Monday, February 23, 2015

Another Pre-Cut Solution

I cannot say exactly how long I have had this Moda Honeycomb stack. They quietly take up a tiny little piece of space in the closet.  Not really in the way and certainly not hurting a thing.  I would pull it out and look at it, admire the colors and wonder what it will one day become.  

While I'm working my way through a creative block, I thought I just need to do...sew, make something!  I'm running around like a crazy lady!  My daughter keeps saying "Mom, you need to make something"...

I didn't want to put too much thought into whatever it is I was going to make.  Mostly it was a way to stay productive.  Stay out of trouble!  Even to stay warm!





These are what I had to work with.  Looking for an easy fix (and I do mean easy) I began the search.  From this stack of hexies... 

28" x 33"
...to this little quilt!  I used a variety of low volume, neutral solids between the rows (my new friends).  From white to putty!  Does it look difficult?  It was a breeze!  When I see hexies I imagine they must be hard to work with.

I found this great idea and tutorial by Amanda on her blog A Crafty Fox. Most of you know her as the owner of Westwood Acres, the fabulous and wonderful fabric shop!  A fun fact about that little honeycomb stack:  I won them in a giveaway that Amanda was running...crazy!




For this size quilt, I had to cut 4 of the 40 hexies in half because the rows are staggered and you need them on the top and bottom.  That left me with 36 left and I only needed 33 for this quilt.  I was also able to use up some neutral scraps too!



The tutorial requires four - 4 1/2" x 2 1/4" strips for each block.  



After sewing each strip and pressing the seams, you trim each side.



And the top and bottom.  Make sure to allow for 1/4" seam from the points!



They end up looking just like this.  Making the hexagon's into squares is so much easier for me!



Sew your rows together alternating each row with a half hexie row.  I tried to be careful to match the seams in the rows.  I didn't want the zig-zags to get funky!



Since this is a pretty small quilt, I added a Kona Cayenne Red border.  It turned out to be a perfect match with the Moda orange/red.  



I got it pinned and started quilting.  Simple 1/4" zig-zag lines between the rows and 1/4" on either side of the hexie rows.  To finish it off, I used my Hera Marker and created a diamond vertically through each from of color.  



 I really like the subtle changes of the neutrals in the zig-zag!


I decided to name this quilting my 'HexArgyle' design!  The back is the same as the border from the front.  Cayenne.  I went with Kona Yarrow (which is also a great match to the Moda) for the binding.  


I kinda dig this little mini, baby, hexie, zig-zag quilt!


I hope you get a chance to try this easy and brilliant tutorial!  I enjoyed making it and maybe one day will try it again!
  
LINKING:

32 comments :

  1. It's so pretty! And I do love these colors!!j

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    1. I love the colors too! I've pulled them out, looked at them so many times before I finally found a solution how to use them!

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  2. Ok, I need to try this! Lovely finish and great use of that little pack of hexies :)

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    1. It is a great little tutorial! I hope you get to try it!!

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  3. Awww! A lovely finish and a fabric fix. Love the method you used for making this adorable baby quilt and the quilting is such a compliment to the hexies. Nice job and great photos, Jayne!

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  4. I love hexie's and your's is adorable, makes me want to drop everything and go make one too!!

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    1. It was the perfect solution to a stack of precuts that may have still been sitting in my closet had I not found that tutorial!

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  5. How darling! Looks like we both have hexies on the brain! :)

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  6. Love the colors and the quilting is perfect for the hexies. Good job! This looks like a much simpler method for the hexies than the one I used years ago (made me swear that I would not do hexies again -- but, maybe I will try them again). Having precuts is always nice but mine seem to sit on my shelves much too long waiting for ideas. Nadine W. Northern Cali

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    1. This method won't make you swear Nadine! Simple and effective! Try it!

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  7. This is so cute, and a very clever way to use hexies! It has my wheels spinning! Thanks for the inspiration!

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  8. Oh, I'm so glad you made and shared this...and that I saw it! What a super cool quilt!!! The details are so interesting, and I really love how you quilted it together. What a great idea to use neutrals in several shades instead of only one. I'm putting this on my Pinterest board for Hexies...LOVE it!

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    1. Thank you Amy! Its always fun to try something new and its especially rewarding when someone else gets inspired!

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  9. I love it!! Thanks so much for posting about your method. I've added it to my bucket list!

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  10. I like the colours in this quilt. The hexies scare the life out of me, though. You made it look easy!

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  11. This is too cute! I love how you used the squares to make the zig zag. I have the hex-n-more ruler and may have to give this a try.

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  12. I am so glad I came across this! I have been hoarding a hexie pack of Sunnyside and lamenting all Y seams and fiddly piecing I'd have to do. But this! Aaaah it's perfect, what a great pattern and way to get all the great hexie shapes without all the fiddly-ness! Yours turned out gorgeous!

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    1. I am so glad this was helpful for you Renee! Like you, I didn't and don't look forward to 'Y' seams not even one little bit! This is really the perfect tutorial to bypass all the grief!

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  13. I am so glad I came across this! I have been hoarding a hexie pack of Sunnyside and lamenting all Y seams and fiddly piecing I'd have to do. But this! Aaaah it's perfect, what a great pattern and way to get all the great hexie shapes without all the fiddly-ness! Yours turned out gorgeous!

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  14. What a great idea! Love how you turned the hexies into squares. Definitely easy, and it's looks wonderful!
    quiltfabrication.blogspot.com

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  15. Beautiful quilt! And thanks for the great tutorial! Definitely one to add to my "try this" list!

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  16. Wow, what a perfect project for that cute little bundle. And no Y seams! Genius. I love it. And yeah, sometimes you just have to make something :)

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  17. What a terrific use of precuts! I adore the colors and love the way the off white/whites look too. Love this!

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  18. Wow you just managed to make those precuts look useful to me. I've always wondered how people would use these hexies; I don't mind an occasional y-seam but jeepers I wouldn't want a precut quilt full of em! I'm absolutely going to have to pin this to try later.

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  19. Beautiful! That's a hexie project I would be willing to tackle. And I might need to steal your idea of using varied whites for the zig zag on another project I'm getting ready to do. Thanks for sharing the details of how you made the quilt.

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  20. Fantastic!! Thank you so much for sharing the process. I love your little quilt. The border and the binding couldn't be more perfect.

    -Soma

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  21. This quilt is so pretty! I love the colors, and thanks for the link to the tutorial--I've always wondered how to piece with hexies!

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