Hexagon OCD?
05-14-2014, 07:06 AM
#11
Junior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Mar 2014
Location: Shelbyville TN
Posts: 137
LOL, I guess its an aversion to laundry, I have 9 children and I feel like I have have never seen the bottom of a hamper!
I really do not mind pre washing, its the whole preparing fabric for the printer. Prewash, iron, cut edges, iron to freezer paper, put through printer. It's just easy to pop into die machine.
I really do not mind pre washing, its the whole preparing fabric for the printer. Prewash, iron, cut edges, iron to freezer paper, put through printer. It's just easy to pop into die machine.
05-14-2014, 09:02 AM
#12
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Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Western Wisconsin
Posts: 12,930
I like Jinny Beyer's technique. Her quilt won the Good Housekeeping contest:
http://www.jinnybeyer.com/quilting-w...3044F2CD4B1A24
Years ago I watched a video she made in which she demonstrated how she hand pieces. I think this CD-ROM of hers is similar to the one I watched:
http://www.amazon.com/Hand-Piecing-J...dp/1933308001/
I used the Ardco window template to cut out my hexies. First I cut strips of fabric in the necessary width, then used the metal hexagon template to cut the other sides. I was able to stack and cut about 4 layers at a time with good accuracy. I did not do anything to the fabric -- no pre-washing, etc.
At first I used the Ardco window template (inside) to draw my sewing lines using a fine-tipped mechanical pencil. Jinny does not mark sewing lines at all; she eyeballs the 1/4" seam. Her sewing method is ***extremely*** fast; basically she moves the fabric onto the needle in ripples. You have to see her in action to believe it. In the video she slows it down so you can see what she is doing. I never got that fast, but her method of piecing is definitely much faster than any others I have seen. As I said, she does not mark sewing lines. She figures that later on, if there is a blip somewhere in the construction, it's easy for her to snip the thread at both ends and re-sew. (She secures the thread at each joining and also every couple of inches in longer runs, so anything snipped in-between is not going to affect the rest of the stitching.) She is using a running stitch, of course. There is no freezer paper or anything.
Oh, and I should mention that some people use a piece of 1/4" tape on a fingernail to provide a quick way of checking seam allowance.
When making my top, I quickly found that I needed a marked sewing line on only one of the paired hexies I was sewing together. After awhile I was able to sew without needing to mark the lines, although it was still helpful to me to mark corners with a pencil dot (and match corners with pins before doing the running stitch).
Edit: Sorry, I thought Jinny Beyer's winning quilt was a hexie; my memory seems to get worse every day! However, the information about her piecing technique is accurate whether working with hexies or not.
http://www.jinnybeyer.com/quilting-w...3044F2CD4B1A24
Years ago I watched a video she made in which she demonstrated how she hand pieces. I think this CD-ROM of hers is similar to the one I watched:
http://www.amazon.com/Hand-Piecing-J...dp/1933308001/
I used the Ardco window template to cut out my hexies. First I cut strips of fabric in the necessary width, then used the metal hexagon template to cut the other sides. I was able to stack and cut about 4 layers at a time with good accuracy. I did not do anything to the fabric -- no pre-washing, etc.
At first I used the Ardco window template (inside) to draw my sewing lines using a fine-tipped mechanical pencil. Jinny does not mark sewing lines at all; she eyeballs the 1/4" seam. Her sewing method is ***extremely*** fast; basically she moves the fabric onto the needle in ripples. You have to see her in action to believe it. In the video she slows it down so you can see what she is doing. I never got that fast, but her method of piecing is definitely much faster than any others I have seen. As I said, she does not mark sewing lines. She figures that later on, if there is a blip somewhere in the construction, it's easy for her to snip the thread at both ends and re-sew. (She secures the thread at each joining and also every couple of inches in longer runs, so anything snipped in-between is not going to affect the rest of the stitching.) She is using a running stitch, of course. There is no freezer paper or anything.
Oh, and I should mention that some people use a piece of 1/4" tape on a fingernail to provide a quick way of checking seam allowance.
