Halloween Half Hexie Table Topper Quilt

Halloween Half Hexie Table Topper

The Coshocton Canal Quilters held their quilt show this past weekend. It was a very nice show as it always is, and if you're ever in this part of of Ohio, it's worth the trip. It typically falls on the same weekend as the Ohio Mennonite Relief Sale which is held in Mount Hope, and you get your fill of quilts and quilty items. A friend came to town, and we squeezed both into one day. It was a lot for one day. 

One of the things I really look forward to is the Quilter's Corner in both places. Around here it means pre-loved items typically donated to raise money for the organization. They did not disappoint at either event, and I will show you some of my lovely finds in the coming days. For today let me share one of my favorite buys, and personal challenges I take every year. Buy something, and use it immediately. Don't sort and store it. Use it. So this little project was a baggie of scraps I got for $2. 

I used my Missouri Star half hexie template, and cut every piece of scrap in the bag. Most of them fit on the fabric with the correct direction of grain, but a few were creatively made to fit. Using a book as inspiration, Little Quilts by Sarah Fielke & Amy Lobsiger, I laid out some hexies in orange and filled with the darker pieces. I used all but a couple pieces making this a very economical project. 

Sections that could be divided by straight lines made sense because it would be easier pinning. This project is entirely Y-seams, but it was not a hard project with a little experience. Match all the pieces you can that will make a line of half hexies with long and short sides together, then add the rest. Do not press until the whole thing is together. Keep your stitch length set at 2.0 mm and I don't add the little backstitch anywhere. I don't pin, I just pinch the pieces together and eyeball it. Seat of your pants kind of sewing, but it's low stress, and it works better for me. I let the template do the work by matching the pieces.

When I come to piecing a large section to another, I again do the long hexie sides to another of the same, skipping around the sewing edge starting and stopping until it's all together. When I come to a bias edge or two together, I do add a pin to the start and end to keep it from waving.

This is just before it got a good pressing. Work on getting the seams to lay flat by pressing on the back in the same direction around a section of 3 or more seams that intersect. If it doesn't fit exactly, fudge a bit, and then move on. It's a table topper that isn't going into any competition in its lifetime. Don't sweat it.

Will I add any embroidery to this? A big spider web maybe with a charming spider or two, or a mouse, or who knows what inspiration may come before I get to it. The only stipulation is to get it done before the end of August. Then cut the sides down to a rectangle, and bind it. So far I have about 4 hours in the whole piece, and $2. Let's see what happens next.

More good stuff in the following days.

Come on, Doxie girls.

Let's go sew.