January 2015 Hexie Block of the Month!!!!

Are you as excited as I am? Time to get started with another year of HEXIE BOM's!!!  This year we're going geometric in style. My designs are all in only two colors, BUT as you can see below I used 4 different fabrics in my version. And I rotated mine a tiny bit on my background fabric.

Look closely - you'll see that I fussy cut the center hexagon and the hexagons surrounding it.

I also fussy cut the pink hexagons at the end of the "spires."

I'm sure you've noticed my other special touch! I used size 12 Perle Cotton (variegated!) to do a simple straight stitch (by hand) line of embroidery around the entire motif.  Of course, this is optional, but I do love the difference it makes in the block.

Don't forget - you'll find all the information you'll need for the 2015 Hexie BOM in a tab at the top of the blog! Have fun!

We're Almost There!!!!!

Okay, I know I'm jumping the gun a bit - we still have a couple of days left in 2014, but I thought it would be helpful for us all to go over the details of what's to come in January.

2015 Hexie Block of the Month

1.  All general information pertaining to the block of the month is in a tab at the top of the blog - see it up there? This should answer all your questions about fabric requirements, hexie size, etc. 

2. Every time I post a new monthly pattern, I'll also add a link to that same tab. So we'll only have ONE  block of the month tab at the top of the blog this year instead of one for every month.

3. I'll leave the tabs with the 2014 BOM patterns up until the end of January, so get them while you can!

4. Check back here on January 1 for the first pattern!

Hexie Love magazine

I hope you are bursting with excitement over this! I am! By now I hope you've all heard that the magazine will come out the second week in January. You'll be able to subscribe for one year (6 issues) at that time, or buy just the Jan/Feb issue. The price of a single issue will be $5.99. A subscription for one year will be $26.99. 

I'm taking some time off this week, so other than posting the January 2015 BOM pattern I won't be posting much. I hope you all are still enjoying the holidays and wish you all a Happy Hexie New Year! 

IKEA!

Yesterday we took my mother to Atlanta to meet my brother - he took her the rest of the way home to Augusta. The girls came along and we had a fun time at Ikea! LOVE Ikea! We loaded up the car with all our boxes. (Assembly Required!)

Daughter 1 bought two desks for her new office at home - she and her hubby are painting the room this weekend.

I got a nice tall metal shelf for the garage - lots of good storage for some of my seldom used kitchen appliances and overflow paper goods. I put it together this morning and have all my things organized.  What is it about the end of the year that makes us want to organize???

I also got another RASKOV - this one a pretty blue. This makes my third one - the other two are gray. I love these little carts. I have one in my sewing studio and one that stays by my chair in the living room with all my sewing supplies (I roll it into a closet when company is here). I'm not sure where the new one will go or what I'll use it for - I just wanted it! :)

Once the car was loaded we had to go back in Ikea for the obligatory Swedish Meatballs, of course.

Today has been all about taking down the Christmas trees, wreaths, and other decorations. And laundry! I've done two loads - saving the other two loads for tomorrow. Now hubby is working on our electronics - internet, Roku, Blue Ray player….trying to get them all to play nicely together.

Tonight I'm planning on finishing the 2015 February Hexie Block of the Month. I love being ahead of schedule!

Oh, look what came today -  a bright yellow package from Hancock's of Paducah! I had ordered this fabric months ago, but it was backordered. Finally came in! I adore a good black and white stripe...

Merry Christmas to ALL!

This was last night - wind shear warning! Hubby, my mother, and I (along with 3 dogs!) cowered in an interior closet until the weather scare was over. No damage here, but prayers go out to those in Mississippi and Georgia who were not so lucky.

Today was our family Christmas celebration - we had nine for lunch. This is the dessert table - oh my! I had a crock pot full of hot chocolate with homemade marshmallows, and lots of optional additions (cinnamon, peppermint sticks, whipped cream, etc.) Yes, we did eat real food before the desserts and hot chocolate. A good time was had by all!

Here are the kids in front of the trees. Left to right:  Daughter 1, son-in-law (Daughter's 1's hubby), Daughter 2. So proud of all three of them!

I've been so busy getting ready for today that I haven't had much time for hexies. Sad face…

But Christmas Day will be for relaxing. We'll be eating leftovers and watching movies. (And I'll be making hexies! I'm working on the February Hexie BOM and the progressive quilt that will be patterned in the magazine.

