Hazel & Little Hazel: Part 2

My exciting new Mystery BOM 'Sweet 2016' starts on February 14th - Valentine's Day- and with Hazel and Little Hazel and Oma's Blues  both due for a block release on the 15th, I've decided to release Part 2 a few days early. If you are downloading the pattern from my blog

CLICK HERE NOW FOR HAZEL 

CLICK HERE NOW FOR LITTLE HAZEL

When I designed Hazel I thought about releasing the 8 Point Star block as 1 Part and leaving it at that - but I know that many people in my BOM Group are new to 8 Point Stars and star blocks can turn into one of those blocks people decide they just won't do because they can be a bit of a hassle. This is why I broke this central block down into three parts - it really IS achievable, you just need to approach it in a step by step method - and not rush any single part of the process. Which brings us to Part 2: the second and third rounds. 

How gorgeous are my Fassett's?!

You know how I'm always talking about the importance of preparation? Well it just keeps proving itself over and over as the key to good block construction. Have your fabrics prepared, cut them out accurately and then, for Part 2, set them up into 'units'. A 'unit' consists of Template C & D from the 2nd and 3rd row coming together to create 1 unit. Now, if you just sewed in the second round and then added the third round, you wouldn't have the precision and neatness that you will have from doing it this way. Create units and sew down to connect unit to unit, not around. 

First sew your 'unit' of C & D together, and then when all your units are ready, sew them together, stitching down. Lastly, following the inside curve, attach your constructed round to your existing star block, lining up your seams neatly.

and you'll see that each star point will line up with every second unit seam - just like this

 and it's as easy as that! See you all for Part 3 next month!

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I don't know why it took me so long to move my BOM Group over to Facebook - it's the best Group related decision I've made. It's now so easy to answer questions, read comments and connect with everyone who is uploading images of their progress shots. I am in love with all the Hazel Stars from Part 1 out there and I've loves seeing you all pick fabrics, progress and share your tips and techniques each month. It's an inspiring place to be and for that, I have you to thank. What a great community!

With all the comments flying around over there, my blog feels a little quiet lately - my visits have increased but readers are choosing to comment over on FB. Someone has informed me that I can 'stream' my FB comments here on the blog and it's something I'm working on in an effort to connect both worlds - my blog and my Group activity. This has been my goal since I started blogging in 2007 and I'm still surprised that there still isn't a platform that allows you to blog and connect all in one place. Wishful thinking? Yes, so far. Why hasn't anyone thought of such a place?? We're inching closer but it's still annoying to me to have to visit two separate sites when in my mind they are 'one' and belong together. Still, I shouldn't complain. Technology has done so much for my quilting - and ability to share my love of quilting, just 10 years earlier and I wouldn't have shared any patterns at all - it would have been impossible.

I wonder what the next ten years of technological advancement will mean for quilting?

Hazel & Little Hazel are my current Free BOMs  

You can join my BOM Group my clicking here now. It's full of fabulous, talented women sharing their work, ideas and inspirations as they make my quilt patterns. Join us and our friendly, supportive community today. 

OR 

Wait until the 15th of each month and download the available pattern right here directly on my blog. The choice is yours. My old Yahoo Group has closed due to limitations on the platform. If you haven't come over to the new group, now is a good time.