Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

I probably shouldn’t have gone to BAMaQG on Saturday because I was still hacking up a lung. After Grand Parlor, however, I needed to see my peeps and get reconnected with some quiltmaking. Despite leaving my lungs everywhere, I enjoyed myself and was pleased to be able to talk to people I care about. This is Kelly’s last meeting before she moves, so I was especially glad to see her. It also got me back in the mood to sew and I sewed a lot on Sunday.

As usual, the group has a door prize drawing. Right before they announced the name, I thought “I am going to win”. Then Gerre announced my name. I couldn’t believe it. I am really not psychic and I am very distrustful of my intuition*, so it was very strange.

May BAMaQG Door Prize
May BAMaQG Door Prize

The prizes included fabric. Yay Fabric! Ugh Fabric! I only say UGH Fabric because I am keeping track of my usage and I am in the hole.

Still, it is fun to win a prize.

May BAMaQG Door Prize
May BAMaQG Door Prize

The fabric colors aren’t really ‘my’ colors (except the lime), but the little packet of peaches is kind of growing on me. I can definitely use them for this month’s Color My Quilt. I also have the idea to make something small out of them. A small bag or journal cover or another gift grouping. I’d love to find a pattern that used the exact amount of fabric I have.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

* After being certain I was having a girl and getting the YM, my intuition has been suspect.

Emerald Philip Jacobs Cell Phone Wallet

Emerald P.J. Cell Phone Wallet - open
Emerald P.J. Cell Phone Wallet – open

This was another almost finish that I finally did finish. I need these cell phone wallets to wear with dresses that have not pockets. This means that I had to finish a few of them before Grand Parlor. I knew I would be wearing the dresses and tunics, so I had to get sewing. You know I finished the Red Dot Cell Phone Wallet and the Habitat Cell Phone Wallet. Just before we left I finished the Emerald P. J. Cell Phone Wallet as well.

Emerald P.J. Cell Phone Wallet - closed
Emerald P.J. Cell Phone Wallet – closed

I find it hard to determine where the fabric will end up when I use the pattern. On this one, I really wanted to the flowers you see to end up on the outside, but they ended up on the inside.

The leaf that did end up on the outside is nice looking, but it isn’t the flower that I wanted.

The pattern calls for a snap on the flap (photo above right), but I haven’t put one on any of the pieces yet. I don’t feel like I need one.

Emerald P.J. Cell Phone Wallet - closed with phone
Emerald P.J. Cell Phone Wallet – closed with phone

These bags are so helpful when I am at an event and don’t want or need a full purse. I keep my phone and hotel key in it. I can also put a few other small things in each one. I try not to stuff them too full so they stay flat-ish.

The last photo shows my phone in it. The design is such that I don’t have to open the flap to get my phone out.

92 Four Patches

En Provence 4 Patches
En Provence 4 Patches

I am back from Grand Parlor and finally had some time to sew yesterday. I started cutting out a new quilt. More on that later. I also made 92 four patches for the En Provence quilt. This is clue 3. I am using blues rather than purples.

I had some blues that could be mediums or darks. I had to make really make sure that I wasn’t using medium blues as darks and lights in the same block.

I have 74 left to make.

EPP Technique

Recently I talked about using the flat back stitch for EPP. I have been using it and finding that it works well. I wasn’t always 100% happy with the WonderClips, however. It is probably the one time I don’t find the WonderClips gripping hard enough.

Taping and the Flat Back Stitch
Taping and the Flat Back Stitch

I have heard that some artists use tape to hold the pieces in place while stitching with the flat back stitch.

I started out with Scotch Tape. It was ok, but I could only use the tape once. Mailing tape – the clear kind – was a little better.

I didn’t have any masking tape, which I think would be the best, so I tried blue tape and it works pretty well. I can re-position it about 3 times before it gives out.

Taping and the Flat Back Stitch - back
Taping and the Flat Back Stitch – back

Still, I am pretty happy with the results. It is easier to keep the stars, or half hexies, in place while I sew.

