I fell in love with Hex on the Beach by Tula Pink when I saw pictures of it surface at Quilt Market a year ago. Throughout the past year, this became my road trip project, my quilt guild project, and my waiting room project. It was super portable, and I just loved having something to do with my hands during those times when I can't be at my machine. This is perhaps why I love EPP.
It was during the final assembly process that I really started to burn out. It would have been good for me to work on something else alongside this project, but for some reason I just couldn't divide myself. And so, I put every other project on hold and after many many weeks of stitching hexagon after hexagon and waking up every morning with my thumb joints in pain, it's finally, finally pieced.
I absolutely love it. Tula Pink's solids & pom poms is one of my favorite fabric collection from last year, so I think this quilt which features all the colors so brilliantly laid out is just stunning. But that being said, I'm still not entirely sure it was worth the effort and the injured thumb joints and all the times I pricked my fingers ...
But it's a lovely quilt top, and I'm sure it'll be lovelier still when I finally get around to quilting it, which at the rate I'm going, means possibly never. But I've come to terms with the fact that I might never get around to quilting all my quilts.
And ... surprise surprise, I already have my next English Paper Piecing quilt all lined up. But I probably won't start it for quite awhile. For the next few months, it's going to be all about machine piecing and machine quilting (with a few accessory projects thrown in), and I'm so glad!
I am stunned. It is so gorgeous AND you started another one. I have put mine away for awhile, is La Passacagalia and it is not going to be a huge piece, no room for that big a quilt....which is a good thing as it limits me. It will be even more gorgeous when you get your quilting "fingers" into it!
ReplyDeleteWow! I like EPP as a hand sewing project, too, but I do MUCH smaller projects! This is a beast, but a beautiful beast! Congratulations on finishing the top!
ReplyDeleteWhoa. Just whoa. That is a whole lot of hexies, Liz! Yikes. I have a stack of (almost) 20 hexie flowers, and I'm already wondering what I was thinking, along with "I can just finish these now, right?" Hahaha. You seriously need to quilt this, someday ;-) How big is one hexie?
ReplyDeleteThis is an awesome quilt! I just started my first hexie EPP project ever and have 9 flowers finished. It is nice to have a project to work on at the pool or on car trips.
ReplyDeleteYour top is gorgeous. Like you, I have very sore thumb joints and have had to put my hexie EPP down for a few weeks!
ReplyDeleteI was wondering about the dots on some of the hexies. Are those printed into the fabric, or appliqued on top? Your quilt is beautiful, by the way...and as my quilt buddies and I say..."you're almost done!".
ReplyDeleteHi Penny, those dots are printed onto the fabric, and I simply did a bit of fussy cutting to get them centered.
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