Restarting the zen quilt

Ever have one of those projects that stalls out before you ever open the box? Over the last two weeks I’ve been making slow but steady progress on my Zen quilt. The hardest part? Getting from one stage to the next stage.

I believe this was one of the first kits that I purchased when I started quilting and it was a project for me. When I took a look at the blocks, I realized where I likely had a few stumbling points when it got pushed aside for another project.

One: The blocks were complete but not ready for piecing. Thankfully, I have more experience now and had recently seen a great tip to help trim blocks down. I realized that if I marked the center square of the block and the goal size, I could proportionately trim the block to fit — no one would be any wiser and I would eliminate the 1/4 to 1/2 inch gap that would have been too much to fudge.

Two: At one point, I had hoped I could make  this lap size quilt into a queen bed quilt. Oh, this noble thought was long before I understood quilt sizes and just how many blocks are required to make this leap. Now I realize that buying two kits would have simplified this shift! Since then, I’ve got a few other PhD that are meant for my bed, so I’m perfectly content finishing this project as a lap quilt so that I can enjoy this piece.

Up next, discovering new techniques to quilt this at home. Stay tuned!