Yep, it's a Flea Market Fancy giveaway. Go over and check it out!
Friday, November 20, 2009
Thursday, November 12, 2009
sometimes
Sometimes I'm a little late to the game.
Like now, when I decided to finally give the very popular wonky/maverick star block a try:
Each of the squares are 5". The centers of half of the blocks (like this one) are made from Dance With Me, I believe it's the Yellow Kayla pattern. The other half will be an assortment of my floral prints. All of the points are scraps-- I realized that mine have gotten a little out of hand lately, and this is good for the littlest ones.
I'm hoping that this will come together quickly, as I want to make this one in time for Christmas. My husband's grandmother, who I adore, was widowed in September. This will be her first holiday season without her husband, and I hope that something feminine and warm can provide a little bit of comfort. I thought this pattern was just familiar enough for a woman of a certain age, but fresh enough to remind her of me.
Like now, when I decided to finally give the very popular wonky/maverick star block a try:
Each of the squares are 5". The centers of half of the blocks (like this one) are made from Dance With Me, I believe it's the Yellow Kayla pattern. The other half will be an assortment of my floral prints. All of the points are scraps-- I realized that mine have gotten a little out of hand lately, and this is good for the littlest ones. I'm hoping that this will come together quickly, as I want to make this one in time for Christmas. My husband's grandmother, who I adore, was widowed in September. This will be her first holiday season without her husband, and I hope that something feminine and warm can provide a little bit of comfort. I thought this pattern was just familiar enough for a woman of a certain age, but fresh enough to remind her of me.
Wednesday, November 11, 2009
Mr. and Mrs. K
Two Nicoles, one post.
The first Nicole is my brother's girlfriend. I decided to make her a tote bag for the upcoming holiday season out of some of my favorite fabric:
The pattern is the Flourish Tote. The instructions were clear, it probably took me a total of 2.5- 3 hours, and I'm happy with the construction. I wouldn't recommend it as a first bag pattern for anyone, as there were some slightly advanced things like curved corners and sewing through so many layers. The only thing I need to add is some gray grosgrain ribbon going through the loops in the top. I used quilt batting instead of fusible fleece, and decided with all the heaviness not to put the darts in the bottom corners. Here's a shot of the inside, showing the six pockets (more Heather Ross stripes and dots):
The second Nicole is a friend of my husband's from law school, and she recently got married. Since she's a good friend, and warrants more than a blender, I made this for her and her new husband:
Click to enlarge-- also, it's really sunny outside here today!
All of these fabrics came from my stash except for the gray kona (I think it's called Charcoal). I took my original inspiration from Alissa's Sparks Baby Quilt but quickly deviated. Each of my center squares are 4", and I fussy cut birds:
Then I added a rectangular border around each bird, and alternated the direction of the rectangles (vertical, like the one above, and horizontal). For the horizontal blocks, I added 2.5" of the gray to either the top or the bottom (half of each) and then sashed the blocks. The outer border is 6" on the top and bottom, and 3" wide on either side. I quilted 1/4" around each seam. I love the back, too:
(It's windy-- ignore my shoe at the bottom!)
I used the rest of my bird fabric (IKEA-- and the same fabric I used for my bedroom curtains) and more Lotus. Here's a closeup of the quilting, from the back:
I can't wait to put this in the mail and send it off to NYC! It feels so good to finish something, especially two things that make me proud.
The first Nicole is my brother's girlfriend. I decided to make her a tote bag for the upcoming holiday season out of some of my favorite fabric:
The pattern is the Flourish Tote. The instructions were clear, it probably took me a total of 2.5- 3 hours, and I'm happy with the construction. I wouldn't recommend it as a first bag pattern for anyone, as there were some slightly advanced things like curved corners and sewing through so many layers. The only thing I need to add is some gray grosgrain ribbon going through the loops in the top. I used quilt batting instead of fusible fleece, and decided with all the heaviness not to put the darts in the bottom corners. Here's a shot of the inside, showing the six pockets (more Heather Ross stripes and dots):
The second Nicole is a friend of my husband's from law school, and she recently got married. Since she's a good friend, and warrants more than a blender, I made this for her and her new husband:
Click to enlarge-- also, it's really sunny outside here today!All of these fabrics came from my stash except for the gray kona (I think it's called Charcoal). I took my original inspiration from Alissa's Sparks Baby Quilt but quickly deviated. Each of my center squares are 4", and I fussy cut birds:
Then I added a rectangular border around each bird, and alternated the direction of the rectangles (vertical, like the one above, and horizontal). For the horizontal blocks, I added 2.5" of the gray to either the top or the bottom (half of each) and then sashed the blocks. The outer border is 6" on the top and bottom, and 3" wide on either side. I quilted 1/4" around each seam. I love the back, too:
(It's windy-- ignore my shoe at the bottom!)I used the rest of my bird fabric (IKEA-- and the same fabric I used for my bedroom curtains) and more Lotus. Here's a closeup of the quilting, from the back:
I can't wait to put this in the mail and send it off to NYC! It feels so good to finish something, especially two things that make me proud.
