Vol 2 - Sophomore Final

Yes, it's time for the Final Exam.  If you don't already know how this works, a quick explanation.

For the very last project in the book, Harriet and Carrie set a Final Exam. 

This is what you get.........

A photograph of the finished quilt
An illustration of a single block
An illustration of an internal frame block
An illustration of an internal frame corner block
A series of questions such as.....
How many unit # are in one block?
How many are needed for all 5 blocks?
How many inches of strip sets are needed to accommodate the number of units needed?

That is all.

What you don't get..........

A grid size
No fabric quantities
No cutting instructions
No pressing directions
No construction instructions
No assembly instructions

Phew - tough exam? You bet!

Here is a pic of the Sophomore Exam Quilt - Ice Crystals

 

Designed by Carrie Hargrave, its a variation of Bygone Surrounded

 



 As promised, I worked on this today and have finished one block.

 

My Test Block for Ice Crystals

 

 

Now that all seems great - I made the exam block so now all I need to do is make another 4 of these, add the internal frame, side setting triangles, borders and the top is done.  There is however, a problem.

 

I did not make this block the way Harriet intended.  I didn't sit down with a calculator or graph paper or a spreadsheet and figure it all out first.  Uh- uh no.  I can't seem to be able to work that way.  It makes my brain hurt.

 

What I did was set my grid size first (I chose a 1 inch grid) and made up the units on the fly, calculating the measurements as I went.  I wrote my measurements and quantities on the worksheet as I made the units up.

 

This method works for me, and that's fine I suppose at this level, but as the lessons progress to more complex blocks, I think I'm going to find myself in a bit of trouble.

 

The block and sashing on a 1 inch grid is huge - finishing at 21.5 inches.  This was unexpected and after making just one block I find I'm short on the print fabric.  I used a fat quarter and I have only half of this left.  My options now are to go back to the shop and buy the correct yardage (if they have any left).  Or I could use a different fat quarter print for each block (an interesting idea I rather like) because all the black on white prints in my stash are fat quarter cuts.  Or I could simply discard this block and start from scratch using a new set of fabrics.  Also not a bad idea as it's good practice I think to make and keep a test block from all quilt projects (something I haven't been doing - oops).

 

I'll sleep on it and decide tomorrow how to progress this.............

 

Cheers :)