Hello Everyone,
Just a little business first... Check out the new arrivals at my shop! They arrived on Thursday and Friday. There is new Brandon Mably, Kaffe Fassett, and Philip Jacobs. I know you will love them!!
Thank you for coming back to hear the rest of this story. So here is what has been done so far:
- Karen has phoned and e-mailed, many times, the magazine. Result: Not so helpful.
- She found where the designer is located by Googling her name and locating her through a blog. The designer does not have her own blog or website.
- An e-mail was sent off to the designer, Karen spoke to her last night and boy what help she was and nice to boot!
- So both of us persevered. Karen more than me. The pictures below will begin our awakening.
- The best news though, Karen got it all figured out. She took a picture of her ONE completed star, but her computer crashed. So that picture we will have to share with you at a later date. Sorry!
This first picture shows you my first 1/4 block. What I didn't realize at this point was that this quarter block was just too small. How can that be? I did everything right or at least I thought I did.
This second quarter block looks okay too. However, if you note at the edges I lose the quarter inch that I need for the red diamonds to maintain their points.
Here are the too blocks together. Doesn't look too bad here, points all match up nicely. But pictures are deceiving. Next the Ugly Truth...
One block is definitely larger than the other. Now I know you may be thinking, wow there is a lot of bias in this quilt. Yes, that is right. You also might be thinking that starch would have been a great idea. Did that, many times. So what is the answer?
Here is Karen's block. You can see the one on the right is looking pretty good.
Here is a picture of the block not looking so good. Sorry for the blurriness, this is the only one Karen could send. If you notice at the top of the block, the triangles are not meeting correctly to form that 1/4 inch that we need.
So you are all probably wondering how Karen got it all figured out. I was too. I felt badly that all week I was not able to work on it and Karen kept plugging away. So here is what she did. STARCH from step one! Before the strips were even sewn at all she starched them. Then in every step along the way, she applied starch. Karen was meticulous with her 1/4" seams, but we both always are, but she checked and rechecked.
The result a perfect Sandhill Star!! Yay, Karen!! I am sorry there is no picture to show here, but Karen promised me once her computer is up and running she will forward it to me so I can share it with you. She also wanted me to impress upon you that this is absolutely NO reflection on the designer. The designer confirmed with Karen that the directions in the magazine were definitely not accurate. The designer has offered her support to us throughout our quilt making journey.
I am anxious to start on my block again and this time get it right!! I truly hope that this little mini series has been helpful to you. It has been to Karen and I. Remember, this is how we learn, from our mistakes.
Until Next Time...
