Playing with Half-Square Triangles

As the lucky winner of a random drawing, I recently received two sets of of 6" squares from Amy Butler's Gypsy Caravan and Free Spirits Essentials. Thanks Sweet Diesel Designs!

I just love all things Amy Butler and couldn't wait to stitch something up with this fabric pack. There were thirty squares and I wanted to do a little more than sew them together. I decided to make half square triangles with them by adding a light background fabric. Getting two blocks out of each square would expand my options for getting to a finished project.

Once they were put together, I was able to square them up to 5 1/4". Then I started playing on the design wall. It was fun trying different layouts and there weren't any that I didn't like.

Some looked very traditional while others had a more contemporary edge.

 I finally settled on this design...

The top is pieced and waiting to be quilted. Now I have to figure out how to finish it. I thought about adding wide borders to the short sides and turning it into a bed scarf, and I also like it as a wall hanging. I asked my husband what to do with it and he said, "Begin with the end in mind." I'm all for the teachings of Stephen Covey, but that statement very rarely applies to anything I do in the quilting world. I make it because I love it, then I figure out what to do with it. I'll ponder the future of this project while I'm quilting it.