Curl Up With ...

 ... a Comfy Pillow, a Snuggly Quilt and a Good Book!

Welcome to the "Getting a Clue With Nancy Drew"  Blog Hop!

  I started with this bright and graphic charm pack.

When I signed up for this hop, I had a plan (or thought I did as there are rulers in this photo) for just what I wanted to make so I ordered this charm pack.   When the hop was delayed due to the slow shipment of this fabric to the shops, this went on the back burner.  When the charm pack arrived in December, it was off the stove completely and cooling on the shelf. 

Three blog hops and numerous other projects later, my machine went into the shop for servicing just when this finally got off the shelf and back into the mix.   

Ah ... problem ... I needed my machine for my original idea. 

Time for Plan B !

Quilt As Yo Go Hexagon Pillow Top!

For the how-to details, read on!

For My Giveaway and a list of all the blog hops stops today,
 scroll to the bottom of my post!

Pillow Tutorial

Plan B involves quite a bit of hand sewing and quilt as you go ... it was what I was planning for "Stitch Me Up" ... hmmmmmmmm ...

need a new plan for that one, too.

For now  ~~~~~~>

Cluing In with Quilt As You Go Hexagons!

Last fall when Superstorm Sandy took out my lights for awhile I also had to hand sew and quilts so I worked up my own method for making this fall table topper ...

QAYG Hexies, 101.1 ...Tutorial ... Fall 2012

 QAYG Hexies, 101.2

So for Plan B, Nancy Drew gets a QAYG Hexagon Lesson ...

Perle Cotton ... stitch through all layers

Katniss Helps

Ladder Stitch Down

Ladder Stitch Up

Butterfly Helps



Seam Complete

Front of Hexes



Press

Just keep sewing ... just keep sewing  ~~~~>

Katniss helps me piece the hexies together.

In this picture the magnifying glass is not a prop.  It is a tool. 

My eyesight is not the best.

Sometimes I need to use it when I am sewing.

I also have arthritis in my hands. I love to hand stitch, though.  This type of project is time consuming and I have to take frequent breaks.  I need plenty of light.  I turn on my music player.  As long as I keep to this system, I actually find hand sewing and quilting relaxing.

piecing the hexagons together

matching the intersections

As these are soft and flexible hand quilted hexagons, there are some slight variations which you do not find in the crisp English Paper Piecing method.  Or it in my piecing.  The hexagons may not all be "perfect" but they fit them together very well.  Because it is fabric, the corners and edges are forgiving and allow for user imperfections. 

The finished project will look fine. 

Or I think sew ;) ...

close up

a few more pieces to the puzzle ...

and pillow top pieced and ready for finishing!

This pillow will finish to the size for a 15" pillow form. 

 choosing fabrics for making the pillow

stay stitch pillow top layers

To make a nice flat but soft top, I cut a square of cotton batting and muslin and layered them and ran a line of stay stitching 1/8th of an inch from the edge.  At this point I did not worry about the hexagon shapes that were sticking out over the squares.  Trimming comes later.

By this time my machine had come back from the spa, all defoliated, oiled, pampered rested and renewed and ready to go ... :)

 sewing pockets on the back

For the back of the pillow I made a foldover so I could insert the pillow form in and remove it for easy washing.  I cut a red square 15.5 inches and folded over about four inches.  Then I layered a piece of the blue print, 15.5 inches by 10.5 inches with a fold under of about two inches at the opening to the left of the red square. I used an extra charm to make a square pocket with a muslin lining and I used two extra hexagons for two little pockets.

When you are layering to add a traditional quilt binding to a pillow, sandwich with the fronts facing out, just as you would for a quilt.

machine sewing on the binding

through all layers of the quilt sandwich

trim binding 3/4 inch away from your binding seam

 hand sewing the binding to back

Katniss helps me sew the binding

back pockets

pillow back

I really like both sides of this pillow.



I Spy a Katniss looking for clues!

Time for ...

 My Giveaway!
[This Giveaway is now Closed]
(Cat Not Included ;)

I have 10 Nancy Drew Charms left!

I put these together in a kit with one of my QAYG Hexagons,
10 hand-cut batting hexagons, my high-tech paper pattern, two John James embroidery needles and a twist of red 12 Perle Cotton for you to make your own mini project!

For this little starter kit to be yours, follow these easy clues ~~~>

For a chance to win, please leave my quilty kitties and I one comment. 
We love comments! 

You do not need to be a follower to win.

I will send my 10 charms anywhere in the world.

Please be sure that I have a way to contact you by email to tell you that you have won and to get your mailing address.

For a second chance to win, be a follower and
leave a second comment telling me you are.

Butterfly says, "Get a clue!" 

For a third chance to win,

you will need to do some sleuthing and answer this question: 

What is the name of the quilt that appears in pictures on the chair? 

(Hint ... I made this quilt for a recent blog hop... ;)

This Giveaway will close at Midnight EST March 15th
I will use a random number generator to select one comment and
the winner will be announced her on my blog on March 16th

~~~~~~~~ 
Sew you do not miss a clue,

visit all of today's bloggers:

Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Michelle’s Romantic Tangle

Life in the Scrapatch (you are here!)

Debby Kratovil Quilts

Selina Quilts

Meadowbrook

Hilltop House Creative Works

My Sister Made Me Do It

Whims and Fancies

Pieced Brain

Just Let Me Quilt

Today is just the start of this big beautiful blog hop.
To see all the creations follow: 

Full Schedule Here

Thanks to our great cheerleader, Carol at Just Let Me Quilt

and

Thanks to Madame Samm at Sew We Quilt

Looking forward to collecting clues from every post and every day of this fabulous blog hop!

Thank you for visiting My Scrapatch!

:)