Another Start

I couldn't resist drawing that British quilt in EQ8, to work out what size those QSTs should be. The original quilt used a 3" Hourglass block, and the quilt measured 93". That's too big for my bed, so I needed to find a size that worked better for me.

2.25" gives a 74" quilt, and 2.5" ones make a 82" quilt. 

An 82" quilt would make a full bedspread on my double bed, which is fine, but I need to see both sizes of QSTs before I make a decision. The smaller ones can be cut from a 3.5" square, so I could use strips from the scrap drawers. The bigger ones I would have to cut from a 3.75" square, so I would have to cut all new strips for that.

I made up a few last night to see which I prefer.  The blocks are made of the smaller Hourglasses, and there are 3 in the 2.5" size underneath.  I still can't decide, so I'll have to ponder it for a few more days. It will definitely be a long term project, so no need to rush into it. 

The original quilt was quite easy to draft up, the little Hourglass blocks are set in groups of nine. If I just concentrate on making the blocks for a quarter of the design it will go quickly, then I can focus on the next quarter or have a rest from it. I'm going to have to keep the value of the Hourglass blocks lighter than the red ones so that red crosses show up against them. I will probably end up with a few rejects; some fabrics that I always thought of as mid toned looked too dark when pieced. Some fabrics that I always regarded as light looked quite dark when chopped small and put with a paler fabric. 

I've always thought this print was really light, but it actually works really well as a medium value in these little blocks.

It's a good thing that Hourglasses are one of my favourite blocks to make.