Now for some HEXIE LOVE news…
I'm still set to release the first issue in January, but it will not be on January 1. The magazine software company that I'm working with will not have customer service available over the holidays. I'm hesitant to release it until I know I can get help if I need it. Hopefully the release will be without incident, but just in case there's a snafu or two, I want to be sure I can quickly get it resolved!

So please be patient until the second week of January! I promise it's coming!!!!

But there will be something to look forward to on January 1 - The 2015 Hexie Block of the Month! Have you picked out your background yet? Remember I'll be using 3/4" hexies for this one.

From my family to yours, have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!
Hexie love to all and to all a good night!

Blog Hop!

I'm so excited to participate in Catherine Redford's blog hop! Modern Machine Quilting, her fabulous DVD, was recently released by Interweave. And I can tell you - it is so helpful!

I was lucky enough to be able to view it and I learned SO MUCH! And I thought I was an expert at this - ha! Catherine goes into wonderful detail and instruction about needles and thread - facts I never knew.

She teaches all about walking foot quilting, explaining it in great details with wonderful examples of her work. And she also tells you the secret of successful quilting in the ditch - I love this tip!

I first met Catherine in Cleveland when we were both filming for Quilting Arts TV. I was immediately drawn to her sunny personality, British accent, and her humor. Then we roomed together while both teaching in Chattanooga in September. She kept me laughing the entire time and even had me color my bangs blue! What fun memories!

The best part? She brought her samples made for the DVD, so I got to see them up close and personal. Beautiful work!

So go buy this DVD - I know you'll love it! You'll now be about to quilt your quilts yourself!  The DVD is available for sale HERE!

Want to win one? Leave a comment on Catherine's blog- HERE! She'll be giving away TWO at the end of the Blog Hop!

Happy machine quilting!

Holiday Treats

WHEW! Busy day, but I've marked most things off my list. I haven't done any candy or cookie making yet - I'm saving it for while my mother is here. I know she'll enjoy being part of it. But here are a couple of things we'll be making.

Above are Peanutty Pie Crust Clusters. This was the grand prize winner in this year's Pillsbury Bake-Off. You can find the recipe here.

Many of you know that I've been a finalist in the Pillsbury Bake-Off twice. The contest is held every other year, in a different city each time. 100 finalists are selected to attend the Bake-Off and cook under pressure! Pillsbury treats their finalists so well and the Bake-Off trip is always so much fun.

My first Bake-Off adventure was in 1998 and was held in Orlando. The trip was awesome, but I didn't win anything else. In 2000, I was again a finalist and traveled to San Francisco to the Bake-Off. This time my recipe was in the top FOUR! I won $10,000 and a beautiful Waterford crystal bowl. The winner goes home with $1,000,000! Boy, I was close!

I haven't entered the Bake-Off since then. Pillsbury only allows contestants to be finalists 3 times, so I have one more shot at it. Maybe I'll enter again next time.

The recipe below for Mallow Nut Fudgies was given to me by a friend. She had made these for one of the luncheons I attended last week and I can attest that they are delicious! The recipe came from Publix. If you have trouble reading it, click on it and it will get bigger. It calls for the pretzel chips shown below.

I'm so glad I made so much progress on my long list today! That means I can hexie tonight!

A Bit of Stitching...

I'm stitching together a maze of hexies this morning! I need to stop this fun for a bit and get back to my list!

We're bringing my mother here for a weeklong Christmas visit on Friday, and I want to have all the cleaning, wrapping, and grocery shopping done before then. I'm making progress….

I plan to spend next week doing some cooking and baking and enjoying family. (And I can easily stitch hexies while enjoying family….)

Need to get upstairs and vacuum now… :(

Stay tuned though - I may post a yummy recipe or two later today!

A Cool Blog Hop...

One of my friends brought this to one of my quilty lunches last week. Isn't it gorgeous?!!! She still has to appliqué the wreath to the background. This is going to be a wallhanging for her daughter. LOVE the fabrics! 

Did you know there's a fun blog hop going on this week? It's for Catherine Redford's new DVD on walking foot quilting! And my day is Saturday! Stay tuned...


