My Blue Hexies

IMG_4299In October of 2014 I discovered Geta Grama, a fantastic quilter from Romania.  (Thank you, Al Gore, for inventing the internet so I can discover all these European quilters.)  On her blog she has a quilt called “Together in a Friendship World“.  It is amazing.  Hand pieced hexagons, but she has changed their dimensions, to make the quilt look 3-d.  Of course, it is all hand pieced.
Fortunately, she also has a smaller, more attainable pattern, made with machine appliqué.  (I try to restrict myself  only one hand-piecing project at a time, or they never get finished.  Luckily, a machine made quilt is a different category, and I start as many of those as I please.  Occasionally I finish them.)  The pattern for “My Secret Flower Garden” cost me $13, and was worth every penny.  The directions are very clear, and she breaks down a fairly complex process into easy steps.
I have a few photos of the process.  Geta has a very clear tutorial on her website, and the directions in the pattern are wonderful.

I finished the top in two days, and then followed her directions for feathered hexagon quilting over the next two.   This was a rare attempt at free motion quilting this elaborate.  I think it turned out very well.  I did just sew from one hexie to another, and my in-between stitches are visible.  In hindsight, I should have stopped and started for each section, but really, I wasn’t feeling that detail oriented that day.
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This quilt one a first-place ribbon at the Big E in 2015.  Thanks, Geta!

2 thoughts on “My Blue Hexies

  1. Absolutely gorgeous! You did a great job.
    A question, though…I know the pieces are fused down and quilted, but is there any stitching around the raw edges (the typical stitching on a raw edge appliqué piece)?

    1. I did not stitch down the edge of each piece. I know that is usually a treatment for machine applique. I’m not sure if Geta’s pattern called for that or not. I intended the piece to be a wall hanging, so I did not. Many of the outer pieces are so small that if I had done a blanket stitch or zig zag around the edge, none of the fabric would have shown, unless I used something other than cotton thread.

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