easily and smoothly when the fabric is prepared in this way.

When I finger press I work in a counter clockwise position. For demonstration purposes I`ve pressed the seam allowances with my Dritz Petite Press so that there will be a nice sharp fold for the pictures but it isn't necessary to do this - a good pinch with your fingers is sufficient. To start I fold down the top seam allowance and finger press.

Working counterclockwise I'll turn over the seam allowance to the left and I'll finger press.

It will look like the hexagon in FIG 1. I turn the seam allowance at the bottom left (FIG 2) and finger press. I repeat these steps as shown in FIG 3 and FIG 4. At this point there is only one seam allowance to turn.

I fold the last seam allowance tucking it under the top edge and finger press.

Eventually you will get to know the feel of the fabric against the paper and you'll likely just skip the finger pressing!

I continue to machine quilt Good Golly Miss Mollie (my version of the Godstone Grannies coverlet) on my domestic sewing machine. There have been several comments about the small feathers in the 3/4" hexagons. I find the smaller shapes less challenging than the larger feathers. Try drawing a perfect circle that is 8" in diameter. Tough, isn't it? Now try drawing a circle that is the size of a small coin. Much easier! A wobble in a big circle is much more noticeable than a wobble in a small circle whether it is drawn or quilted. When quilting small I don't have to reposition my hands when I'm in the middle of quilting a shape makes for smoother quilting lines. Enough about this - how about some of the quilting in the hexagons?

I filled the following block with feathers, figure 8s, melon wedges and teardrops. To quilt the feathers in the pale yellow and those above and below the centre cross I drew lines for the spine.

In the following picture you can see a teardrop, melon wedges, figure 8 quilting and the feathers. The lines I drew for the spine have not yet been removed.

I prefer not to do any marking so I gave some thought to quilting designs that would not require marking. If the spine of the feather was going to be straight I would need a line but if I went for a curvy spine I could use the shape of my hexagons as a guide. So I quilted a curvy spine in the white round of hexagons and added the feathers. I start at the top of the spine and quilt down to the base. When I get to the base I quilted the plumes all the way back to the top. When I get there I come back down parallel to the spine to create a vein. I think it adds depth and dimension. I then started again at the top and quilted the feathers on the opposite side.

Here is a close-up of how I filled the centre four hexagons! I really like the texture that is created with this simple motif!

I used this same approach to quilt the odd shape in the taupe hexagons in this block.

Here's another example of an odd shape filled with feathers. I didn't quilt the other side of the spine and I think that it is needed so I will go back and add it to the quilting.

Phew! Lots of words and lots of pictures. Time for me to do some sewing so until I post again, happy sewing!

Karen H

Basting hexagons from the back and removing papers

One of the quilt makers who is working on the Value Proposition Hexagon Quilt Along asked a question about basting hexagons. She noticed that sometimes threads appear on the front of the hexagon and sometimes they don't and wondered why this is so. There are two methods of basting hexagons. I mentioned this in my August 4, 2014 post and offered to do a tutorial.

In the upper set of hexagons in the picture below the fabric is basted to the paper so the threads show on the right side of the hexagon. In the second set of hexagons the basting is only through the fabric so no thread shows on the front.

I use both methods and like them for different reasons. When the basting goes through the paper I know that there is a paper in the quilt top if I see thread on the right side of the quilt and this is important because if you don't get the papers out you may find a paper stuck in the quilt when quilting time arrives! I like the other method where the basting does not touch the paper so they aren't damaged which means I can get multiple uses out of each paper. In addition the basting stays in the quilt and holds the seam allowances down. This can be important if the quilt top is going to be handled a great deal as it is stitched together.

I had offered to do a quick tutorial on basting so that the threads don't show on the front and today is the day I deliver that tutorial! To start I like to use a tiny dab of glue to tack my paper hexagon to my fabric. I don't worry about precise seam allowances. As long as it is 1/4" or more I'll be fine. To begin I fold over the top seam allowance and then I fold over the left seam allowance. With a knotted thread I place my needle through the fabric to the right of the fold and come up on the other side of the fold. I take a one more stitch so that the fold is tacked down.

I turn the hexagon counterclockwise, fold over the next seam allowance and tuck it under. I take a stitch as indicated in the following picture.

I draw up my thread and the fold will be tacked down.

I turn the hexagon counterclockwise, fold the seam allowance, tuck it under and take a stitch to hold the fold down.

I continue in this manner until I get to the last seam allowance. I fold it, tuck it under and take a stitch to hold the fold down.

I take two more stitches in the same place and clip my thread. Notice that the edge on the top right doesn't have thread that carries over to the beginning point. I like to leave it this way because it makes the removal of paper much easier.