Walker Bags

Walker Bag n.1
Walker Bag n.1

BAM had a Charity Sew Day on May 6th. Peggy and Michelle created kits and a pattern for walker bags for a local nursing home. I made three, though not without mishap and only with the help of SIL.

The first one I made was the pink and purple version. I liked the fabric combination.

Patriotic Walker Bag
Patriotic Walker Bag

While SIL turned the first one (the first seam is right sides together), I started in on a second. I wanted to kind of do an assembly line and get as many as possible completed. I don’t use much patriotic fabric, but I did like the flags. They are cheerful and a little jaunty.

Walker Bags n.3
Walker Bags n.3

I was kind of confused about the various seam allowances so I did have to rip a bit. SIL also ripped for me some.

I stuck a ruler in one of the pockets to show the depth. It was a little too tall for the pocket, but I am sure they will work for smaller items.

All around it was a good day. We finished about 25 bags and there was a lot of laughter, which is important as well.

ColorPlay: Pressed Glass #2A

Green & Yellow Pressed Glass
Green & Yellow Pressed Glass

I decided that I would do a few more palettes with the photo from last week. I realized that I wasn’t quite done with it yet.

ColorPlay May 19 n.1
ColorPlay May 19 n.1

We are skipping the default image since it will be the same as last week’s. Go look at it if you want to see how neutral it was.

I wanted, first to explore the lighter section of the bottom shelf and see what light greens Kona came up with. There is an interesting selection. Champagne is included and it looks very green to me in the bottom palette. I think the lighter colors, in general, look like succulent colors.

ColorPlay May 19 n.2
ColorPlay May 19 n.2

I really wanted to combine all the colors and see what I could come up with. I had no plan for selecting sections fairly and equally, so I just lined up the bubbles in a row and came up with a very different palette.

There is a certain look that all the colors have except for the Kona Parsley. This ‘look’ seems to make them go together in kind of a 1970s avocado and gold sort of way. Still there is a warmth about the palette. I wouldn’t make a quilt with it, but I can see it as being a successful palette for someone.

ColorPlay May 19 n.3
ColorPlay May 19 n.3

I was a little more careful with my final selections (yes, I think I might be done with this photo and the palette possibilities) and came up with one last palette.

The palette doesn’t have any real yellows although I did put three circles on the yellow shelves. I wonder if the green is reflecting or somehow influencing how the camera sees the yellow?

If green and yellow were neutrals, I would say this would be another neutral palette. It isn’t neutral as the greens are clearly defined, if still in the succulent area.

Go try the palette builder tool and take a look at Anne’s quilts while you are there.

Gift Grouping #2

You have seen pieces and parts of the newest Gift Grouping. This is Gift Grouping 2.0, not because it is better, but because I had to think harder of new things to put together. I still like my first group of gifts, which made me quite pleased with myself. I am also pretty happy with this newest group. I used the same basic fabric with both groups.

Gifts laid out
Gifts laid out

All of the above are in the Big Patchwork Tote from the Make It Take It book. This is the pattern I used for the Sunflower tote. It doesn’t feel like a lot, but as I write this, I am out of time and need to give the gifts to the recipient tomorrow.

Gifts laid out and labeled
Gifts laid out and labeled

You have seen reports of most of these gifts, but I have labelled them so you could relate them to a previous post.

Gifts in Big tote
Gifts in Big tote

Another Paper Wreath

Paper Wreath n.5
Paper Wreath n.5

This is the fourth paper wreath I have made during the last few months. I really like making these, though I find making one rather than three at once is a lot easier on my hands.

This was another door prize for the Ladies Luncheon at Grand Parlor (that was one of Monday’s events). I have a tutorial so you can make your own.

Mug Rug

Mug Rug
Mug Rug

I have finally made a mug rug. I always thought they were dumb, but now find them to be useful. I wasn’t sure what I wanted in terms of a pattern, but thought that a cup or mug would be a fun play on words/imagery.

The piecing on the front as well as the quilting took me a couple of hours. I could have finished the whole thing in, basically, one sitting except I had to hand stitch the binding and didn’t get to it for a few days.