Monday, December 15th: Faith Jones at Fresh Lemons Quilts
Tuesday, December 16th: Bonnie Hunter at Quiltville
Wednesday, December 17th: Cheryl Sleboda at Muppin
Thursday, December 18th: Maddie Kertay at Bad Ass Quilters Society
Friday, December 19th: Svetlana Sotak at s.o.t.a.k. handmade
Saturday, December 20th: Julia Wood at The Hexie Blog
Sunday, December 21st: Laura Wasilowski at Art Fabrik
Monday, December 22nd: Pokey Bolton at Pokey’s Ponderings
Tuesday, December 23rd: Susan Brubaker Knapp at Blue Moon River
Wednesday, December 24th: Catherine Redford 

I have a full list today! Today is the day I will put the finishing touches on the first issue of magazine! Do they call that "putting it to bed" in the publishing industry? If so, I'm ready to tuck in in tightly!!!

I also need to put the finishing touches on a couple of handmade Christmas presents and get them wrapped and under the tree. And there's some house cleaning to be done….(my least favorite!)….

Christmas Busy-NESS!

It's that time of year! Shopping, cooking, present wrapping, house cleaning! Oh, and a new magazine to put out… I know you are all busy as bees, too!

I did take some time over the weekend to clean off my side table - the one beside my recliner where I sew my hexies. It was a piled up mess!

Ahh, that's better!

The sewing stuff is now on my Ikea cart which I can roll away into a closet when we have guests.

I'm putting the final touches on the first issue of Hexie Love. I want to get that done this week. I'm making blocks for next year's Block of the Month. They are SO beautiful! And I'm working on the progressive quilt for the magazine.

One more thing…
This year we had the Yahoo group to share progress on the block of the month. I know many people had issue with it. For me, I thought it was a bit awkward to use. So…
I've created a group on Facebook ---Hexie Love Open Studio. I invite you all to join! It will be a great place to share progress on BOM's and other hexie projects.

2015 Hexie Block of the Month: General Information!

Before the new year, let's plan ahead for the 2015 Hexie BOM! Yay!

Hexagons:

I'm making the samples using English Paper Piecing (EPP).

I'm using 3/4" papers, available from paperpieces.com.

Hexie fabric: I'm using my stash of Kaffe Fassett plus a few other favorites, but anything will be beautiful!

Fussy Cutting: Fussy cutting is cutting the fabric for a hexie so that there is a motif centered in the hexie. I'm planning to do lots of this for 2015, but of course, it's optional!

Each design will be presented in only 2 colors, HOWEVER --- I'll be using more colors when I make my samples. (You'll understand this when you see the first pattern.) I encourage each of you to play with your color placement in each month's pattern! Have fun!!!

Background fabric:

I'm using a natural linen. Cut each block to 14.5" square. These blocks will finish at 14" square. Of course, any background fabric will work!!! You should be able to get twelve 14.5" blocks from 2 yards of fabric, but buy a bit extra if you plan to prewash it.

Frequently Asked Questions:

1. Can I make these out of 1" hexies like the 2014 BOM and can the blocks from both years be put into one quilt:

Answer: You can make the hexies any size you want. But will they work with the 2014 blocks? Maybe, depending on what method you use to make hexies. The key here is to lay out a row of  9 hexies. There will not be a 2015 block with a height or width of more than 9 hexies. Remember the 2014 sun block? It was 9 hexies across and I know some people had trouble fitting it in the 15.5" background block. So if you want to use 1" hexies, you made need a background that is bigger than last year's. 

That being said, let me repeat: you can make these patterns from any size hexie you wish! But I'll let you figure out what size background squares you'll need. My instructions will always be for 3/4" hexies with 14.5" background squares.

2. How many papers do I need to purchase? 

Answer: I haven't counted, but let's plan on 50 per month. Many months will include less than that, but you'll want some extras, right?

3. How much fabric will I need for the hexies?

Answer: I don't know! It depends on how you do it! Some people work with squares of fabric and  wrap lots of extra to the backside of the paper. Some cut their fabric with a die cutter to the exact size, and thus use less. This will be a great project to work from your stash if you wish.

Where and When to Find the Patterns

I'll post a new block pattern on the first day of each month. For 2015 I'll have all the patterns under one tab at the top of the blog page so they'll be easy to find.

I hope this helps you all with your planning! 

Hexie Happenings...

Here's a sneak peek of what's going on around here. Could this be a little preview of next year's Hexie Block of the month? Maybe…

Cooper loves to watch me hexie. Yesterday he sat and watched for quite a while. Knowing him like I do, I think he just wanted to get those hexies in his mouth, slide out of sight under our big ottoman, and chew them to pieces. But I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and say that he appreciates fine handwork.  :)

Here are the  rolls I made yesterday. BIG SUCCESS! They rose beautifully, and are light and fluffy! I'll definitely be making a double batch of these for Christmas.

