Scrappy Hexies — Finished at Last

As you know, I’ve been happily stitching away at an assortment of scrappy hexagons for quite some time now. The pile has grown from all sorts of places — my own fabric scraps, treasures from op shops, oddments from sales, and even a few flowers that were already basted when I found them. Others were just cut shapes waiting patiently for papers. I’ve enjoyed every minute of working through them, sewing them into cheerful little flowers.

Over the last few weeks the project gathered momentum, and on Thursday I put in the final few hexies to complete a lap‑size top. Friday was a busy day, but I still managed to trim the edges and start auditioning border fabrics.

This morning I made my decision, stitched the borders on, and pulled out a cosy fleece blanket to use as the backing. Onto the frame it went — no batting required.

For the quilting, I wanted something simple and gentle, so I chose clamshells, another lovely design by Kerryn Emmerson.

Being a lap size, the quilting didn’t take long at all. Before it was time to make dinner, the binding was on. After the meal I sat down to close the binding, and once the last stitch was done, I called in the holder‑upper for an outdoor photo shoot.

So here it is — the finished scrappy hexie quilt, posing beautifully in Old Man Tree.

And of course, the mandatory holder‑upper shot:

And one more look at Old Man Tree, because he wears a quilt so well.

Another scrappy hexie quilt completed — and with a whole pile of extra flowers waiting, I suspect it won’t be the last.

∘◦❀◦∘

Though I still have a cheerful pile of hexie flowers waiting in the wings, my focus for the foreseeable future will be on Kaiy’s quilt. My roster is a bit of a jumble at the moment — swaps, extra shifts, and general chaos — but I’m hoping to get all the blocks completed and joined before the end of the month. With a bit of luck, I might even get beyond that.

A great start to February.

My days off started with my usual rhythm — I’m sure you know it by now. Up early with Tony, then once he headed off to work, out came the cauldron and in went the veg and tomatoes. Uncle Ruffie’s sauce today. Once I had it bubbling away at a good steady simmer, I could leave it to do its thing and slip off to my sewing room.

I’ve been picking away at my squares here and there since my last post, so they were already sewn into strips of four. 

While I was sewing all those squares together, I spotted the most beautiful watercolour landscape hiding in one of the fabrics. I can see fields and paddocks separated by hedgerows and taller trees way over in the distance on the edge of a lake, with a far green shore and the sky beyond. 

Or is that just my imagination?

Seeing it set me off thinking about the whole bundle and wishing I’d taken photos before I cut into them. There were some real treasures in there. One looked just like those photos of Jupiter, with swirling clouds and that great storm rolling across the surface. Another reminded me of an octopus releasing ink into the deep — soft, drifting plumes of colour blooming through water. And a third had the softest pink glow, exactly like a winter dawn sky. Little pieces of all of them kept appearing as I stitched, tiny glimpses of whole worlds tucked into each square.

Today’s plan was to turn strips of four, into strips of five. I stitched about a third of them, then scooted back to the kitchen to stir the cauldron and tick off a couple of small chores before returning to the machine for the next batch. And then again — more stirring, more chores, more squares. By the time I’d added the final square to every strip, the sauce was ready to ladle into pots for the freezer. Yum.

Once the kitchen was sorted, I took a seat and snipped all the chain‑pieced strips apart. Then came the pressing. It took me a full hour to get them all flattened and lined up (tidily‑ish) on my cutting table. The next job will be to turn them into blocks of 5 × 7 little 2.5‑inch squares — but that’s a task for another day. Fabric sudoku may take a while.

Next, I headed into town to finish my errands, grabbed a quick lunch, and now I’m back in my chair with a cuppa. It’s almost time to settle in with my hexies. With a bit of luck, I might even get the top finished today 

I have two more days off, but Tony will be home for both of them and weather permitting we're hoping to have a working bee out in the garden, there are one or two jobs that need taking care of out there.  There is also another 50th Birthday party to attend. 