I did a simple web search and eventually found the set of cup patterns on the Piece By Number site. I have about 5 or 6 more from the set I could use to make more blocks, if I wanted. I wasn’t particularly looking for paper piecing, but the blocks appealed to me, so I went for it (good reason to have skill versatility).

This goes with the latest gift grouping on which I am working.

 

 

 

 

 

(Updated 5/24 with link to pattern)

Various & Sundry 2017 #8

Please check out my For Sale page. I know you want a new design wall.

Patterns &Projects

Fabric Mutt has a project called the Gingham Girls Stationery Kit. I am not sure why it is called ‘stationery’ unless that is part of the name of the fabric line? This is a small sewing kit project, similar to the needle case that I make sometimes.

Tools & Techniques

Applegreen Cottage posted a tutorial about starting off sewing without a knot. This is useful in theory, but genius. It is easy and I was amazed by the effectiveness. Apparently, the blog owner has a lot of tutorials on the site, which I have not yet reviewed.

Media

Pam has a pattern in an Australian Modern Quilting magazine. Take a look at her blog and listen to her podcast for a discount code. It is downloadable so you won’t have to wait for it to arrive AND you won’t have to devote shelf space to the issue.

Gretchen has pointed me to Margaret Soloman Gunn’s work and her blog. The description of herself and her blog made me smile and I love the style of her writing.

Sad news that a majority share of Craftsy is being purchased by NBCUniversal. I am sure we will get more spam, more PITA and less content. I am sure the owners are happy. I got an email with this news and don’t see it on the Craftsy blog.

Other

Jackie has upgraded her workroom. She wrote a blog post about what she did and what she used.

EPP Travel Kit

EPP Travel Kit - closed
EPP Travel Kit – closed

I really like this pattern even though it gave me a few fits before I finished it.

I found this pattern somehow. It is free (for personal use only) from Zen of Making*. I wish I had thought of the name, because there is something zenlike about making and the name is cool.

Anyway.

The travel kit is part of a three part series, which includes a lesson on making the hexie flowers. The final piece is making a pincushion out of smaller hexies to use with the EPP Kit. I had plans to make that as well, but ran out of time.

EPP Travel Kit - open (front)
EPP Travel Kit – open (front)

This travel kit is awesome and the problem I had really had nothing to do with the pattern, but with the supplies I had on hand. I hand on hand, and wanted to use, some sew-in invisible  magnet closures. Sara of Sew Sweetness uses these in a lot of her patterns and I find I have better success with them than the models with the ‘legs’ used in this pattern.

The closure is pretty awesome. I love the way the hexie flowers stick together. Very clever.

Once I figured out how to get the sew-in magnetic closures oriented in the right direction, the assembly went pretty smoothly. There is a lot of handwork in this pattern, which I wasn’t expecting.

The open look (right, slightly above) is a little odd. I think it might be because of the scrappiness of the whole piece. I think I should have used a backing for the flap hexie flower that matched the hexie flower (the one with leaves and a turquoise center). I do kind of like the scrappy look. I think I will make one that looks like a Dia de los Muertos celebration for a different friend. I definitely want to try different colors.

EPP Travel Kit - inside view
EPP Travel Kit – inside view

Altoids tins fit nicely inside and Haley (blog owner/designer) calls for two of them for this project. I had to scrounge them up. I put a piece of felt in the bottom of each tin to make them less rattly and a little nicer.

I cut and added some 5″ squares, and an EPP book to make the kit look full and fun.

 

 

 

 

 

*It appears that the name of the blog has changed to Red Handled Scissors. Not sure why, but the pattern is still there.

Grand Parlor Chaos

Door Prize Gift Basket
Door Prize Gift Basket

The week is nearly upon us. My house looks like a bomb of tissue paper, decorative paper and ribbon went off in it. There are gifts and baskets everywhere. I haven’t even begun to inventory my clothes for the week yet. That will only add to the chaos.

In addition to the physical chaos, we also had some other chaos: our washer broke and is unfixable and one of the Grand Officers died so some of our precious prep time was, understandably, devoted to a rosary and a funeral.

