All things hexy

My latest projects have had a common theme.
that cute little six sided block, called the hexagon.

It started innocently enough...I spied a cute button on Katy's website and had to have it for mine. see that  button over there on the right?  About three buttons down.  I love grabbing people's buttons.  Yes!

I'll quilt-along!  I'll join your club!  I'll read Bronte and --well maybe not the Bronte group.  Sorry.  You gotta start saying no sometimes.

Anyway, Texas Freckles has a great little motivating group to encourage us all to do english paper pieced hexes.  I had started, before the quilt along, my own hex project.  Then I  stopped, then I lost my hex project all together, and even started a half-hex as I thought that would be quicker and easier---but it wasn't.  And that's all I'm going to say about half-hexes.  I bravely posted that quilt on flickr and I'm glad I finished it.  And that's all I'm going to say about that.

So since I was trying all sorts of hexagon piecing, I thought it would be cheeky to try the Amy Butler Sexy Hexy as well.    I read Nichole's blog about a very bad experience with the pattern (free on Amy's website).  And the directions are daunting and entirely off-putting.  So my advice--in my humble, novice opinion, I must add, is this:

Disregard the 11 pages of instructions almost entirely.  

there.  I said it.  I hope I don't get struck down by lightening now.

  But I can't make since of cutting 4 of this and 10 of this and so on if I can't see how it's coming together.  So I took the C band, the D band and the middle hex pattern piece, cut out one block at a time and looked thru the sewing instructions.

You sew C to D then all those pieces together--it should look like a hexagon at this point, and applique the middle hexagon.

I had to cut out one block at a time so I could understand the color ranges within the block and with each other.

I laid it out in a flower shape when I had finished 7 blocks and filled in 4 half hexes at the edges.  I thought I could cut the hexagon pattern in half for this job, but it needs extra for a seam allowance.  So note that.

I think I'm going to leave the zig zag edge on one side.  I like it.

So then I sewed the hexagons together and that was my first experience with Y seams.  See the puckers.

I had to rip it out and I learned that if you sew from the center, after the quarter of an inch seam allowance, it lies flat.  

Now I have to figure out my backing and quilt it and I think I'll have that little block out  of my wheel house for a while.  Except, of course, for the hex charm quilt along.  I want one of those cute progress bars like Texas Freckles has on the margin, too...

And speaking of cute buttons you gotta have on your blog, check out the Fat Quarterly button!

Hmmm, I think I stole that one from Katy, Imagingermonkey as well.  

You know Fat Quarterly is an eZine chock full of quilty goodness and inspiration and it's very first issue is Tuesday!  April 27th!!

I hope there's a question/answer section.  I got a lot of questions for those experts.  I cannot wait.  And maybe, just maybe--I'll listen to their advice.