Well I'm in trouble again

I opened my mouth without thinking and I'm living to regret it.  I told my dh I was going upstairs to play with my pussy!!!   This is the pussy I was playing with...... (no not what you thought - naughty)

It all started when I bought this book

 

I was keen to try out Rose Hughes method of freezer paper applique.   I've tried several methods of this sort and thought hers looked fun.

 

Her method differs only in the way you sew the pieces together.   It starts the same as other methods

 

 

copying the pattern onto freezer paper, ironing it onto fabric, this method though you iron it onto the right side of the fabric and overlap the seams.   Sew down the pattern pieces and trim back.   The main advantage of this method over fused applique is the handle of the fabric when finished and the fact that you aren't sewing through adhesive.

I decided to use one of the patterns in Rose's book as I thought she had already done all the hard work of sorting out which piece to sew first and in which order to put them together.  I always think this is the hard part so well done Rose.   I really enjoyed the process at first as the pieces were quite large.  Then we got onto the smaller more complex pieces and I had to redo several as my trimming back got a bit enthusiastic and I sniped threads more times than I like.   But I've now got my pussy all tucked up tight and ready to make into a sandwich and quilt.  Not sure yet whether I'll leave it as it is or put borders round it and make it larger.

Still alive and kicking

I've not done anything for the last couple of weeks other than sleep and read my Kindle.  I got caught by a virus and it chased me all the way to bed.  Better now though but not got much motivation for sewing.  I've spent an hour this morning in my sewing room just moving stuff around and I've got a whole day to play - isn't it just a bummer when that happens.

The only thing I have done is make some crumb blocks, just don't ask me what I'm going to do with them.

I've got 50 of them any ideas?

Last of my bookwrap gem covers

At last I've finally made my embroidery piece into a bookwrap.  I had difficulty with it as I had not measured twice and cut once....   Yep your right it wouldn't fit the book, the cover was just too tight a fit.   I ended up unpicking all the stitching, which then meant the edges were fraying a little.  In the end I bound the edges and now its okay to go.

 

I'm quite pleased with it and would actually like to keep it but I made it for a purpose so off it will go sometime this week, along with its friends.   I made 8 covers in all, there are three of them in the background to the photo.   I'm going to make another doodled cover for myself, well I might get round to it later.

 

I've also finished making 10 Owl coin purses from a pattern by Embroidery Garden which will be donated to a local quilt exhibition in aid of Help the Heros.

 

 

Only got one more 'promise of pieces' left to do, that's to make pincushions in time to sell at our local Embroiderers Guild AGM in May.   Keith has made me some wooden bowls to make into pincushions and I have one or two other ideas.  I'll post photos later when I've made them.

 

 

 

 

Fresh Inspiration

Went to the Quilt Festival at Farfield Mill just outside of Sedburgh in Cumbria. We left home in bright sunlight but by the time we hit the motorway the fog decended and as we approached Richmond (N.Yorks one) it was so thick we could hardly see the road ahead.  We were both getting a bit apprehensive as we knew the drive a head was along country roads, very windy in places and also quite narrow.  When suddenly we drove into bright sunlight again and it remained that way for the whole of the journey.

Farfield Mill is a small weaving mill now restored and used as a museum that holds various country craft festivals, workshops and demonstrations.  If you are in the area it is well worth a visit, even just to see the artifacts in the Museum shop.

There were several small quilt exhibitions on the four floors of the mill, each different from the last.  There was a video running showing Pauline Burbidge creating her Lindisfarne quilts and her method of working.  I found this video fascinating and very instructive.  Quilt Art where showing 'Voices' pieces and the Cumbrian members of the QGBI also had a small exhibition on "The Act of Layering". Outside the Cafe Effie Gallertly's quilted landscapes were hung and in various places in the mill were other exhibits.

Now for some of the photos, I couldn't take many as in several rooms they weren't allowed, but....

Lyn Anderson's piece on Cumbria was brilliant, I just loved everything about it pity the photo doesn't do it justice but you get the idea.   Lyn was one of the Cumbrian quilters and I hope she forgives me for showing her quilt here but its too good to hide.