HELPFUL TIP #1: The basting thread will remain in the quilt so if you are basting a light colour fabric it would be a good idea to use a light colour thread.

HELPFUL TIP #2: I like to use inexpensive serger thread for basting. I can get giant cones for only a dollar or two and they last for a very long time!

When I use this method of basting the papers can be removed at any point however I prefer to leave them in place until the hexagon is completely surrounded by hexagons. In the picture below you can see that the yellow hexagon is entirely surrounded by hexagons.  I use a crochet hook to remove the paper.You can see the tip of the crochet hook on the right just between the start and stop points of the basting.

I slide the crochet hook between the paper and the fabric at the edge that is between the starting point of my basting and the finishing point. I lift the hook and the paper is released. I can now grab the paper with my fingers and pull it out.

The paper is starting to get a little ratty  so it might just have reached its life expectancy although I think I might be able to squeeze just one more use out of it! It has already been used a few times so it really doesn't ow me anything!

I hope this tutorial has been helpful and informative! Until I post again, happy basting!
Karen H

Reader questions about making 81

There have been several questions about how I made my quilt 81 The Giant Monstrosity. Some were from no-reply bloggers which means I can't reply to the comment or question. I reply to every comment so if you don't hear from me it means you are a no-reply blogger and I have no way to contact you unless you provide me with your email address. Anyhoooo, I thought I would answer the questions here!

Where did I get the pattern for 81 The Giant Monstrosity?
I made my own pattern. I saw pictures of the original quilt  (below) which was made in the 1800s. I fell in love with it (what lover of hexagons wouldn't) and I drafted my own pattern. This is the original quilt.

This is my version before I added my final diamond border. I made mine in brighter colours. The grey fabric in the centre panel is different from the grey in the border and that's just fine.

I started with the centre panel for my quilt. It is a single piece of fabric with 81 hexagon rosettes and stars. I determined the measurements for the borders as I went along. I did make some changes to my version of the quilt. For example I swapped out the pieced blocks in the corners for appliqued baskets and I added a slightly different diamond border. While I drafted my own pattern there is a commercial pattern available for this quilt from Threadbear. The Threadbear pattern is by Corliss Searcey and her version of the quilt measures 72" x 82". My quilt measures 92" by 97". I believe the title of her pattern is English Basket Quilt.

What size are the hexagons and diamonds?
I used 3/4" hexagons. You will find the template I used for my hexagons here. Each side of the diamond measures 1 1/4". I drafted my own diamond master template, made copies and cut them up as I needed them. I explained how I draft them here.

Are the hexagon rosettes and stars appliqued?
Yes. After the stars and rosettes were stitched I gave them a spritz of starch and pressed with a hot dry iron. The basting threads and papers were removed and I used Roxanne Glue-Baste-It to affix them to the background for applique.

When I thread baste my diamonds I do the corners a little differently. The method I use results in diamonds that look like the diamond on the left in this picture. You can read how I do this here. I makes the applique much easier because there are no dog ears to be tucked in!

What kind of paper do I use for the hexagons?
I just use regular 20lb bond printer paper and don't seem to have problems. You can get printer paper that is a little heavier but not quite as heavy as cardstock and that might be a better option for you or you can use cardstock. I use a glue stick to tack my papers to my fabric (a tiny dab of glue is applied to the paper never the fabric) and I use only enough glue to hold the paper in place on the fabric so when it comes time to remove the paper the bond is very weak and in most instances the paper just pops out. If you prefer not to use a glue stick another option (which I've used for 1/2" hexagons) is to use applique pins. They are very tiny and unobtrusive so your thread won't get tangled around them when you baste.

Are the papers reusable?

Sometimes. If the paper is in good shape I will reuse it. Otherwise it goes in the recycling box. In order to be reusable I want nice sharp corners so if the paper is chewed up at the corners I get rid of it!

What basting method do I use?

In the past I basted through the fabric (the brown hexagons in the picture below) and will continue to do so when making my foundation paper pieced English paper piecing hexagons. However when as of late I've been basting only the fabric at each corner fold without piercing the paper (the turquoise hexagons in the picture below). With this method the basting thread remains in the quilt and the papers just pop out quite easily. The bonus is that the papers remain relatively intact which means most of them can be reused. Let me know if you would like a little tutorial!

There is an alternative to thread basting and it involves the use of starch and freezer paper. Missie of Traditional Primitives explained her method and you can read about it here. I've tried this method and it works really well. There are no threads or papers to removed however you will need a little iron such as Clover's Mini Iron or Dritz's Petite Press for this method.

If you have questions about the making of 81 please feel free to send me an email or leave me a comment and I'll be more than happy to reply. It's time for me to get back to quilting 81. Until I post again, happy sewing!
Karen H