joe'smom

After working so long on the half blocks, I spent yesterday experimenting with the idea of using regular setting triangles instead, in the medium blue color. Even if I should decide to go that direction, I don't consider the work on the half blocks a waste, because they led to switching out some full blocks for the half blocks, plus I learned alot about matching the seams.

There are lots of interesting border treatments and colorways showing up on Quiltville.

SusieQOH

joe'smom- where are you seeing them? I can't find any.

joe'smom

Over on the right of the main body of posts, there is a link that says 'recent group photos,' and if you click on that, you can see all photos posted to the group. I also scroll through the posts a couple of times per day, as it seems that some photos don't end up in that 'recent photos' section.

WMUTeach

I was at a quilt work day with some of my guild members and all who are making the BHMQ mentioned the amount of extra unused pieces. This is disappointing to find out that as many as 30 plus extra unused pieces are not used .

joe'smom

I thought some of Bonnie's comments in the clues showed she was aware of how upsetting this would be to some people, but said she didn't see how she could have presented the clues in such a way as to prevent it -- they were confusing enough as it was. Personally, I don't mind because it was so much fun and I really love the block.

My sewing went very well today on the corner and geese block units. I only had to adjust a few geese units. I'm hoping to finish with them tomorrow.

origamigoldfish

I took a break from this quilt for a week, started sewing on it again yesterday. I am still having trouble matching up the points around the flying geese. Even when I take the time to carefully pin and clip properly, my machine will still distort the seams sewing over all that bulk. I had to take one seam apart and put it back together six times yesterday to get something acceptable. Very frustrating, because i am not sure if my troubles are something I have done or if my skills just aren't up to par.

Iceblossom

Geese are tough, Origami. Hang in there. But in general, I have lot of reasons on why I like cutting large and trimming down. The waste is tiny compared to the huge gains in accuracy (and speed). I find that if I concern myself more with the base the points will take care of themselves most of the time. Even with my over-sized pieces and that all my pieces at least fit, I have about 90% good blocks, 5% ok, and 5% are those noticeable Funky Monkeys.

As for the extra pieces? There were all sorts of ways it could have been prevented. It takes basically 6 inches more fabric to turn those single use blocks into two. Barely anything to make the four corner units out of one block instead of 4.

All this to deliberately try and make people think "oh, there are likely to be pinwheels spinning in the opposite direction in the other blocks"? I don't think much of that excuse.

Overall I was very happy with this project (minus my own Parakeet issues -- but let's just mention her paint chip is the background of that and not the predominant color of what she herself picked). But no way am I prepared to waste the time or fabric to just throw away blocks worth of effort. It isn't just a couple of pieces. Lay out those leftovers, it's basically six fully wasted blocks.

I'd rather make the efforts I'm making now and have more choice out of those I am using in the top. I understand my decision to make the extra units to make the blocks is not what most people are going to do. I think most people are going to have "more usable" fabric in those than my project.

But enough grumbling, I still have another two little pieces of fabric to find if I can to make one more set of the setting units. Would have been so easy to match if I had used prints. Again, I think the people who used yardage came out very well this time. I was actually very pleased with this project -- until the waste happened. And that can be designed out/better next time.

Edit: You can't please everyone, but this amount of waste was a bad call by Bonnie. It's a yard of fabric. Pull out 6 of your completed blocks, look at them and throw them away! That's what this wasteful setting set-up did, and it offends me deeply.

KalamaQuilts

re: extra pieces left over.
as more people get further along on the facebook quiltville studio group I'm seeing many posts about leftover bits.
And oddly enough they seem (in my foggy mind) to run about 1/2 and 1/2 with many people saying they only have a few leftovers. One of those life mysteries!

toverly

Love everyone's blocks. I have done a few of BH Mysteries and always have had leftover pieces. But turning lemons into lemonade, I just make more and make a pillow sham or two. It really works great since I usually make twin size and throw size. I also have made extra blocks and run a vertical strip of the pattern down the back.

Iceblossom

It's all about perspective, Kalama! Probably as many (or more even!) people were glad that they didn't actually have to make blocks as were upset about the end waste.

I do modern strip piecing techniques. There is a certain amount of waste in that. There is a certain amount in my cutting large.and trimming down, but less than just what is left over from the end of a strip that doesn't get used up. Typically I use less fabric than one extra row of cutting correctly.

I don't mind making units and slashing through them for the setting, again, I do that sort of thing all the time. That's not the waste that bothers me. But unless I've done something really wrong (which includes making bad choices), I don't just cut up fabric to sew it and then discard it and that's what I'm objecting to. It was a bad use of my time in addition to my material.

For those that are fans of Bonnie's style or construction techniques, well, yeah, they are nice little HST units or whatever and I'm sure you can do something with them eventually. Again, not so much for me with my fabric selections and my style of quilting, and they do not have a place at all in my storage system -- other people are equipped to deal with such things.

My current theory is if the fabric doesn't get used up in the current project, out it goes! I am going to be able to use those leftovers and half blocks in the back, and I'm going to have blocks to pick and choose my layout. But no, this whole pile of trims and pieces and deliberate over-cuts in addition to my own counting mistakes and mis-cuts/redone pieces is going out the door when the top is done. (Or I think it is, haven't heard yet from my crumb quilter if she wants these trimmings, she's mostly been gone since the board redesign).

For me the equivalent of 6 blocks that I've already partially completed is a huge amount. To others not so much. It's not even the wasted fabric, I have plenty of fabric, but for others a yard is a significant amount of fabric/cost. I quilt for fun, but I don't do it for no purpose, there was no real purpose for this other than to fool me and to waste my time, energy and fabric. Again, I don't accept that but I'm going to figure it will be better next time.

Edit (if I came back in time): I'll have to go back through the beginning, but if this sort of thing is going to be used in the future, a "warning: there will be enough leftover sewn/cut units for a baby quilt" would be good for me to know in advance. The mystery can stay alive until we know what is used. And then as an extra gift maybe a plan for the scraps. They are definitely usable.