And now I’m off to play with my hexies for the afternoon. I hope everyone’s February plans are unfolding kindly — mine certainly are, and I’m feeling very happy with my progress so far.

∘◦❀◦∘

Anchor Me.

It’s done. It’s finished. Well… except for the label.

Anchor Me is Inspired by this quilt, 

But I didn't buy a pattern, I made my own way, designing it in my head as I sewed. 

It measures 96 x 104 inches.

When I suggested to Josie she and Jiffy would be anchored together, she loved the idea. So the Name came before I even started.

The very first fabric pull for this quilt happened way back in April last year, when I realised I didn’t have quite enough blues and greens. Batiks are hard to come by in New Zealand at the moment, so I shopped around here and found very little. Later, in Bathurst, enabled by Janice I hunted down more, and between us we gathered what I needed.

Those fabrics then sat quietly in a box on my cutting table for months, whispering at me every time I walked past. Finally — with a bit of encouragement from several people — I began cutting in the first week of January 2026.

Chooky had suggested using 4‑inch squares, so I cut them at 4.5 inches to finish at 4. There are 580 blue‑green squares in total, forming the background and the outer border. The inner border is a 4‑inch strip of Moko, a Māori‑inspired charcoal‑on‑black fabric. 

It isn’t a batik, but it sits beautifully with the blues, and I used the same fabric for the anchor itself.

As you know, I played around with scrap paper to get the proportions right before drawing the anchor freehand onto Vliesofix. I’m very happy with how it turned out — bold, clean, and exactly the right presence on the quilt.

Last week, on my days off, I layered and quilted the top using an E2E design by Keryn Emmerson called Waves. It felt perfectly appropriate. Yesterday I trimmed it and added the binding, stitching about half of it down by hand before heading to bed. This morning, I finished the last of the binding and then waited for Joe and family to arrive so he could help Tony hold it up for a good outdoor photo.

The back is a huge piece of wide back in another kiwi inspired fabric called Kiwiana Koru Frond. The binding is more of the Moko fabric. 

It was an absolute delight to make. There’s something so satisfying about the simplicity of squares — the calm rhythm of straight lines, the ease of nesting seams, none of the drama of bias edges or tricky angles. Just fabric, shape, and flow. These blues and greens sing together exactly the way I hoped they would, each one adding its own note to the whole.

And there, sitting proudly on top, is the anchor — bold, steady, and unmistakably the star of the show. The quilting design, Waves, felt right not only for its name but for its gentle movement. It adds texture without stealing the spotlight. The anchor may shine, but those blues and greens hold the whole story together, the perfect sea for it to rest upon.

∘◦❀◦∘

Of course, no quilt around here gets finished without a little “help” from Tony. The final photo shows him unpacking his shopping all over my ironing board, happily showing me fishhooks and bits of tackle while I was trying to sew rows of squares together. He has an uncanny ability to appear exactly when I don't need interruptions, but he does it with such enthusiasm that I can’t help but smile as I roll my eyes.  

The rest of life doesn’t pause for quilting, and honestly, I wouldn’t have it any other way.

I can't wait for June!

January Round‑Up and February Goals.

They say you should start the year as you intend to continue, and I was lucky enough to do exactly that. I rang in the New Year with Chooky and the girls on Zoom — stitching, chatting, laughing, and easing into 2026 with good company and a pile of hexagons. I was working over New Year’s as well, but the Zoom, the sewing, and the familiar faces are what stayed with me.

∘◦❀◦∘

Deana is running her Chookshed Challenge again this year to help everyone tackle their UFOs (and, let’s be honest, anything else we feel like throwing on the list). I’m not officially taking part this time, but I have committed to making a small list each month to keep myself focused. So here’s how January went.

January Goals

1) Keep working on my scrappy hexies

I was hoping to get them to lap‑quilt size and maybe even quilted and bound. I didn’t quite get that far, but I’m only a few hexies away now and very happy with the progress.

