Eye-llusion - Take 2

or -from concept to execution.
After playing in EQ, I had to get my hands on some real fabric and put my foot on the pedal of the sewing machine.  I just had to!
I got out my GO! and cut enough 'triangle in a square' and 'half square triangles' to make three blocks.  Ahh, then I started sewing. I got those sewn pretty fast. Then I had to cut all the other squares. That involved ironing some yardage of fabric. ***I love my Velocity iron that I got for Christmas***
I cut the squares with my rotary cutter on the new mat.  WOW a new mat and a fresh blade work wonders for rotary cutting!

Laying out one of those whomping big 15" blocks  sounded like a good idea just to get an idea -and make sure I put it together according to plan!

Oh my goodness! that is a total of 25 pieces to sew together.  The center 9 patch doesn't freak me out at all...but then I have to sew the outer rows on. First a set of three on each end, then a set of five on each side.  Arrgh..and try to make all those corners match neatly???   Now I have scared myself!  And to top it off, it doesn't seem to have that magic optical illusion just yet.

Suggestions anyone?
P.S.  I hate pinning, but that may be the only way to make it work out.

This is Sharp

I was reading reviews a while back and decided to give this little gem a try. It is a do-it-yourself sharpener for rotary blades. Now we all know that those things are an expense -but we have to have them if we rotary cut. So I have some tips.

A. When your blade gets dull, flip it over and try it again. It seems we dull one side faster than the other. It can make a difference.

BUT - Better idea

B. Get one of these sharpeners-


I can see that it is worth the price. I sharpened my blade last night and WOW just like new. Be sure you have some sewing machine oil on hand. One little drop on the side you are sharpening makes this thing work a lot better. (and sharpen both sides!)Read the directions and use the appropriate side. If you blade doesn't have any nicks, no need to use the rough side.

C. Spend the money you save on rotary blades on more fabric!

a little update: Several people commented on using the oil - most didn't use it. Some wondered why. I got curious. The oil acts as both a lubricant AND a vehicle to carry away the grit and fine grindings from the blade. Thus the blade ends up sharper than if you didn't use it. I use sewing machine oil since I have it right there with my sewing stuff.

GeNe