The weather in Portland has been so lovely the last week that I’ve spent very little time in my sewing room. Instead I’ve been outdoors helping the Dear Husband in the garden. We’re still clearing weeds but the good news is we’re gaining ground. And the vegetables, flowers, and shrubs planted so far are all doing nicely.

All I have to show you for my sewing time over the last few days are the sashing strips and cornerstones sewn to three of the six rows in my current project based on the free pattern Floating Squares by Taunja of Carried Away Quilting:

I had forgotten just how fiddly cornerstones can be! Sashing strips without cornerstones would’ve been a breeze — no seams to match between each block. These cornerstones finish at 1″ and that means there’s no room for error in attaching them. If you’re off by even a couple of threads, the seams won’t line up properly — and it will be very obvious.

After attaching the first sashing strip, I had to take part of the stitching out, make my cornerstones just a wee bit smaller, and resew the seam:

With subsequent sashing strips, I made the adjustments before sewing the strip on. There were at least a couple of cornerstones on each row that had to be tweaked like this.

Think about the math. There are four cornerstones in each row. Each sashing strip goes between two rows of blocks (except the top and bottom ones) so that means there are 16 seams to match per row. Each intersection has to be pinned very carefully to make sure the seams nest properly. When I’m done with the horizontal strips, I’ll have two more to add to the sides.

The beauty of Taunja’s Floating Squares pattern is that the points in each block float inside the block rather than go all the way to the seamline so matching the points where the blocks and rows are sewn together is not needed. By deciding to add cornerstones to my sashing, I’m adding many hours of additional work. The irony is not lost on me. But I’m not sorry I made this choice because I think my finished quilt will be the better for it.