When Square Is Not Square

I am having a hard time working out my Very Hungry Caterpillar quilt top.  The reason for this, according to Himself, is because I haven't done a quilting class where they teach you the right way to do things (he is very big on "the right way to do things")...I would love to do a quilting class but it is not high on my list right now - besides, I said to Himself, who needs a quilting class when you have the Internet?  So many tutorials, finished pieces, works in progress etc., and the funny part?  Everyone has their own way of doing things...I think it's just trial and error to see which way works for me.  I love the guidance a teacher can offer but I really do dislike the restriction of being told How Things Must Be Done!

Sadly though, while I am working off the world's simplest idea for a pattern (just the panel in the centre and borders around), it really is hard for me to guestimate the amount of fabric required - and yesterday, purchasing some beautiful tone-on-tone purple, somehow I thought 50cms would be enough and it clearly isn't.  Rather than going back to buy more today, I have adjusted my pattern idea.  Either way it looks as if I will have to purchase more of some fabric, just not sure what yet - and the metre of a particular print that I did purchase to go with it, I am not happy with now and don't really want to use.  So far, I have bought five pieces of fabric for this quilt top and I don't want to use two of them, one of them I didn't buy enough of and the other I definitely don't have enough of with my adjusted plans.

I do agree with Himself when he tells me that I should just follow a pattern (any pattern!) with fabric requirements etc. included, it would be a lot easier! 

The other problem I have come across is this: the caterpillar & butterfly panel (one rectangular piece) was not cut straight on the sides.  I wanted to trim it straight so I could get ready to add the first border...each piece is on a white background with a green border but neither white "square" is actually square.  I have separated and trimmed each block from the panel (so it is now in two, roughly square, roughly the same size pieces) by measuring the same amount out from the white line against the green border, this way I have the same amount of green (more or less) all the way around.  But they aren't square squares!  How do you contend with this?  Do you iron each square into as square a shape as you can manage?  Do you pin the borders to the square following the original white line (and possibly end up with skewiff squares)?  I am unsure of how to proceed...

I am used to working with things like glass (and even so, not very well I might add).  Glass is a lot more restrictive than fabric but on the other hand, if you square up a piece of glass, it stays square, the shape doesn't warp.  I wanted something more flexible / less restrictive than glass to play with, so I have turned to fabric but I am finding it behaves in ways just as peculiar.

The Very Hungry Caterpillar

Like so many children, I grew up with the books of Eric Carle - and my absolute favourite (of course) was "The Very Hungry Caterpillar"...so when I saw this fabric, I knew I had to buy it! 

I have seen quite a few Hungry Caterpillar quilts - and I always thought to myself "if only I could make one like that".  I am not sure I will be able to do justice to this fabric but the beauty of it is that it would just be a quilt for me, not as a gift for anyone else - just because I love it...and right now, I think I just need to jump in with a project and give it a go.

I bought one panel of the caterpillar, one panel of the butterfly and whatever they had left of the print fabric - I have a plan in mind, which I will share once I have drawn it out, but I still need to find some more fabric to go with it.


Mr Caterpillar is definitely going to get some embroidery!

I am not actually a huge fan of all the green or primary colours but I accept that is what makes the Hungry Caterpillar so wonderful for children...still, I would prefer to pick up some of the colours below - mainly the pinks, purples & blues in some solids:

And I would be very keen to find a white background, multi-coloured polka dot fabric (with larger polka dots rather than small ones) if such is available.  Could anyone point me in the right direction?