I think I really mean "Never Again"!

Okay, so I think I ought to begin this post by saying I mean no disrespect. However, for the first time since I began doing the online bees I was presented with a block that kicked my butt!! And by that I mean it tried my patience more than I can say, and by the second one (which took me a week and a half just to decide on the fabrics) I really was chanting the "Never Again!!" mantra.

For our May blocks in the Bliss circle of do. Good Stitches Carol chose to go with a block tutorial that Elizabeth Hartman posted for the Modern Quilt Guild – Octagonal Orb Block.




Now don't get me wrong... the tutorial is EXCELLENT! Like every single one of Elizabeth's patterns I've tried out, which can be found at her blog Oh, Fransson or at Sew, Mama, Sew!, it is written impeccably, is as clear as can be and is very well organized. However, this one block just calls for too many fabrics, too many pieces, too much precise cutting, and let me just say right now that if you ask me to press my seams open in the future, I may just ignore the request. And I LOVE scrappy quilts! Perhaps if we had gone with the scrappier option of the block construction I wouldn't have had so much difficulty. Who knows.

And though I didn't mind cutting from the template, this felt SO GOOD...


But now I can say I gave it a shot, and am looking forward to packaging them up and sending them on their way (which I am sure will also please Carol). And I'll likely think a bit more about what to choose next time it's my turn as a Queen Bee.