My SILs, a friend and I spent Craft Night on Monday boxing and wrapping favors for the Ladies Luncheon. These soaps were made my my sister, owner of Wooden Heart Soaps (go buy some-they are awesome), the wallpaper from which we made the boxes was from FabMo and one of my SILs dug into her stash of gift bag ribbon for our use.

The soaps are Grapefruit Bellini scent. I wanted something that most people would like and was not too strong. Cross your fingers.

Gifts for Ladies Committee
Gifts for Ladies Committee

I also had to procure a number of thank you gifts for the people who helped with all of the events.

I decided to use handbags as the holders since they were nice and could be used later. I hope the committee likes them. If they don’t, I know they won’t say anything. 😉

One Centerpiece
One Centerpiece

Maureen designed the centerpieces and Carol took them and designed a tableau around Maureen’s work. The plate holder will be clear or white (I can’t remember); the one in the picture is just a sample. Carol designed the waves and put together enough for all the tables. She did a wonderful job, especially using the lace doily to add a bit of finish to work.

After organizing my clothes, I think I will be done. We’ll see whatever other crises fate throws in our way.

ColorPlay: Pressed Glass #2

Last week I talked about the pressed glass glassware I saw at Yoder’s. There was a lot of it and I decided to do a series of posts about the different colors.

Green & Yellow Pressed Glass
Green & Yellow Pressed Glass

The green and yellow weren’t my favorite, but I could appreciate the colors. The green also reminded me of my Jadite batter bowl.

The yellow is really interesting. There is a combination of milky and clear that I can see in the photo. (I don’t remember from the store)

The Palette Builder is a great and fun tool. Try it out! Let me know if you make anything with any of these palettes.

ColorPlay May12 - default
ColorPlay May12 – default
ColorPlay May 12 n.2
ColorPlay May 12 n.2

The default palette is predictably neutral based. There is one yellow and I guess Meringue can be either a neutral or not, depending on whether it is next t a neutral or next to a bright. It is kind of shocking how many neutrals can be found in an image where my eye sees mostly green and yellow.

A very smart reader pointed out that the camera has limitations on what it can see. I know that is true, but it still amazes me.

It was interesting do move the dots around for the first time on this image. I always get a little tingle when I do that. All of the circles were towards the top in the default image, so the green was not even touched in the default palette. I kept my range in the yellows and tried to get as many yellows as I could. I will work my way down.

ColorPlay May 12 n.3
ColorPlay May 12 n.3

The third option is a combination of neutrals and greens. It is fine.

I got two marginally different green palettes out of this image. While there are some similarities in the exact shades, which makes sense, there are no duplicates in the palette. This is a good thing about camera images. The camera can pick up the differences in shades and tones found in shadows and in bright light.

ColorPlay May 12 n.6
ColorPlay May 12 n.6

Finally, I wanted to play around the Jadeite looking pieces on the bottom. I was concerned there would be too many lights for Kona, but I don’t know how many lights they have so I decided to see what I got. I was surprised to see the tool register so many darks. I did stay towards the back of the case, I’ll admit that, but still. The pieces seem lighter than the pieces one shelf higher.

I could have gone on and done more palettes, but I had to get on. Enjoy!

Sunflower Big Tote

Sunflower Tote
Sunflower Tote

I have decided that I like that Big Tote pattern from the Make It Take It book.

This will be the carrier for the other gifts, such as the cloth napkins I talked about earlier this week, DH will present to the NDGW Grand President. This is the first one I made with just two fabrics. No mosaic piecing. The bold print works very well, but I think smaller prints would look better using the mosaic piecing method I used for the second one I made.

There are some things I would like to try, e.g. pockets. In my mind pockets are essential. This isn’t a huge tote, so I envision it being used as a handy bag to put a few things in when you weren’t planning on buying anything.

Kaffe print inside
Kaffe print inside

I couldn’t resist adding a little of my own personality to the inside.

You can see some of the other gifts inside the bag.