I have to say I had mixed feelings about the big reveal. I wasn't sure I liked it. Reluctanly, I put together a block. I still wasn't sure. I put it down for awhile. When I returned to my sewing room, I decided that I would trust Bonnie and finish the quilt.
Since I opted to do half of the units, I needed to decide how I was going to lay it out. Bonnie's was 5 X 5. I had 12 blocks. I really didn't want to waste the extra blocks by going with a 3 X 3 layout so I opted to go with 3 X 4. I ended up having to make more sashing blocks and quite a few more border blocks. My borders were kind of wonky, but I added extra pieces to get it to work out. I think it worked OK. It's not perfect, but neither am I. So without further adieu, here's my Grand Illusion:
I have to say it's not something I would have picked out to make .... but now that it's together .... I really like it! I'm pleased with my purple substitution as well. It's a very busy quilt. I am glad that I didn't make the full size version but it's going to be perfect as a lap quilt for myself. It's a nice size. Thanks to Bonnie Hunter for graciously sharing this mystery with us each year! I look forward to it each fall and it never disappoints. And she didn't lie ... this year was a lot easier than last year's Celtic Solstice.
I had very little fabric left but I did have a big chunk of turquoise left, so I cut it up into strips for my binding. Waste not, want not. Other than that, there were just scraps left of the other colors and those have already been distributed into my scrap bins. Speaking of cutting the strips for the binding, I got a new toy in the mail today from Primitive Gatherings ...
It's the creative grids Stripology ruler. I had a June Tailor strip ruler (actually I have several different ones) but it had broke at the 1.5" mark. My one complaint about the June Tailor rulers is that they are a bit flimsy which means you have to be very conscious of keeping your rotary cutter steady. This new Creative Grids ruler is very sturdy and feels much more stable when cutting with it. I know these types of rulers aren't for everyone, but I do like them and highly recommend trying the Stripology ruler if you opt to get one.
I'll link up with Bonnie's blog HERE. Jump on over and check out all of the great Grand Illusion finishes!!
