Spring Hexie Table Runner

Is it just me, or does it seem like spring? Here in Missouri, we've had sunny skies, warm days, and my yard is full of blooming spring flowers. (I'm completely ignoring the forecast of snow coming this Saturday though!)

I grab hold of the first sign of spring and run with it. I'm always eager for the bright colors and sunshine that spring brings, plus that means Easter is fast approaching. I like to pull out my spring and Easter décor early so I can enjoy it for as long as possible.

When I was packing projects for the quilting retreat a couple weeks ago, I grabbed an old bag of hexies I made last year. I thought it would make a bright table runner to set out for spring, and if I got time at the retreat, I'd start it.

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The hexies were some of the very first English paper piecing I did. I was inspired to try EPP hexies after joining Beth Helfter of EvaPaige Quilt Designs in her "Drop and Give Me Twenty" challenge to sew 20 minutes every day in February. It's an annual challenge, but in 2016, we had a family vacation planned smack in the middle of the month. I wanted to keep up with my commitment to the challenge, so I knew hand sewing (which I loathe!) was the only way to go.

At the time, I had just watched a video tutorial by Nicole Daksiewicz of Modern Handcraft on how to thread baste hexies. It was worth a shot!

I started by cutting up the ugliest charm pack I had - "Honeymoon" by Cotton + Steel. I cut the 5" squares into fourths to get 2 1/2" squares. Then I printed out 1" hexagons on cardstock that I then cut with scissors.

(Note: Now I absolutely LOVE "Honeymoon" and have since purchased a fat quarter bundle of it that I cut into 2 1/2" squares. I stitch hexies whenever riding in the car. I hope to be able to make a throw quilt soon! I really like this kind of hand stitching! Also, I use my Cricut machine to cut out the hexies now!)

Since the experiment of making hexies seemed to work, I decided to cut up a good charm pack of "Dainty Blossoms" by Carina Gardner for Riley Blake Designs.

I continued to stitch hexies throughout our trip. By the end of the trip, I had stitched the whole charm pack up! (All the 5" squares cut into 2 1/2" squares.)

Then the bag of completed hexies just sat and sat, waiting for me to pick them back again.

Fast forward one year, I tossed the bag of hexies into my retreat bag. While at the retreat, I decided it was time!

I layered Kona White fabric for the backing, cotton batting, and Kona White for the top too. Then I laid out the hexies "randomly" and began to stitch them down with my walking foot. (Am I the only one that has a hard time with true randomness??) I used basting pins to hold the hexies in place since I was at the retreat and that's all I had. Normally I would use some school glue or basting spray on the back of the hexies.

I used my acrylic ruler and Hera marker to mark some of the lines when I couldn't use the corners of the hexies as a guide (like on the edges of the table runner in the span of white fabric.)

I had purchased some yardage of one of the prints in the Dainty Blossoms line from my local quilt shop, but forgot it at home. I had planned on using it for the backing, but changed that plan to make it work.

Once home, all I had to do was make the binding and stitch it on! A quick finish now!

Now I have a great spring table runner - a year in the making!

Linking up to Thank Goodness It's Finished Friday at Quilt Moderne, Finish It Up Friday at Crazy Mom Quilts, Finished or Not Friday at Busy Hands Quilts, Can I Get A Whoop Whoop? at Confessions of a Fabric Addict, and Show Off Saturday at Sew Can She.

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Rainbow Hexies

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Hexies a la Mode