Thursday, November 5, 2009
tiny blocks
I had a Snippets jelly roll sitting around, and while I need a new project like I need a hole in my head, I decided to make 40 of these:
The green and white block measures just 3" square, and the border strips are 1.25" before being sewn. These are the smallest pieced blocks I've ever made. You can find the instructions and inspiration quilt here.I think I'm going to set them differently, though-- maybe on point? Maybe I need to make another 40 blocks? I have plenty of fabric left over, even after this:
Saturday, October 31, 2009
no-sew tutu tutorial!
Happy Halloween!
Last night, for a costume party, I dressed up as a ballerina. Here I am, in my homemade tutu:
Sorry for the weird picture-- it's raining today.
Anyway, here's what you do:
1)Take a piece of elastic, and fit it comfortably around your waist.
2) Tie the ends in a sturdy knot. No need to sew these together, because of the volume of the tulle will cover just about anything (ugly upper thighs included!)
3) Take 10 yards of the stiffest tulle/netting you can buy. I got mine for $1.29/yd. at Joann Fabrics, in pale pink. With scissors, cut it into strips about 3-6 inches wide. Again, no need to be exact, and many of my strips were pretty crooked.
4) Take each long strip and cut it in half.
5) Tie each of these strips around the piece of elastic in a single knot.
6) Wash, rinse, repeat.
7) When you're finished, put it on over a leotard, and you're good to go. You can fluff it a little, and honestly, I couldn't stop touching it all night.
My leotard came from the children's section at Target, and I put my hair in a bun, wore dance tights and ballet shoes. Super easy, very comfortable, readily-identifiable costume. If you make one, I'd love to see it!
Last night, for a costume party, I dressed up as a ballerina. Here I am, in my homemade tutu:
Sorry for the weird picture-- it's raining today.
Anyway, here's what you do:
1)Take a piece of elastic, and fit it comfortably around your waist.
2) Tie the ends in a sturdy knot. No need to sew these together, because of the volume of the tulle will cover just about anything (ugly upper thighs included!)
3) Take 10 yards of the stiffest tulle/netting you can buy. I got mine for $1.29/yd. at Joann Fabrics, in pale pink. With scissors, cut it into strips about 3-6 inches wide. Again, no need to be exact, and many of my strips were pretty crooked.
4) Take each long strip and cut it in half.
5) Tie each of these strips around the piece of elastic in a single knot.
6) Wash, rinse, repeat.
7) When you're finished, put it on over a leotard, and you're good to go. You can fluff it a little, and honestly, I couldn't stop touching it all night.
My leotard came from the children's section at Target, and I put my hair in a bun, wore dance tights and ballet shoes. Super easy, very comfortable, readily-identifiable costume. If you make one, I'd love to see it!
Sunday, October 25, 2009
fuzzy math
Here's the nearly finished quilt top, all for me:
I'm going to add a big polka dotted border around it, but am still deciding on the width of it. All of the orange sashing and cornerstones are 3" before being sewn. That's about double the width of the block borders (all cut to 1 3/4"). Using this crude math, I think it'd look pleasing if I make the border double the sashing, or 6". I'm really very pleased with this; selfish quilting is fun! I'm still trying to decide on the backing, and also the quilting. Especially the quilting, and even the thread colour. Normally I quilt in the colour of the sashing, but I'm afraid the orange might be too vivid on the blocks (plus, the orange is really made of magenta and yellow warp and weft).
Here it is again, in the sun on my front yard:
I'm going to add a big polka dotted border around it, but am still deciding on the width of it. All of the orange sashing and cornerstones are 3" before being sewn. That's about double the width of the block borders (all cut to 1 3/4"). Using this crude math, I think it'd look pleasing if I make the border double the sashing, or 6". I'm really very pleased with this; selfish quilting is fun! I'm still trying to decide on the backing, and also the quilting. Especially the quilting, and even the thread colour. Normally I quilt in the colour of the sashing, but I'm afraid the orange might be too vivid on the blocks (plus, the orange is really made of magenta and yellow warp and weft).Here it is again, in the sun on my front yard:
Thursday, October 22, 2009
sashing fun
Thanks for the sashing suggestions for my HR quilt. Here's what I've decided on, with Butch's obvious approval:
I'm sashing in the orange, which I already adore. I was most concerned about the way it'd look next to the bright orange AB print (on the left) and the sherbert-y Flights of Fancy on the right. But I'm very pleased so far, since it makes the paler prints stand out more than I'm used to.
I'm using five fussy cut 3" squares for the corners. I've decided that the corner pieces will be the same all the way across, so the top row are the bikes, the second are the ice cream trucks, etc. I'm planning on a pretty wide polka dotted border (that plan could change). I'm also trying to think about something brilliant for the back. Maybe another solid?
I'm sashing in the orange, which I already adore. I was most concerned about the way it'd look next to the bright orange AB print (on the left) and the sherbert-y Flights of Fancy on the right. But I'm very pleased so far, since it makes the paler prints stand out more than I'm used to. I'm using five fussy cut 3" squares for the corners. I've decided that the corner pieces will be the same all the way across, so the top row are the bikes, the second are the ice cream trucks, etc. I'm planning on a pretty wide polka dotted border (that plan could change). I'm also trying to think about something brilliant for the back. Maybe another solid?
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
