Hazel Hedgehog QAL!

So this is…about 5 days late and I feel HORRIBLE for not being able to get this up sooner!  The lovely (and exceptionally patient) Angie over at Gnome Angel is hosting a Hazel Hedgehog QAL, and I was supposed to post on the 16th.  Well, life has happened – which means my laptop caught malware (fixed thanks to my amazing best friend’s husband) and I lost my iPod that had alllll of my Hazel Hedgehog photos on it.  Seriously, for a while there I was thinking I should give up everything, dig a hole, and live off the grid because technology was totally against me.

Anyway!  So I’ll tell you of my experience with Hazel.  I first started out by just reading directions.  It seemed very complex at first, I won’t lie, however I was determined because…seriously?!?  Have you SEEN Hazel??  So cute and totally worth it!  My first attempt – which I do not have a picture of (probably for the better) was a flop.  I got half way through it, realized just how angle deficient I was, and scrapped it.  It probably didn’t help that I was incredibly tired and I was trying to work through the fog of tired.  Lesson learned (for now).

My second attempt came on the heels of throwing my hat in the ring for the #rainbowminiswap over on IG.  I have started becoming more brave with stepping outside of my comfort zone with the mini swaps I am part of, which helps me build my confidence with what I do, so, well, since the first one (with one color “hair”) was such a bust, I decided…well, let’s make it more complex!  So I decided that each strip of “hair” would be a different color!

With a little help from my IG people (read: lots of cheering and quilty love), I was able to accomplish making 4 of her – and they all MATCHED!! So then I had to think about how I was going to do the mini for my partner.  Here’s a secret.  I have about 500 hexies – and I have never used one in any finished project.  So this most definitely meant that I had to incorporate them in this project as well!

Then there was the question of how to lay it out.  I have to give it to my IG friends that follow me – they put up with my overgramming!  Holy cow!  I feel almost sorry for them, to be honest, but they stuck with me.  Here are all the different ways I posted (I tried a couple of others, but pictures of those fails weren’t taken…lol)

And all of those were great in their own way, and the last one in particular was actually my favorite, however I went with something a bit different from all of those.  I also went with super simple quilting because I wanted Hazel to shine through:

While this is supposed to be a mini (and in all likelihood my partner will probably use it as such), it is also big enough as a table runner!  I like versatility.

Overall, I ADORE this pattern!  There are so many different ways you may dress her up, make her funky, or add nerd glasses!  The glasses are definitely on my list for future Hazels!

Have I enticed you to buy the pattern?!?  Well, you are in luck!  The amazing Elizabeth Hartman has provided us a 25% off code to purchase any of the Hazel Hedgehog patterns! All you have to do is use the coupon code HazelQAL25 at the checkout and you’ll save 25% off either (or both) Hazel Hedgehog patterns. Coupon code is valid until the end of February!  Seriously, how stinkin’ awesome is she??

So, I have to ask (because I can’t resist getting your opinion just once more!) – which layout would you have chosen?

Happy Crafting friends!