I’ve actually added a little more since this picture was taken.

2) Finish the poppy quilt and get it off the frame

It didn’t get finished… but it is off the frame. It’s currently folded and sitting in the naughty corner. I’ll get to it one day.

3) Make a start on Jiffy and Josie’s wedding quilt

I’m pleased to say I made more than a start — the top is finished, it’s quilted, and it just needs binding. Hopefully I’ll get to that later today.

4) Decide on this year’s ornament and hopefully make a start.

Well, I decided! I even pulled out some supplies… and that’s as far as that got.

One goal smashed, one politely ignored, one shoved out of the way, and one nearly done. 

Honestly, that’s a win.

∘◦❀◦∘

What Else Happened in January?

My girl Kaiy will be on the island for her brother’s wedding, so I decided she needed a quilt too. (Yes I know, I said no squirrels, but this squirrel is very important).  A rummage through my batiks drawer revealed more than enough in her favourite colours. All the cutting is done and everything is ready for sewing.

The majority of these fabrics have now been cut into 2.5 inch squares honest! The rest are sitting in reserve, just in case I did my sums wrong. LOL

∘◦❀◦∘

Tony and I finished a few jigsaws. Always fun. 

We also had a week away with friends. It was relaxing, full of good company, and we even brought home the fish we caught.

Back at home, the greenhouses and garden have been producing beautifully, so I’ve been busy in the kitchen making sauces and relish, and I even pickled some onions for Tony.

∘◦❀◦∘

February Goals 

Time to put some February goals down and see where life takes me.

1) Bind the Anchor quilt. and make a proper label

Not just my wee Loulee label — a real, grown‑up, proper label for this one.

2) Make huge progress on Kaiy’s quilt.

All the squares are cut, and the sashing fabric is sitting on the table. I just need to make a start and keep the momentum going and figure out a name for it.

3) Make a start on the ornaments.

It would be lovely to deliver three of them in person in June when I travel to the island for the wedding. There’s plenty of time… I just need to get busy.

4) Finish the hexie quilt.

A job that really shouldn’t take long if I get myself into gear.

No squirrels. No side journeys. Focus!

 

∘◦❀◦∘

Back on the Frame Again.

 Yesterday started just as planned, with a cauldron of relish bubbling away on the stove. I was up with Tony before six, so the pot was on before seven. It needs a good 90 minutes before anything else can happen, so I took the chance to relax and catch up on some blog reading.

Once Tony headed off to work and the cauldron had done its time, I moved on to the next steps of the recipe. While it bubbled some more, I set about loading the anchor quilt onto my frame.

I'm happy to report that there was plenty of backing fabric this time. 

With the relish still simmering, I wound four bobbins and got myself organised. When the relish was finally poured into sterile jars and the dishes were washed and put away, I treated myself to a quick cuppa before starting the quilting.

I was glad I’d chosen a simple design — it’s been a while, and I was definitely wobbling a bit. A practice piece might have been wise but never mind. It is what it is. The smell of vinegar still hung in the air, and it wasn’t a day for wide‑open windows, so a headache settled in and refused to budge. I decided to step away from the quilting at lunchtime.

I spent a while looking for this year’s Christmas ornament and I think I’ve found it, so the afternoon wasn’t wasted. Hopefully on my next days off I’ll have time to gather the supplies.

By the time Tony came home I was already back to quilting. I did a quick turn while tea cooked, then finished the quilting after we’d eaten. As you can see, it’s still not trimmed — that’s a job for the next round of days off.

Back to work today, so I might sew a few hexies, or maybe start joining those 2.5‑inch squares here and there before or after work.

The good news is the rain clouds have finally blown away, and the sun is supposed to return to Timaru. With any luck we’ll warm up and dry out a bit. Fingers crossed. I know some of you are hoping for cooler days and a drop of rain, while others are wrapped up avoiding the snow. Whatever your weather, I hope you have a wonderful day.