Bee Challenged

 I know in my heart I will regret putting this away for a while, because I know it will turn into one of those UFOs in the cupboard. But it's almost Christmas and I want to finish some Christmas UFOs.

First glances though....

It's a bee collage. The pattern was very expensive at about $50 for something that is really just like one block of a quilt, only larger. 

There's a lot for the quilt maker to work out. It's not like all the instructions are completely arrayed. I don't think many beginner quilters will start a collage like this. And a lot of it depends on the fabrics you can find. 

This is why I chose the bee pattern, because I felt I could find a few fabrics with bee motifs and references.

The pattern says it requires over 10 metres of special stick and move fusible web. At about $30 a metre that would be $300 just for the gluey stuff on the back!

I decided to use regular fusible web behind the bee, then cut it into strips to use around the chunks of background fabric.

For a project that measures only about 100cm x 150cm, there is a lot of work and expense.

Do I sound positive yet? Sorry about that. I tried it for the challenge (even though I laybyed the fabrics at Olive Branch so that I wouldn't notice all the expense at once).

And it's a growth experience! Anyway, it's going away for a while to work on Christmas projects. I hope it doesn't stay away for too long!

Maybe I can border it with pieced blocks to make it into something bigger with pizazz and interest. Maybe some big hexagons?

\

I will think about it.