Crayon Quilt - Paper Pieced Letters

Yesterday I started my paper pieced letters.  The reason I'm making them first is because their finished size is going to determine the size and number of crayons and hence the overall dimensions of my quilt.

This is what I have so far - 17 letters that took 6.5 hours.  They took a lot longer than I thought and I still have some extra fiddling to do.   I wouldn't recommend them if you're trying to make a quilt in a hurry.  

I was as efficient as I could be:

• when scanning them, I left them at 100%
• when I had more than one of the same letter, I made them at the same time
• I (usually) cut extra generous slices of fabric to make sure I had more than enough for the 1/4" seam allowance needed on each seam and around the outer edges

Here's why I said I have some extra fiddling to do.  I assumed when I started, that once I pieced a letter, I could make a word.  But one needs to add extra fabric all over the place:

• at the top of the letters that descend (like p and y)
• at the top and bottom of letters that don't stick up or down (like c and o)
• at the bottom of letters that ascend (like b and t)

And that's after I pull all the paper off the back.  Sigh.  Oh yeah - then I need to add spacers in between each letter.  I'll be spending three days on these letters before I'm done.  I just don't think this quilt is going to get done on time.  Maybe I should stop blogging and keep sewing.

 
One more thing before I go.  This is what I use for paper piecing.  It's really inexpensive and nice and light, just like newsprint.