TGIFF - Harry Potter Quilt & Bee Blocks

It's my turn to host TGIFF! What an excellent week to be hosting too.. I've finally finished the Harry Potter quilt top!! It still needs to be basted, quilted and bound, but I consider this a significant milestone - 10 days to get it quilted, that's heaps of time right??

Here's a quick update on how it all went together..

Stars sashed, centre section all one piece, top/bottom row still to go

Owl blocks with an additional border to complete top & bottom rows

Sashing complete - quilt top finally in ONE piece!

And finally complete.. approx twin size.

I'm so happy with the way it's turned out.. It has all pulled together perfectly and so much better than I ever could have hoped. Admittedly, had I known quite how much time/effort/planning would need to go into this I probably would have bought the fabric panel I'd seen on ebay in the first place. But if I'd done that I wouldn't have learnt a pile of new skills, I probably wouldn't have been able to convince my husband to buy me the Accuquilt Go! cutter, and I wouldn't have this incredibly awesome looking quilt top to give to my son on his birthday (did I mention it's in 11 days?). It is by far the most ambitious quilting project I have ever undertaken, and I can't wait until it is completely finished!

Mum and I were brainstorming how to quilt it today, and I think I'm going to go with 'ditch' quilting for most of it. I really don't want to take away from the piecing, and all the elements are so different that I don't think that an all over design would enhance it specifically. I also need to coordinate with my husband to make up the quilt label for the back, as he has gone and digitized the Hogwarts crest for use with Daisy the embroidery machine.

I also managed to complete my April block for the QCA bee (hive #2) - Sue requested a Starflower block, a la Ellison Lane / Samelia's Mum. Phillipa and I caught up on Wednesday and managed to get both our blocks completed in and around our other projects. I posted both blocks off yesterday, so Sue should get them early next week.  I think this is a gorgeous block, and I'd definitely consider using it again sometime.

April Bee Block - Star Flower

I've still got my Craftsy BOM blocks to do, I've cut my cardboard templates for the hexies and now I just need to get my paper piecing on the move. I must confess that I've been holding off so that I can work on the Harry Potter quilt though... once that's finished it's going to be a quilty free for all!!!

Anyway, thanks for coming along and sharing in MY finishes.. now it's time for you to link up so that I can see *your* finishes! Don't forget to link back to TGIFF so that your readers can join in the fun too.