Fun with Hexagons!

Hexagons are six-sided geometric shapes that can be sewn together to make patterns such as Grandmother's Flower Garden (popular quilts of the 1930s/1940s). Recently, I bought some fabrics with forest animals. Using a special template tool sold by Nancy's Notions, I was able to easily isolate designs, mark them, and cut them out to apply over (smaller) pre-cut hexagon papers sold by Paper Pieces.

Hexagons in progress in my studio

So far, I have constructed a number of units and am currently "playing," in making more. I have no idea how they will be used, ultimately. Right now, I am just enjoying piecing hexagons together that I have constructed. I am thinking that finished rosette units could be appliquéd to a table runner that is then lined. Or, I could add "paths" between them and create a mini quilt. Those paths would be a cream color or off-white, I believe, not Nile green such as were used mid-20th century.

I have made other projects before using hexagons. "Hexies" are fun! My most ambitious project to date has been the miniature quilt with 1,039 different hexagon pieces, all different except two of them, as was true of the original 1880s quilt I was attempting to reproduce in spirit! It was a "charm" quilt of sorts, or maybe just intended to be a charm quilt but the quilter goofed and added two fabrics that were exactly alike. The challenge lay in collecting that many different pieces of cloth!

We shall see what the current hexies will look like when used to create a finished piece of some kind. Meanwhile, I am just having fun working with 1930s reproduction fabrics and some 1930s authentic fabrics, used as alternate pieces of cloth to the "Forest Frolics" fabrics designed by Heidi Boyd for Red Rooster Fabrics.