Coastal Pearls - String of Pearls Quilt-Along - Part 2

All of the navy accents are now attached.  Each pearl again was attached to a long navy strip and then cut apart...

And the pearls have been pressed...

And trimmed to size.

I really enjoy the monotony of the chain piecing.

And the piles of blocks it creates.

What I enjoy less is the construction of the strip sets along with the pressing and cutting of each next piece.  There are 42 pearls in this quilt.  Thus 168 accent pieces to apply, press and trim - but these are easy as the pearls are sewn onto long strips. And 168 more border pieces to apply, press and trim - and this is where the tedium sets in, as I have to cut all 168 before adding them to the pearls.

Because I'm working slightly differently - more pearls, but smaller as I'm using a charm pack - I had to recalculate the number of strips needed.  The pattern calls for 4.5 strip sets. Turns out, I need 5.5. From the math, it would seem that I can get enough from from 5 - but the pesky selvages leave me with one fewer border piece than I would hope for on each strip set - thus the half set.

At the end of the day, 1 border piece had been attached to each pearl. Next steps - add the second short borders, press the short edges, complete the strip sets for the wider border edges and cut 84 of those - then apply, press and trim all blocks to size.  The next lesson in this Quilt-Along will be posted July 17th, so there is plenty of time.