Focus?? What's that?

Welcome to the world headquarters of Mary Huey Quilts!!

The available cutting space on my 36" by 72" mat just keeps getting smaller and smaller.

Probably time to clear the table off completely?!?

Maybe tomorrow?

There's lots of energy in my head right now which is difficult to manage.

This teaching sample of Opal Essence needs to be finished by the end of January.

I'm staying caught up with the ZenChic/Bernina sew along.

Then I woke up with this idea in my head one morning last week.

Of course, I had to start it right away!!

Too early to share, but it's exciting!!

It has a purpose and at this point, it's just about ready to quilt??

Perhaps if I'd quit surfing Instagram first thing in the morning, I could finish two things before pulling out another stack of the stash to start some new fun?

I still have a quilt to finish and 3 more pairs of socks to knit before Christmas!!

This one is short term -- only 12 days and I can use the piecing as sew-offs for more pressing work?

It's the #xmasfussycutsewalong led by @naomialicec on Instagram.

Every day there is a new prompt for another hexie flower.

Most are doing EPP, but I'm machine piecing it (of course) using the Set-In Piecing Simplified technique and a 1 1/2" hexagon from Marti Michell's Set H.

First there were Christmas trees.

Used the last scraps of an old Alexander Henry print that I've been rationing out for over 10 years.

Next up were "decorations".

Not sure "bubble lights" are strictly decorations, but don't we all love them??

Then robins (or birds).  

Naomi is a Brit and the English robin is a popular Christmas symbol.

Now I have lots of Christmas bird fabric but it's all cardinals or chickadees -- the popular USA Christmas birds.

And then Monday morning, it was "matching" trees -- yikes??

After a suitable amount of time feeling guilty about not having any more "trees" I forged ahead with this female cardinal that is in a tree?

Fortunately, I had seen a tutorial about cutting for this approach a few weeks ago.

But I couldn't find it so bumbled through cutting one hexagon at a time.

I did have the good sense to test my matching after cutting the second hexagon and before cutting any more.  Good thing!!  I was off by a 1/4" -- unstitch and recut!

I was able to get all seven hexagons from two full motifs and a partial one!

TA-DA -- that worked better than I expected.  Most of the seams disappear??

I'm still wondering why one would go through all this?

To prove it can be done?  Perhaps?

But sometimes it's just fun to show off, isn't it?

Time to get back to the machine quilting and the sock knitting!!

I hope you are moving through your holiday sewing projects in a straighter line than I am!!

Mary