Starting 2021 Off With a Quilt Project

A new year is always a good time to jump into something brand-new with both feet. After hitting the 300-mask milestone last fall, I've continued to sew face masks for anyone who needs them, but I have slowed down production from the frenzy I had earlier in the pandemic. Of course, I still have lots of fabric, and now that I'm nearly to my one-month anniversary of working at my new job, I've been feeling the urge to give quilting a try.

So when I came across this free tutorial for a quilt-as-you-go hexagon quilt, I figured it was worth a shot. What better way to use up all of my leftover bits of face mask fabric than sewing my very own quarantine quilt?

So, I bought a hexagon template set and some precut hexagon batting and some neutral gray fabric to use as the backing fabric...and now I'm totally obsessed with making these fun little hexagons! The process of cutting out the shapes and then pinning them together is incredibly satisfying. And then when you press down the edges to (hopefully) get a mitered corner...it's like magic!

If any knitters reading this post happen to remember the Beekeeper's Quilt Craze from about 5 or 10 years ago (yikes!), then you kinda know what I'm talking about. It's just so fun to use up all of those leftover bits you didn't think you would ever find a use for!

In addition to the face mask/quarantine sewing fabric quilt, I'm planning to also make hexies with my leftover holiday fabric, which I can then turn into a tree skirt for next year! While I love my kitchy sequined felt tree skirt inherited from my great grandparents, it's pretty delicate and I'm not sure that it can survive too many more years of service.

I still haven't decided if I'll try sewing all of the finished hexagons together by hand, or by machine. For now, I'm just going to make as many as I can, and watch them pile up in the project bin.

Don't worry - I'm still knitting and doing other yarny things, but it's been nice to have something new and exciting in the mix to give my hands a break from knitting.

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