Tag Archives: hexagons

Grandmother’s flower garden doll quilt update

It’s three weeks since I wrote about the Grandmother’s Flower Garden doll quilt I’ve been working on. You may remember I asked for some advice as I’d got to a mini crisis point. I loved reading everyone’s suggestions so I thought I’d share a little update.

I was lucky enough to find a remnant of the green material I was using for the flower border which made things much easier. My first step was to square off each end with half flowers as someone suggested so the whole shape was rectangular.

Then my problems started again! I realised it was too narrow to actually fit the dolls bed I was making it for so I added an extra row along the long side.

Then I somehow noticed how nice the corners looked rounded so started to add hexies to one end to try and make four rounded corners before realising that I was just over extending the quilt and needed to stop! I wanted to photograph it now in the hope it will spur me on to finish it.

 

Grandmother’s Flower Garden

Each little hexie measures 2cm across so the current version is approximately 50x32cm. It fits inside the dolls bed so I’m thinking of adding one more row of flowers to the long side and finishing off the short sides (whilst trying to not make it any longer).

pretty patchwork fabric

I have some dark brown flecked fabric to add a row of hexies around the outside, someone suggested this would be reminiscent of a flower bed around the lawn). I’ve also purchased some light brown patterned fabric for the back and I thought I would hand-tie the quilt through the centre of each hexie flower to tie the layers together.

That’s my plan. Our house move may disrupt my attempts to finish it off  in the next week or two but I will complete it.

Lining up with Handmade Monday

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Grandmother’s Flower Garden doll quilt

I’ve been really lucky to attend both the Spring Knitting & Stitching Show as well as the Spring Country Living Fair in the last week. There was so much lovely inspiration and a fair few fabric purchases too. Lately I’ve been spending my precious free time making hexagons the EPP way. I just love the whole process, from making paper templates, to choosing fabrics and basting my hexagons. Somehow I’ve ended up with 4 patchwork projects on the go, all in various stages of completion.

patchwork pieces

My current favourite is my doll size version of a Grandmother’s Flower Garden quilt. A while ago I found a wooden doll bed in a charity shop and I’ve been busy making quilts and blankets for Little Sis (and the toddler) to play with. Grandmother’s Flower Garden is a really pretty pattern and it came together really easily, until I ran out of the green I was using. Silly me had only bought a fat quarter from a fabric shop miles away.

grandmothers flower garden

So now I’m in a dilemma and hoping someone can help. How do I finish it off?

I want it to be rectangular in size with a bound edge but do I fill in the gaps with hexagons in a different shade of green? Or go for a different colour? Any advice happily received :)

Linking up with handmade monday

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Rainbow hexies for a small person

I wanted to make a simple comforter for Little Sis and it has taken me a couple of weeks but I’ve done it! It took me a while to increase my fabric stash as when I went to pick out some rainbow fabrics I realised I had lots of prints and patterns but hardly any block colours, not that I ever need an excuse to buy more fabrics!

I love my English Paper Piecing and stuck to the traditional method – cutting out paper templates and making up hexies in the colours of the rainbow. Then I added a couple of extra colours in, just because.

english paper piecing

The finished comforter is made of 12 rows of 10 hexies, starting with red and going through to black. It’s backed with a really soft cotton from a vintage baby blanket found on a recent charity shop trip. I wanted it to be as soft as possible as my daughter loves to cover her face and hold something when she sleeps.

english_paper_piecing

I’ve really enjoyed stitching it together whilst watching the Olympics and I finished it whilst cheering on Tom Daley in the diving over the weekend.

EPP

To me the reverse is as interesting as the front. It was so enjoyable pulling out those basting stitches an pieces of paper. Rather than applique the finished hexagon front to the backing fabric I decided to sew around the edge of the completed piece which gives it a more interesting look but was quite time consuming.

And here is the little lady herself, snoozing with her snuggly, the only opinion that really matters.

 

Linking up with Craft Schooling Sunday, creative me and handmade monday

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