The Leeds Challenge

  

The shoe box project

Back in July 2013 I was inspired by my friend to make a patchwork quilt for my daughter Katharine who is planning on going to Leeds University in September 2014. The challenge was to make a hexagon hand pieced top without buying any new fabric. Sadly that "not buying bit" didn't work. Anyhow since we  were going on holiday almost immediately I turned it into a project in a shoe box to make it portable.  In the box I put all the usual sewing kit, thread, scissors and pins. I had also prepared envelopes containing prepared fabric and papers. The papers were made by drawing around a cardboard hexagon template and then cutting along the line. 

 

Piecing over papers back

And front

I returned with this collection of "flowers"

March 2014 almost too big to photograph!

The paper was pinned to a piece of fabric which was then cut out with a small seam allowance approximately 3/8". The fabric was folded over the edges of the papers and pinned  and tacked in place.

This worked brilliantly. So easy to take away.

Each set of hexagons was then sewn together to make flowers.

I had forgotten how enjoyable hand sewing is.

I came back with a large collection of "flowers" to stitch together which took a while and focused my mind on the need to speed up. In January I discovered the Wendover Sewing Bee run by Deb of Plain Stitch. I had a lovely evening and met lots of inspiring sewers. I was also reminded of the marvellous product freezer paper. Thank you all so much.

Now the top is almost big enough to add borders and really tricky to photograph, I will fall off that chair one day!

It is interesting looking at the photograph as it highlights well the light and dark areas of the patchwork.

Thinking back, I should probably have made a plan for the patchwork but it was intended to be semi random which somehow makes it more difficult.

7" to go to finish the hexagon piecing and then on to the borders.