Poseidon Loses

This project was tossed my way this past Spring. It was intended to be a quilt for missionaries from our church. It may remain in my custody for a very long time. The fabrics, all wonderful, were chosen by someone else, my guess probably more than a decade ago. The pattern is altered from the book: Samplings from the Sea by Rosemary Makhan copyright 1993. Many of the various blocks were already finished but some didn't align 'perfectly' but I thought they were close enough to 'ease' together. Many other parts to various blocks were also cut out. I cautiously checked the remaining amounts of the various fabrics to make sure there was enough of each to make the quilt in the layout that would work for our missionary quilt preferences. The diamond blocks in this project are all template made (have I said 'ugh' yet?). I cut some of the additional pieces needed and set myself to sew together all the blocks (I confidently ignored the cardinal rule of measuring the finished blocks.). I then, just as confidently, sewed three strips of the blocks together before taking them to my design wall and pinning them up to see how it would look. Gasp!!!!! They DIDN'T LINE UP!! And they were too far off to 'ease' in. Like about 6" between the first and second rows...how could I have goofed THAT badly. Well, lesson learned for sure! So this is where the hours of unsewing, remeasuring and trimming, and yes even adding smidgens, and in some cases all new pieces to do it all over again. I unsewed nearly EVERY block in the piece. I was NOT going to let Poseidon win. The top measures 86.5 x 74.25.