On My Design Wall... Last week....

I started this post to publish last week. . . then I got sidetracked with finishing this flimsy. . . then our internet went down. . . after a trip to the store, a new modem and a few choice words it is back up. The flimsy is finished and can be seen here. As promised, a post flimsy finish break down of how  the blocks came together!

I am obsessed. I have to get all of those items checked off my Q3 FAL list! I am seeing the ingeniousness of setting goals and publishing them for the whole world to see! I have three down, four to go. . . now I know one of those is going to roll over, even said that in the post but I'm starting to think that the first six might actually get finished!

This is a process post, not a finish post. I spent hours, no days really, looking at the Doe fat quarter bundle I have for Jason's quilt (#6 on my list). When this line came out, I had to have it. I even pre-ordered it! I have never done that before. . . and I waited. And Waited. And finally I got it in my hot little hands. . . immediately pulled the bundle apart and inspected every piece. . . and I did not like it. Really did not like it. And I was sad. Don't hate on me. I know this is not a popular stance and that much love has been shown all over the internet for this line. I just was not feeling it. So I put it in a drawer. . . True. Didn't even put on my fabric shelves. I kinda didn't want to look at it. Every now and again I would pull it out and look at it again. And put it back in the drawer. And wonder if I would ever use it.The thing is, it is perfect for a masculine quilt. So I bit the bullet and started searching for the perfect pattern.

That process took awhile. . . then I saw this post from Cindy over at Hyacinth Quilt Designs. I had saved it in my Bloglovin feed. Oh yeah! Cindy's blocks were made with 3.5" x 6.5" rectangles for the print, 3.5" squares for the background and 1" x 3.5" rectangles for the middle strip. The finished block is 6.5" x 7". You know me and 'small' blocks. . . I made a test block using 4.5" x 8.5" rectangles, 4.5" squares for the background and 1" x 4.5" rectangles for the middle strip. That worked out well:

I have NO idea why this picture decided to upload horizontal.... Yup, four bonus HSTs for every block... Umm, that's a LOT of HSTs!

Then I decided that the best use of the FQ was to do 5" x 10" rectangles, 5" squares and 1" x 5" rectangles for the middle strip. Those of you math geniuses out there know this is a recipe for a block that is not going to work out so well. . . the middle strip was not long enough. . . I should have put a little more thought into that huh? BUT not only was it not long enough, I could see if I made the background strip and the print strip the same length, it was not going to line up right. . . WTF? Why? Why when the dimensions are reduced to whole numbers instead of half, does it change the halfsies rule for the middle strip?? I don't know the answer to that question. I just know it is. So I went with it. My blocks are made with 5" x 10" rectangles from the print fabric. 5" squares from the background fabric. 1" x 5" rectangles of print fabric and 1" x 5.5" rectangles from the background fabric.

Here's the rub. . . before I made my first block. . . yeah, I cut ALL of the pieces I needed out of the background fabric and my rectangles were cut at 1" x 5". . . Note to self, test block again when changing dimensions. . . oh well. The other thing is that my blocks turned out square. 10" x 10" unfinished. This opened up a whole new world of opportunities for layouts :)

Sewing the block together went relatively quickly. I ironed all of my 5" squares of background fabric in half on the diagonal. It is now that I am wishing I took some photos of this process. . . darn it! Then I placed them on my 5" x 10" rectangles - lined them up perfectly - both diagonal lines should slant the same way on the rectangle - one rectangle should have ironed horizontal line going right to left / and the other should have the ironed horizontal left to right \. Clear as mud? :) After sewing the first line, I sewed a second seam on all of them so that when I cut the corners off. . . I'd have HSTs! . . . and of course I could use them somehow in the quilt right? . . . No. LOL They will become a quilt themselves. . . there are 200 of them!! I'm not really excited about this - I'm still not even in like with this fabric line. I was hoping as I worked with it I would change my mind. Nope. Not happening. :)

OK, back to these blocks. I pinned. Yeah, me, I pinned. It really does just look better if the joins meet in the right place :) I did not pin anything when I made that first block. And it turned out perfectly. . . beginner's luck! I needed 49 blocks, 7 x 7 layout and then I figured I would put a row of HSTs at the top and the bottom of the quilt to make it not square. . . but when I put the HSTs up on the design wall, no. That didn't look good at.all. So I put a 4" strip of the background on the top and on the bottom. That works :)

After getting them all sewn together I started playing with layouts. If you read my flimsy finish post on this quilt you know there was an alternate layout that my #1 Fan was rather partial to. . . This was his vote:

I have to admit, I really like this layout. . . but I like the one I went with better :)

Sewing the blocks together was accomplished with more pinning. . . A couple not so great matches but not many - which is good enough for me!

I really like this block. I may do it again. In solids. I'm thinking one could get some pretty cool 3D effects with this block. . . but that is for another day. And this is also for another day:

200 HSTs that will square up to 4". . . someone want to volunteer for that job? :D

Quilting has commenced. My practical side won. I'm straight line quilting it and I have yet to go completely crazy with it. . . Notice I said yet! :)

So there you have it. If you have any questions about my less than stellar explanation of how these blocks are made, please leave me a comment or shoot me an email. I'm happy to explain further! Linking up this week with DWM over at Patchwork Times. A week late. . . better late than never right? :)

Until next time, keep on quilting!