Kathy Edgar's "After the Storm" was also one of my favourite pieces this lady too is one of the Cumbrian quilters.

Val Jackson (England) piece was called "Does he Waltz" and it has amazing detail on it.  This is from the Voices exhibition.

I also enjoyed Charlotte Yade (Denmark) piece Wrapped" there is so much texture in the printing on this pieces.  I would be happy if one day I could get any texture in my printed pieces let alone a whole wallhanging.

One of the exhibits on the 4th floor was a quilt made by Ann Bigland, a bedridden lady who lived in Burnside near Kendal in 1886.  The quilt is made from 5,760 hand pieced pieces.  The strips are small, approximately half/three quarter inch strips (just a guess).

There was plenty for Keith to see too as the Museum shop had lots of wooden bowls, which he inspected with relish.

Bookwraps

Over the past few weeks my 9 o'clock curfew project has been to make bookwraps for the QGBI Bookwrapgems project and this is my work so far:  You may remember from a previous posting that I intended to create something from the various stitches available on my machine.

 

 

The colours are a bit muddy in the photo, they are much brighter in real life.   This bookwrap was made as I said previously using the stitches available on my machine and just doodling with them.

 

The next one was done in a similar way but this time I mad the base fabric using a thick thread couched down randomly and then hand embroidered in the spaces.

 

 

This is the full piece and as yet I haven't made it into a cover but hope to do so shortly. 

 

 

Close ups of parts of the piece.  I had great fun doing this and it reminded me of how much I enjoy hand sewing if only the fingers didn't complain so much.

 

Now for a confession.  back in 2005 I did a wallhanging swap with a lady called Opi who lived in the Netherlands.  I loved the quilt which had big daisies appliqued onto a blue sky background.  After it lived on my wall for a while I took it down and stored it away.  A few days ago I came across it as I was clearing out bits and pieces.  It had creased and no longer suitable for hanging but I have recycled it and made two book covers for the Bookwrapgem swap.  I do hope Opi forgives me for recycling her quilt and that she approves of it going for a good cause.  Here they are.

 

 

 

Unfortunately Blogger has yet again put an angle on the photo that I did not want but you can see why I loved this wallhanging so much.

 

The Inside covers have daisies too.

 

 

Fabric Flowers

I saw a photo of a bride on the internet holding a bunch of fabric flowers.  I can't remember where I saw them but the photo struck a cord with me.   I have a Sizzix die cut of a tattered rose and thought it could be reproduced in fabric.  It is basically a long strip of fabric with one edge scalloped and the other side gathered up.  It is then rolled round to form the rose.  I left a small piece at one end to glue it to a stick.  I saw some dogwood whilst out walking the dog and thought the red colour would go well with the fabric.   I used left over jelly roll pieces to make the roses.   I used the scallop stitch on my machine sewn with stitch size 4 and length 9mm.   I then used the largest stitch possible and sewed along the bottom of the pieces and gathered the stitching very carefully. 

With the short piece of fabric I'd trimmed I formed a centre bud and glued it to the stem.   Next came the careful rolling of the fabric to make the actual rose.  It is possible to sew each layer to the next but remember you need to sew on top of the fabric, not round the stem otherwise you will end up with a stick wrapped with fabric.   I cheated and glued my rose together as I was too impatient to see if it would work.  Well here's the results.

As you can see I sewed slightly away from the edge as I wanted my roses to be a bit tatty but you could always sew the strips together and turn them so the edges were smooth.

And here they are in a bunch, I got a bit carried away.

I'm going to make a much smaller rose to take to my Aunty Joan who has just been diagnosed with terminal ovarian cancer.  She is Mum's youngest sister and my last aunt.  Keith is going to make a very small bud vase from wood to put the rose in. 

Hotty Totty Mark II

Otherwise known as my iron slipper. 