When making my top, I quickly found that I needed a marked sewing line on only one of the paired hexies I was sewing together. After awhile I was able to sew without needing to mark the lines, although it was still helpful to me to mark corners with a pencil dot (and match corners with pins before doing the running stitch).
Edit: Sorry, I thought Jinny Beyer's winning quilt was a hexie; my memory seems to get worse every day! However, the information about her piecing technique is accurate whether working with hexies or not.
Last edited by Prism99; 05-14-2014 at 09:21 AM.
05-15-2014, 05:05 AM
#16
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Join Date: Aug 2008
Location: new york state
Posts: 10,256
I may have your solution. I used to be in the same guild with this lady and she has put A Lot of work into her product and I have seen it first hand. It's Stamps by Kate and the website is ByKate.com. What you do when using her stamps, is to stamp the fabric and cut out the hexies. She has added a sewing line to the stamp. So I think this will fill all your criteria?
Also, even though she and I were in the same guild, we were not close. I'm currently not in contact with her and honestly have not even thought about her in the 3 years I've been gone from Texas. But I do think she has a great product. But being on the tightest of budget, I didn't buy from her
Also, even though she and I were in the same guild, we were not close. I'm currently not in contact with her and honestly have not even thought about her in the 3 years I've been gone from Texas. But I do think she has a great product. But being on the tightest of budget, I didn't buy from her
05-15-2014, 06:47 AM
#17
Super Member
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Illinois
Posts: 9,018
Just checked bykate.com too. I think I will try that method too. Want to order a few things from her.....if the hexie is one inch then the diamond for the pathway should be the same right...never used the diamond shape before.....
Has anyone here used the stamps for cutting/sewing?
Has anyone here used the stamps for cutting/sewing?
05-16-2014, 04:23 AM
#18
Senior Member
Join Date: Feb 2011
Location: Central Alabama
Posts: 884
There is one method you didn't mention and that is making hexigons from circles. There is a new book out ,
Quick and Easy Hexie Quilts by Dr. Peggy G. Rhodes and Julia C. Wood frm AQS. It is really easy and you don't
have to deal with papers. With their method you can measure the hexagons you already have and they tell you how large to cut your circles to make the two methods match. They alsohave a blog it is: thehexieblog.blogspot.com
It is a really neat way to make hexagons you might want to check it out.
Quick and Easy Hexie Quilts by Dr. Peggy G. Rhodes and Julia C. Wood frm AQS. It is really easy and you don't
have to deal with papers. With their method you can measure the hexagons you already have and they tell you how large to cut your circles to make the two methods match. They alsohave a blog it is: thehexieblog.blogspot.com
It is a really neat way to make hexagons you might want to check it out.
05-16-2014, 04:39 AM
#19
Junior Member
Join Date: May 2014
Location: Oregon
Posts: 104
Do you like hand sewing? If you really just want a hex quilt why not do one by machine? Only suggesting because you didn't like a lot of the work that comes with this project. I have done a lot of machine piecing hexagons and it's pretty fast and easy once you get the hang of it. Each side is sewn individually. I start 1/4" in from the edge and back stitch at the beginning and end of the seam. Just throwing it out there ;-)
All this talk of hand sewing makes me want to start a project. Can beat mobility!
All this talk of hand sewing makes me want to start a project. Can beat mobility!
05-16-2014, 04:40 AM
#20
Super Member
Join Date: Dec 2011
Location: Horse Country, FL
Posts: 7,341
There is one method you didn't mention and that is making hexigons from circles. There is a new book out ,
Quick and Easy Hexie Quilts by Dr. Peggy G. Rhodes and Julia C. Wood frm AQS. It is really easy and you don't
have to deal with papers. With their method you can measure the hexagons you already have and they tell you how large to cut your circles to make the two methods match. They alsohave a blog it is: thehexieblog.blogspot.com
It is a really neat way to make hexagons you might want to check it out.
Quick and Easy Hexie Quilts by Dr. Peggy G. Rhodes and Julia C. Wood frm AQS. It is really easy and you don't
have to deal with papers. With their method you can measure the hexagons you already have and they tell you how large to cut your circles to make the two methods match. They alsohave a blog it is: thehexieblog.blogspot.com
It is a really neat way to make hexagons you might want to check it out.
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