Monday, February 13, 2012

Bee-ing adventurous

Sew. Bee. Create. :
This is my first bee, ever. I know I can find the time for it, and I'm pretty sure I can make blocks (with enough instructions), but I had not expected to feel so nervous cutting into someone else's fabric. No room for error, and I so want my fellow bee-ers to like the blocks. Performance anxiety, wow.

The good thing about a bee is that it gives you  chance to experiment with new techniques, colours and so on. I'd hoped for this, and that's just what happened.

January started with a bang (for me) with an improvised block. I'd never done this before. I learned several things from doing this:
1. Simple is better. Too late for that now, but I'll keep it in mind.
2. All those seams use lots of fabric. I had almost no fabric left, yet a few bee-ers managed two blocks. See 1. above.

Here's the unfinished block. It's to be trimmed by its' owner.



Feb's block seemed like more familiar ground. Framed squares. OK. This time I set off with more confidence. I knew what sizes I wanted the squares for a block. Again the lessons learned:

1. My math skills are very poor
I found it surprisingly difficult to calculate the widths of the surrounds to finish up with the right size block. I kept getting it wrong, over and over. Finally I got it on the fifth small block I made. I must be a very slow learner!

2. Make sure there is enough fabric for a complete surround before cutting and sewing. See 1. above.

Here are the two blocks I made:








I wonder what March's block will be like?

Linking to Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times.

Till next time,

Sue

11 comments:

  1. Even though they were challenging, your blocks look great! I think one of the best things about the bees is learning to new things - being exposed to new techniques etc. You're doing great!!

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  2. Love the striking color combos! MATH in quilting I always find very challenging. This reminds me of a lesson Ricky Tims has in his teaching--design from the outside in!

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  3. I love the colors in those blocks, too!

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  4. Lovely blocks. Over the edge and yet beautiful.

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  5. It's just a never ending learning process, isn't it? lol Your blocks look beautiful though, so you must be doing fine. ;o)

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  7. those are some great fabrics. Looks like you're having fun with it!

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  8. I really like the square in a square blocks...the greens/turqs look great with the black.

    Practice will make it easier and easier...=)

    hugZ,
    annie
    anniesrubyslipperz.com

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  9. You managed to get quite a few blocks for Feb's bee challenge - love the fabrics and the blocks look great. I know you will have fun with this!

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  10. I love your blocks and I'm hoping they make it today. I feel the exact same way about the inability to do the math for the layers. I'm glad I'm not alone.

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  11. I am very impressed with your blocks, your color choices, and how well they go together!! Nice job! Well worth the struggles!

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Thanks for commenting. I love hearing from you. Really!