 

The actual making of the iron slipper was very similar to MK I but this time I shaped the front and lowered the sides.  It doesn't have a pocket to hold the flex but the strap across the iron holds everything together quite nicely.  I like both covers, I think, but will probably use this one for workshops as it takes up less room in my bag.

I have four irons in all, two steam irons, one I take to classes the other my spare and two craft irons. My initial thought was if you have a steam iron it would be approximately the same size as any other steam iron - wrong they definitely differ in size. Even half an inch makes a difference to the fit.   So whilst I could give you the size of the pieces I used to make this iron it may not fit yours.  This may be one of the reasons why I've never seen them advertised anywhere.  However they aren't difficult to make but you do need to take some measurements first.

The measurements you'll need are:

a)   length of sole plate (this is also the length of the side pieces).

b)   Width of back of iron.

c)   Height - decide how high you want the sides and measure that.  I chose to make mine the same height as the body of the iron but you may want it higher or lower.  

d) Size of sole plate - just put it on a piece of paper and draw round it. If your iron has a "waist" between the widest point of the sole plate and the back of the iron you will need to take out this "waist" by drawing a straight line between the widest point of iron and the back of the iron.

e) Measure the distance between the point of the iron and where you want the top of the sides to be. In my case the top came approximately level with the body of the iron. This made my top edge 2" shorter than the bottom edge of the side piece.

f)   Measure how long a fastening strip you'll need to go across the iron with room to catch the flex in before it is fastened.



The side piece is the trickiest piece to create.

Using your measurements create a pattern for your slipper.  A and C will be the height and width of your sides.   E will give you the starting point of the slope.

 Draw two lines the length of A but the height of C apart.  On the top line make a mark where E is and start your slope from there to the start of the bottom line.  I used a 60 degree angle on this mark and it worked well your iron though may be slightly different than mine.    You should now have a wedge shaped piece for your sides.

Remember these pieces do not have seam allowance so add this as you cut out your pieces.

You will need enough fabric to cut out four sides, two backs, two soles, two straps and bias binding.  Approximately one thin quarter or two fat quarters should be enough.  Plus wadding, approximately one fat quarter.  Line one set of pieces with the wadding and quilt, or not.

Cut two right sides (inner and outer bag) and reverse the pattern for left side, cut two again one inner and one outer bag.

Use B and C measurements to create the pattern for the back of the bag, cut two (one inner one outer).

Use D for the base and F for the strap.  Cut two each.

Hope you can make sense of these if not let me know - have fun.

Hotty Totty

Have you ever been to a workshop and had to take home an iron that hasn't cooled down?  Well I thought about that when I came across this in dh's shed.   It's left over foiled wall liner .

 I had a 'eureka' moment and set off to make an insulated bag for my iron, I've nicknamed it a hotty totty because it will tote around my hot iron..

I cut off a piece off the roll and placed my iron on top and drew round it.  I then cut out the shape which will become the insulated base in my totty.  

 

I thought this might be a good project to use up some of my left over jelly roll strips. I set too and sewed enough strips to make a fabric big enough to cut out sides, back, pocket  twice and four base pieces, two for the bag and two to hold the insulation which I intended to put in as a loose bottom.  If anyone is intersted it takes about half a meter full width of fabric.  

 

I measured the length and height of my iron to estimate the side of fabric I'd needfor sides, back and pocket.  For the pocket I reduced the height by an inch, this could be lowered.  For the base I drew round the insulation piece with a frixon and used it as a template..

I wanted a pocket in my totty to hold the cord and thought the back would be the best place for it.  This was sewn to the back piece as it would later be sewed into the sides and base when the totty was put together.

 

  I sewed the back to the sides and that the piece was long enough to go round the base. 

I pinned the sides to the base and gently easing it onto the base sewed the pieces together.  I did the same again but this time using the pieces with the wadding on.   Once I'd got two 'bags' made I slid one inside the other right sides together and sewed round the top leaving the back part open so I could turn it inside out.  Turn the bag the right way round and press.  No need to sew up the opening as this is going to be covered with another jelly roll strip which will act as casing for a cord or elastic.

