Tag / hexagon cushion kit

by princesshotflash

My First English Paper Piecing

I’m so excited. I got a package in the mail from the UK. It’s my English paper-piecing (epp) kit. Kate from The Last Homely House inspired me with her hexagon quilt for her granddaughter. Here’s a link to a playlist of Kate’s hexagon quilt. Paper piecing uses a paper template as a base. The fabric is wrapped around it and stitched for stability. This kit is my first attempt at it. 

I purchase a Hexagon Cushion Kit from Kate to test the waters of epp. It’s a twelve-inch pillow with an epp on the front. It’s a small enough project that wouldn’t overwhelm me to quit.

Look at all of the goodies that come in the kit. It’s so fun to get stuff from faraway places.

The kit comes with fabric from Kate’s favorite designers, Kaffe Fassett, Brandon Mably, and Phillip Jacobs, paper templates, a spool of Aurifil 50-weight thread in grey, and an instructional booklet on how to make the pillow. The kit had four colors, and I chose orange/yellow. I wanted something bright and cheery.

Kate’s quilt got me thinking about all my scraps, and I thought it would make a beautiful quilt. It could be my long-term project that I could have in the background—something to do when I got tired of my other projects—just something for me.

My paper templates are covered. The process wasn’t hard, and I did it faster than I thought. This step has passed the “dipping my toe in the water” test. Now to lay the pieces out.

I am doing the hexi shuffle to get my piece placed in an order I’m happy with.

I’ve gotten through stitching my hexi squares together. It is on temporary hold to get two patchwork quilts done. The first one is almost done, just finishing touches, and I’m thrilled to be so close to the end. The second needs a bit of restart. I don’t particularly appreciate how the quilting looks, and I need to rip out the stitching and develop a new plan of attack. Stay tuned for more epp and quilting updates.

by princesshotflash

Fav Pics: Blooms

It’s been a while since I posted a Fav Pics. And I was inspired by the blooms in Cora’s garden to look back at my flower shots from my garden in NJ. All the shots are of annuals from the garden center, nothing too fancy, probably on the distress plant rack.

I loved these shots of these pink geranium buds against their velvety green leaves. The buds look like a rosebud. I tried to get a geranium every spring after Mother’s Day. I’d bring them in for the winter with hopes of them surviving till next year.

This is the self-seeding Pentas, which most likely came from the distress plant rack. They are always great to have as they keep blooming.

I bought these garlic chives, so I didn’t have to buy them from the store. They are also self-seeding, like the pentas. These flowers can be eaten, though I haven’t tried them. I used garlic chives in Oisobagi Kimchi (stuffed cucumber) recipe from No Recipe, which is so good. Or simply added to an omelet. Delicious

Here’s a sneak peek of more blooms from my stitching project I’m soon to begin. This is the Hexagon cushion kit from Kate at The Last Homely House. This is an English paper piecing (epp) project, my first. I’m using it as a gauge to see if I enjoy doing epp. Kate made a beautiful quilt for her granddaughter that inspired me to try out this kit. I hope I like.