Today will be fun. I'm going to a Birthday Block luncheon - the last of the year. Today is the day we all bring our instructions/patterns/fabric for next year's blocks. Instead of asking my friends to make a certain block for me next year, I'm asking for a couple of orphan blocks from each. I'm planning to make a "Kitchen Sink" quilt. I hope they all have some orphan blocks in their stash; I have a drawer full of them!

Dough is Rising...

I'm making homemade yeast risen rolls for a luncheon Thursday - trying a new recipe- you can find it here. If they turn out well, I'll make them again for Christmas!

While the dough is rising, I'll be adding some links to Hexie Love!  I love the fact that a digital magazine allows the reader to click on links! Interested in a featured artist? Click on her link to find out more! Want to buy a featured product? Click on the link to go to the website! Way cool!

I'll also be sewing together the hexies for the January 2015 BOM!!! Yay!!!

Hexie Evening!

Last night I basted a pile of 3/4" hexies. (The little bowl has a few chocolates…)

My 3/4" stash of basted hexies is growing!!!! I want to fill this container by Christmas…

Here's my sweet Cooper, at the vet this morning. He has a large growth on one of his paws so I took him to the doctor. They did a needle biopsy which cause it to bleed, hence the bandage. The biopsy turned out fine and the vet says the growth should go away on it's own in about 3 weeks. Hope so! If not they'll take it off.

Cooper was a very good sport! But the best news…this was the first time he'd been weighed since I was told this summer we needed to get his weight down. He has lost 10.3 pounds!!!! We did it! The vet was VERY pleased and impressed with our diligence.

Lots of Hexie Love!

I've been glued to my laptop for days! And loving every minute of it! I'm happy to report that the first issue of Hexie Love is almost complete! I'm SO proud of it! It's full of interesting articles, LOTS of pictures, projects and ideas galore! 

I just need to do some final editing and add some links. My daughters are going to help me with the proofing. 

I think I can pick up a needle and thread today! Love to be on top of things…

Today I thought I'd share one of my favorite quilts at the Houston show. Remember when I participated in the American Made Brand Farm to Fabric Blog Hop? I made the block representing the state of Alabama. The finished quilt was on display in Houston and I love it!

Can you find my block?

It's the only one with a bright orange background!

Sweet Potato Biscuits

I'm still working hard on the magazine, BUT during my lunch break I made sweet potato biscuits. I found the recipe HERE. They made with leftover sweet potato casserole, and I did have some leftover. I've never made them before, but I'll definitely make them again! They are so good filled with a slice of ham - YUM!

I got so much done today! Don't you love a productive day??? I'm on a roll so I think I'll keep working into the evening...

My Stash

I didn't sew or play with fabric yesterday. I worked on page layouts for the magazine. So no pictures to share.

Sooooo, I thought I'd share a picture of some of my stash. I had these bins with drawers when we lived in Birmingham. The movers wrapped each one in heavy plastic and moved them without unpacking the drawers. The upstairs laundry room was the perfect spot for them! It's just down the hall from my studio. The space only fit 3 of them and I do have a fourth one. That one lives in the closet you see on the left of the photo.

I printed the labels, laminated them, punched holes in the top, and hooked them to the drawers with zip ties.

Is this all my fabric? Heck, no! I also store LOTS of fabric in the closet of my studio. And larger yardage is stored in the closet of one of the guest bedrooms.

I really need to go through all these drawer and sort and fold. Maybe someday?

Crepes and Chickens

Thanks for all the sweet comments about my finished 2014 Hexie BOM quilt top. Y'all guessed my mistake. In the third row down, I have all three of the blocks in the wrong position! Big oops!

Yesterday I had lunch with a friend at the wonderful crepe place (Crepe Myrtle Cafe). It was sunny and 70 degrees here so we ate outside...

with the chickens! Every time something fell out of my crepe onto the ground (these crepes are so big!) a chicken would come gobble it up.

I thought I'd show some pictures of the organizing I did over the weekend. I explained it, but it's easier to understand in pictures.

Here is the little office area with built in desks on either side. Through the open doorway is the upstairs laundry room. I keep a good portion of my stash in there.

And here's the right side desk with projects lined up in bins.