I cut a jelly strip in half and turned under the short end of each side of each piece.   Using a quarter inch seam I sewed this onto the top of the bag, I turned another quarter inch under on the opposite side of the strip and folded the strip in half and sewed it down.  I turned the bag inside out to do this as I found it easier to sew on this way round.

Next step was to make the insulated base for the hotty totty.   Taking the two remaining pieces of fabric and pinning them right sides together I drew round the insulation piece with a frixon pen.  I sewed these two pieces together right sides still together) leaving the bottom back open.   After trimming away the excess fabric I turned the pieces the right way round and pressed it.  The insulation was then inserted into the base sleeve the back seam was sewn up and I top stitched all the way round the base before popping it into my hotty.

I slotted the elastic into the casing and my hotty totty was finished.

Base of Hotty Totty

After I'd made this hotty totty I had another idea for a hotty totty and will have a go at making .  If anyone is interested in a tutorial I'll try and take better pictures.

Not a good thing

It's not a good thing to backslam your hand into a fridge door, I know it hurts.  It's taken several days but now I can move my fingers reasonably painfree.  Not sure what I hit on the fridge door but I dropped a jar and went to grab it, missed and backslammed my hand into something very hard.  It's much better now and hasn't stopped me sewing too much (although I can't chase dust bunnies very well...).

I've been using some of the various feet I've bought and not used frequently and trying out different stitches on my machine.  I thought I would make a stitch sample fabric and use it on a bookwrap for the QGBI tombola in August.

This is just a small part of the piece.

 

This is the other side of the piece.

 

It's my sister's birthday on Saturday and I've made her a placemat and matching rugmug.  She has a little grey tabby cat whom she loves dearly so I've put Milly on her mats.

 

 



My camera battery is flat and I couldn't get the whole thing in the scanner so I'm only showing the mugrug.  Not particularly good fme but Lesley won't mind.  I tried out a different way of binding the mugrug and placemat.  Instead of sewing the binding to the right side and stitching it down on the back.  I sewed it to the back and used one of my fancy stitches to sew it down on the front.  Think I might try this on something bigger but I feel I would have to stabilise the binding before sewing it down.

 

I made this bookcover using a tutorial on the Bernina web site.  It made me use the endless sewing facility on the machine, something I don't use much.  I have thought of making a border on a duvet using it.

 

Well my hand is aching now so its time to stop for the day, speak soon.

Happy New Year to all

Did you have a good Christmas?  Flynn did

He loves his bouncer his grandma Mel bought him and his musical teething ring.   He got so  many presents they may need to add a room..

We had a lovely time with Marc and Alix and Alix's family.  Alix did us proud foodwise but she is a lovely cook.  Marc was in trouble for mending his bike beside the christmas tree, naturally it fell and knocked it over but luckily nothing was broken.  Otherwise Marc and the cat would be looking for new owners.   Sy and Julie couldn't join us this year as Sy was 'on-call' over Christmas, nor could he enjoy a celebratory drink for the same reason but its New Year now and he was able to toast in the new year.

Have you made any resolutions, I haven't as they never remain in place longer than the end of February.  But I have made a sort of promise to myself that its okay to create a ufo and finish when the mood takes me.

 have been sewing a bit betwix the celebrations. I've made a set of placemats, table mats and mug rugs using a pattern from Lise Bergene's Patchwork with Pizzazz.  It's a book loaned to me by a friend.  The pattern I used is Guinea Hen.

 

 

Sy & Julie gave Keith a 3d puzzle as one of his presents this year.  It's a red plastic apple and he's been tearing his hair out so Sy came round this morning to help.

 

 

They managed to get both sides made and put together then realised they'd left the stalk out!!  It is now complete though and Keith won't take it apart to do it again.

I

Feeling sad today as we lost a good friend and neighbour on Sunday to a sudden heart attack.  We have known the family for nearly 40 years and as children our sons all played together.  As Isabel is 10 years younger than me and appeared perfectly healthy when we spoke last week its really shaken Keith and I.