Half Square Triangle :: Lap Quilt

A few weeks ago my productivity was halted when my small machine that I use for all my piecing made a big clunk and refused to budge.  I couldn't believe it and was slightly devastated!  Of course I took it in for repair right away and crossed my fingers that it wasn't anything major.  

All was not lost though!  I took advantage of the piecing down time to quilt some quilts using my big machine.  I'm fortunate that I have two machines!

COLOR EXPLOSION
51" x 62"

I've always loved this design and enjoy throwing all the colors of the rainbow into it when I make one.  I usually reserve this design for baby quilts using six HST blocks and two borders, but with a treasure trove of HSTs already made I decided a lap quilt was worth my time.



I like to pair up colors and then add another color element in the centers of each block.  I've learned that if something works there is no need to change it.  As they say 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it'!



I love a good rainbow and while this quilt has every color under the rainbow, it doesn't have that true spectrum we associate with rainbows.  



I was unsure if I would add a border until the very end.  As you can see I did!  I added a 3" border using Kona Medium Grey because I love the look of this design with borders.  Using a good neutral gives it containment without interfering with the colors.



One thing I was sure of was the quilting part!  You know, the usual...straight lines!

 

I always divide my quilt into sections before I start quilting this design.  After mapping out the sections I marked the 1" lines with my Hera Marker.  It's a lot of work marking the lines before hand, but it's also necessary.  By marking first, I can make small adjustments here and there to make sure the lines are as straight as can be.  Truth be told...the seams and points aren't perfect!



There are enough 'guides' along the way that I can follow so that while marking and quilting I don't get too far off the beaten path.  



I used Light Fern Aurifil thread 50wt (#2882) for all the quilting.  It was a good choice as it didn't stick out like a sore thumb!



The back and binding are Kona Shadow.  It's my favorite light grey and one that I use over and over again.



As for my small machine...it made it home after two weeks away.  Turns out it was so full of lint that the gears were caked with it and they couldn't turn any longer!  I won't say I'm a cleaning fanatic, but I honestly clean my machines regularly!  And I take it in once a year and have professionals service it.  

I'll try harder, clean more often and hope this doesn't happen again anytime soon!   I use a brush and pipe cleaners.  How do you clean your machine?  Do you have any tips or tricks that you can share ?!

LINKING:

OH SCRAP! ● MAIN CRUSH MONDAY ●  MONDAY MAKING 
MIDWEEK MAKERS ● NEEDLE & THREAD 

PEACOCK PARTY  ● TGIFF ● WHOOP WHOOP FRIDAY

BRAG ABOUT YOUR BEAUTIES ● FINISHED OR NOT FRIDAY  

Mass Production :: HST's

With a couple quilts quilted but not photographed, I decided to take a break and make my annual stack of Half Square Triangles (HST's).  This seems to be something I do 
en masse on occasion.  For me it makes sense.  The process of selecting, cutting, sewing and trimming seems much more efficient to do all at once.  One time...BOOM...done!

  

It's a daunting process of picking the fabric and colors, but one that is the key to having a huge variety of HST's.

I mainly work with this six color combination:  Yellow, Green, Pink, Blue, Orange and purple.  This combination will give me all the colors I need for my baby quilts that I plan on making throughout the year.

So I cut and cut and cut!  Some colors I may only have one block while others I may have five.  In the end they will be paired together and give me the randomness I want.

 

This is the reason why I make so many HST's.  As you can see I arrange the center blocks by color.  Each block needs four (4) different shades of the same color.  Which is why I make so many!  



Once all the blocks have been cut I get the pleasure of making the pairs!  I enjoy this part!  It's the beginning of where the magic starts!  



This part I don't enjoy quite as much!  After I cut the squares I also mark the diagonal line with my Hera marker on every block.  It's part of the being efficient process.

And then I sew and sew and sew!  A 1/4" seam on one side of the diagonal line and then 1/4" on the other side.  Over and over!  I kind of get in a mental trance during this process.  It's anything but exciting.



Another payoff is getting to slice the blocks in half and two identical stacks of beauty!  At this point I take one stack and put it away for later in the year.  The other stack is more than enough to work with now.  But there is more work to be done!



Pressing.  Yes, it's a necessary evil.  When I press my blocks I press the seams to one side.  Why you ask?!  



I use one of my favorite tools the Bloc-Loc.  With this ruler there is a groove on the back that locks on to the seam.  It makes trimming so easy and fast!  There's that efficiency part again!

And now I have something to work with!  



Any guesses how many HST's I ended up with?  I will say this was my biggest mass production in one sitting!  

I started with 308 squares.
I made 154 block pairs.
And ended up with 308 HST's.



I might be having separation anxiety with my trimmings!  You don't know how badly I want to keep these...but I won't...not this time!

While I was cutting my squares I had no idea how many I had.  I was quite surprised at the final count!

You might be asking why I would make the same quilt over and over and over again.  Well, it's been a very good design for me.  People love it and it's the kind of quilt that will never go out of style. 

Do you mass producer of a certain block for future quilts or am I just that crazy?!

LINKING:

OH SCRAP! ● MAIN CRUSH MONDAY ●  MONDAY MAKING 
LETS BEE SOCIAL ● MIDWEEK MAKERS ● NEEDLE & THREAD 

PEACOCK PARTY  ● TGIFF ● WHOOP WHOOP FRIDAY

BRAG ABOUT YOUR BEAUTIES ● FINISHED OR NOT FRIDAY