Hexies for the Hexagonally Challenged!

I love me a Hexie project as much as the next guy but man, the thought of making those templates, sewing them in and ripping them out, over, and over, and over again, is just a little more tediousness than I can or will subject myself to. Oh no, thanyouveryverymuch!

So when I found these fusible hexies at quilt market last year I thought, "HEL-LO!"

Yeah, I was smitten by the hexie bug immediately. Unfortunately, I knew that I had to see it to "get it", and because I know that some folks out there still haven't grasped the fusible hexie "thing", I thought I'd share my hexie process here. Be warned, this post may have one too many pictures, LOL

Hexies for the Hexagonally Challenged:

Step 1. 

Gather your supplies. I used precut 2.5" fabric squares, because they work, 

and I like the scrappy look. I also used 1" fusible hexies, and my iron.

Before I lay out the hexies on my fabric squares I like to verify that I am putting the fusible side down. The fusible side is easily identified by the sheen, see it there?? You do not want that adhesive on your iron so be sure to put that side face down on the wrong side of your fabric square.

Once you've centered the hexie on your fabric square (fusible side down on the wrong side of your fabric), you press it with a hot iron. Don't move the iron around. It won't do anything to it, but it will just take longer... I "suspect", because you know I didn't do that, right? LOL OK, so maybe I did...

 and no, it did not speed things up, JIC you were wondering.

Once you get the hang of it you can go crazy and do a few at a time. The most I did was two at a time but I laid them out as shown below, and I just moved the iron onto the next row as I went along. This helped speed things up, and I was done in no time flat.

Next, I trimmed the fabric around the edges of the hexie to about a quarter of an inch, 

I did say "about", right???  

Then, I used my handi-dandi washable glue stick and glued the edges down. 

Don't worry, the glue will wash off so it won't be stiff.

Here's how I glued it. I put glue on the sides first...

then, when I got to the corners where I had to start with the next section, I added a "dab" of glue onto the folded part so the next piece would stick to the hexie AND the piece of fabric that was already folded. Oh, I'm slow so the glue kept drying one me (it goes on purple but dries clear). SO, I would suggest not applying all the glue at the beginning until you get good at it or put the camera down, LOL

The finished hexie will look like this. The template is washable and will not need to be removed. It's thin and will feel more like interfacing than anything else. It won't feel stiff after washing, I promise.

These little hexies are the bomb, really.

Iron on the whole pack of fabric squares and set them in a basket by your favorite chair... you will have them done, a little at a time, in no time at all.

Once completed, it will look, oh so stinkin' cute!!!

Once you have more than one you can start piecing them together. To start piecing them you will have to align the hexies you want to sew together. 

 When you are sure that you like the way your hexies look side by side, 

stack them, right sides together.

 Now, starting at the corner, stitch them together by "pinching" a little bit from each side as you whip stitch your way from one side to the next. Now remember, just a little pinch goes a long way. You want your stitches to be teenie weenie so you can wash this baby a hundred times and never worry about it coming apart...

 This is what your stitched side will look like when it's done. 

It kinda-sorta looked like a tent to me...

 but then I pressed it down with the hot iron and baby, 

it was looking pretty fancy!

 After that I was on a roll, so I added a few more stitches and whala... 

 WooHOO! I'm so good....

See? Nothing to it. You can do it too. 

Trust me, no one was more Hexagonally challenged than I was... 

if I can do it, so can you. 

You're going to need some fusible hexies, so here's a link:

http://www.pumpkinpatchprimitives.com/catalog.php?category=153
They come in two sizes, I used the 1" size... I suggest you start with the larger size and go smaller as you become more confident.

You are going to love making these! They're fast, and fun...and they look so cute!!!
Note:
If you do not have an email registered with Blogger I cannot answer your questions and/or comments directly.  If you have a question and /or comment (but do not have an email registered with Blogger), and would like  reply, please email me@ pumpkinpatchprimitives@yahoo.com. I would be happy to send you a reply. Brenda

The Case Of The Missing Mojo

Today marks the first day of what I shall call the Thirty Days Of Inspiration Project.

It's a thirty day quest to find inspiration and creativity. I seem to have lost these somewhere between Christmas and New Year's. Twenty days into 2014 I have yet to find anything that inspires me enough to pick up a paintbrush or a needle. I need inspiration!

I think this could be a case of Winter Blues, or a case of SAD;  but it could simply be a case of Missing Mojo. Who knows? I certainly don't, and it is for this reason that I have decided to take to Instagram to post pictures of things that inspire me.

I know I don't have the time or energy to blog for thirty days straight, and I already Facebook daily, or almost daily.... so I needed something out of my routine. I needed something that would document a conscious effort to find my inspiration. Following my dear friend, Joanna's lead (you can follow her here), I decided that I shall take to Instagram for a quick picture. 

One picture a day, for thirty days... I can handle that.

So if you are feeling like  you're in a slump, like you need a little inspiration... like you have a case of the Missing Mojo... follow me on Instagram and hopefully, we'll find it together. 

Not sure how to follow me? here's a great tutorial:

http://www.wikihow.com/Follow-Someone-on-Instagram
Have fun today!