Designer's deserve recognition!

The 2019 board members of the Possumtown Quilters guild have presented a medallion quilt challenge to any members that want to participate.

At first I resisted joining in, because, you know, "I'm.not.starting.projects.this.year!"  Except, a lot of my quilting friends are participating and I don't want to be left out!

I had the hardest time picking a medallion design.  

I knew I wanted hearts.

I tried sketching something up for myself.  Nothing felt right.  I tried curly cues, paisleys, and hearts.  I added circle and leaf shapes to fill in.  In other sketches I sampled zigzags and wiggles and waves... None made me think "That's the one!"

 

Designing is hard!  Like anything you want to do well, it's a skill that takes lots of practice.  Apparently, I definitely need more practice!
Possibly, my limitation is I'm not seeing it in color.  I was getting the idea from my head onto the paper just fine but my eye wasn't seeing it in fabrics.  And my sketches are not inspiring me... (Yet! I'll hold onto them for a bit and let them steep for a bit.)

I'd love to stitch up an applique collage some day.   However, I'm already two rounds behind on this medallion challenge!!  I needed something less time consuming.

I saw this pinned in Pinterest:

"Joyful Heart" designed and sold by DoodleTimeDesign
https://www.etsy.com/listing/84002852/joyful-heart-fat-quarter-friendly-mini

It has hearts and stars! 🥰
Isn't it perfect!

Ok! It looked simple enough, I mean common pieces - triangles and squares .  I'd easily draft my own version.  Over the years, I've made a few pieced hearts and more stars made with flying gease units than I could count...
I figured the center star had 2.5" unfinished corner squares.
That makes the flying geese unit 2.5"x4.5" unfinished.
And that makes the heart square a 4" finished unit.
Easy! So I pinned the picture without clicking on the link, without checking the designer's thoughts or notes or Etsy listing...

Instead, I drafted the heart square up for paper piecing. Which would have worked fine but I didn't like how this particular love bird print had to be cut for piecing.
I redrafted for a whole center piece and hand appliqued the top center point.  I used the clip and flip method for the corners.
So, after about three hours working it out, and two or three attempts, I finally had the center heart that I wanted.  

Moving onto the first star,  I accidently sewed purple corners on and completely lost my star.  After unstitching and putting the correct color in, this small 8.5" square is all I had accomplished by the time I had to stop to make dinner.  Doesn't seem like much!

The next layer is made in several steps.
I worked on side units after dinner.  I plan to use my 2.5" crumb squares throughout this quilt.  This seemed the best time to start putting them in.  I made oversized 2.5" x 4.5" crumb rectangles for the large center triangles before attaching the large focus fabric triangle.
Unfortunately, I don't have pictures of this step.  I was figuring measurements and having to get creative with the piecing.  Getting pictures wasn't a priority at the time.
Thankfully, my unit turned out perfectly. 🤗 And it was just after midnight.  I allowed myself to stop and get some sleep.

Apparently, I was eager to get this all put together, because I was wide awake at 5:30 and needing to continue.
I used crumb squares in the corner units, which are basically a 4-patches made with two half square triangles and two squares.
Do you see my mistake?

It was easy enough to fix 😉.

Now, to get to what I really I want to tell you.  Over literally 24 hours, I was able to figure out how to make the whole block without purchasing the pattern from the designer.  Good for me. 🤔  HOWEVER...
Had I purchased the pattern to begin with, I probably could have made it in considerable less time!  Maybe 5 hours, 6 tops.
Because, when you purchase a pattern you are skipping the whole trial and error step.  The designer has done all that work for you!  The designer takes the time to list all the precutting measurements.  You don't have to do the math!!  Patterns give you order and there's a certain confidence that all the pieces will fit together.
Plus, in this pattern, the designer is giving bonus optional center patterns - a Christmas tree, a pumpkin, and an Economy (square in square) patch!
And this particular pattern is only $5.00!!
It is really well worth the purchase.  Which I did after piecing the first side unit.  I was well on my way to being finished with the whole block, but I HAD to show my appreciation to the designer.  (I was also curious about her piecing techniques.  The pattern is all paper pieced.)
After skimming through the instructions, I think I'd love to make another Joyful Heart using the designer's methods.  I'll be sure to document and share my progress when/if I do.

And so I'm sending a huge "Thank You" to designer Ms. Faith Wellman and am sharing a link to her Etsy shop Doodle Time Designs.  You should have a look!  And here's a direct link to Joyful Heart if you'd like to make one for yourself 😉.

But right now I'm moving onto the next round of the PTQ Medallion quilt challenge - it must have squares!!  And I have a plan, a colorful plan! 😆🥰