And the left side is home to my Featherweight. I've never used it, but I want to (SOON!) get it up and running.

Each of the desks has two knee holes so actually FOUR people could be studying (or sewing) here at one time.

Lots of work on my list for today!!! Magazine page layouts are at the top of the list. Fun stuff!!

2014 Hexie Block of the Month Reveal!!!!

Ta DAH! I hope to take a better photo soon. Something strange is going on with either my camera or Dropbox. But at least you get the idea!

Do you see my mistake? Yes, I made a big mistake!!!! Let's see who figures it out...

2014 December Block: Christmas Wreath

I can hardly believe that it's time for the last block of the year! And I have to say this is one of my favorite blocks.

And here is my version.

So I know you were expecting to see my finished quilt top now. I apparently had a bad SD card in my camera when I took pictures of it over the weekend. Now I can't upload the photo to the blog.

Not to worry. I'll take another picture later today and post it then.

I'll leave all these patterns up on the tabs at the top of the blog through the end of January.

Football Hexies

I basted LOTS of hexies while watching football yesterday - each of these stacks has 6 hexies in it. Lots of fussy cutting here! I love basting piles of hexies for later use. I already had a nice amount of 1" hexies basted and now my 3/4" hexie stash is growing.

Today I've spent some time organizing my sewing stuff. We have 3 bedrooms upstairs and one of them is my studio. The other two are for guests, BUT my sewing stuff has flowed over into both guest rooms. One of the beds was even covered with stuff. We also have an office upstairs with 2 long built-in desks - wouldn't that have been nice to have when our girls were growing up?! Of course I'd piled these horizontal surfaces up with sewing stuff, too.

In about an hour and a half I made a big dent in the mess. The piled up bed is now cleared. The desks are now cleared. I'm making one desk the Hexie Love hub. I have several bins here with items I'm planning for future issues. I have my featherweight set up on the other desk. I'm not finished, but it looks so much better up there!

I've also made smoked turkey soup today. It's loaded with turkey, barley, onions, carrots, potatoes, and cabbage, and lots of herbs. Smells wonderful! Once it cools I'm going to freeze most of it for later this winter.

Hubby and I are planning a long walk this afternoon - it's turned into a warm day here. And I have a little magazine project to work on…

Thankfulness...

Hubby carved the turkey.

We all filled our plates. (Note hubby's mac and cheese - it was delish!)

The we all sat around and watched football. (And I basted hexies…)

Today the Christmas decorations are coming out.

This morning (imagine drum roll here) I finished my 2014 Hexie BOM quilt top!!!! Yippee! I love it!
I'll be photographing it tomorrow for the blog post on December 1. I've been pinching myself all afternoon - so excited that it is all sewn together!!!!!

Tonight I'll be basting 3/4 inch hexies - that's right - I'm getting a jump start on the new 2015 Hexie BOM! I'm sure most of you realized that I was designing the 2014 blocks as I went. Sometimes I'd be scrounging at the last minute to design and make the block for the next month. BUT, I have already designed ALL the 2015 blocks!!! This will help me so much, as I can get ahead easily. I'll be basting a bunch of these little hexies to stockpile for the year ahead.

Tomorrow I'm hitting a couple of sales, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Then we'll be settling in to watch the Iron Bowl on TV.

Sarah's Hexie Mania!

Look what landing in my inbox yesterday! Sarah learned this from me in Chattanooga in September and has been working on it since. Isn't it fun and colorful!???

Great job, Sarah - love it!

Meanwhile, back in the kitchen…. I just finished making the sweet potato casserole and the cornbread dressing. I'm so lazy about Thanksgiving this year that I even bought pre-chopped celery and onions for the dressing. Oh my… Hey, it's all about having a bit of time to sew later! Still trying to finish my 2014 Hexie BOM quilt top… Will I make my goal of finishing it by tomorrow? I'm not so sure. But I will definitely finish it during the weekend.

Hubby's off work today. He's already done the yard work this morning and is now washing windows and cleaning our patio. I can see him polishing the grill as we speak. It should be warm enough here tomorrow to sit outside, so he's getting it spick and span!

He really wants macaroni and cheese added to the Thanksgiving menu and has offered to make it himself. (He doesn't cook, by the way - just grills out) This will be interesting to watch. He's found a recipe and I bought the ingredients. I'm sure he'll do a great job! (And I'll have fun watching!)