Hexagon Christmas Ornament--post 2

Ornament fabrics 

Goal number three on my February goal list was to make another hexagon sample for my class coming in May. For me, completing each hexagon is like eating a potato chip. . .I can't stop at one! As I stitch the hexagons, I think about other projects that would be fun to stitch. 

Because I remind myself that I have many unfinished projects, I haven't started a big scale hexagon project. Likely, there are many quilters who also have many unfinished projects. 

My class participants may be quilters with unfinished projects. They wouldn't want another project to make. I decided that I would teach how to piece the hexagon. What they do with their pieced hexagons is up to each participant. 

Fussy cutting

If someone was new to hexagons, they might decide to piece more rosettes if they saw examples of finished projects. Because what appeals to me might not have the same appeal to another quilter. I knew I needed to have a variety of projects. Projects that could be gifted would be good choices.

Auditioning the block

My inspiration for the wreath ornament came from Createwhimsy.com. Ornaments make good gifts and a hexagon ornament would be unique! 

In my stash, I had a little bit of a snowman print and even less of a red/white stripe on a green background fabric. These two fabrics paired well. The fabrics spoke Christmas to me.

Auditioning the stripes

I fussy cute the snowman fabric because hexagons made with fussy cut fabric grab your attention. Hexagons made with striped fabric also provide visual interest.

Clipped and beginning to stitch

The snowman print wasn't printed evenly in each of the squares. I centered the print the best that I could to cut out the pieces. I might be able to cut two more ornaments out of the remaining fabric.

I also fussy cut the stripe fabric so that the stripe was centered in the middle of each hexagon. Once I had the pieces cut, I glue basted them to the paper foundations. I was mindful to check the position of the snowman as I glued the edge of the fabric around each template. Once the pieces were basted, I laid the pieces out as I would stitch the pieces. 

Almost invisible whip stitches

I used the ladder stitch to stitch the pieces together. I used a thread that matched the fabric. It didn't take long. I repeated the process with the striped fabric. I cut a piece of ribbon to act as a hanger. 

Then I used dots of Elmers glue along the edges of the rosette to join the two blocks together. I also inserted the ribbon. I used clips to hold the edges together until the glue dried. I used glue because I didn't want the edges misaligning. Gluing the edges helped.

I left the papers in the hexagons so that the ornament would have a firm shape. I used the whip stitch and a neutral thread to stitch the two hexagons together. I loved how the neutral thread blended into the fabric making the whip stitches nearly invisible. I have friend who will whip stitch with a polyester invisible thread to ensure that her stitches are not visible. 

I liked the result. I plan to cut more pieces for additional ornaments. I will make some step outs for class with those pieces.  It was super challenging to stop at one ornament!!! I definitely was feeling potato chip syndrome!

Finished back

The amount of scraps that I used in this project was small. Of the striped fabric, I used a two inch wide strip about 16 inches long.  I used a 5/8 inch hexagon template and the finished wreath measured about three and one quarter inches square.

Finished front

I've been playing with small scraps the last couple of weeks. This is my second project  using small scraps. (If you missed my Wednesday post about the Valentine postcards, click here.)  

I'm linking to Cynthia at Oh Scrap/Quilting Is More Fun Than Housework. Tune in Wednesday for my next post, I'm planning to play with some flannel scraps!