The tiny scraps that I sorted out earlier this week have been transformed into a handy little cosy for my great-niece to put her MP3 in. The mobile phone cosy with a button that I made last year I gave to my sister in law, and her granddaughter, aka my great-niece, loves it and wanted one for her MP3.
So here it is, ready to be put in an envelope and posted off to Surrey. I will have to write a grovelling note of apology because she particularly wanted me to include the teapots fabric used in her grandmother's cosy, and I clean forgot... something along the lines of "terribly sorry darling, I am a great aunt after all, more ancient and forgetful by the minute, especially when caught up in a creative whirl... " should fit the bill.
Here is the back, and especially for Esther ipatchandquilt, who thought it was a bit of a lark having a post just featuring a picture of scraps, giving them the movie star treatment, I have stood the cosy on its own little red carpet.
And here it is opened out, so you can admire the naff brown striped lining in all its 1970s glory.
To compensate for me forgetting the teapots fabric, I hope my great niece enjoys a game of spot the fabric next time she visits her grandparents and sees this quilt. In the quilt she will find the pinky purple flowers at the bottom of the second picture, and the green floral and brown floral on the third picture, which all belonged to her great grandmother, and which she bought in the USA.
A very satisfying little project, making something useful with tiny scraps. In fact, the strip that I used for the button loop was already chucked into the rubbish box on my table, and I suddenly thought better of it and fished it out. I am so glad I did. With the blue button it clashes so fascinatingly horribly with the green.
Linking up today with Kelly's blog My Quilt Infatuation for Needle and Thread Thursday.
The straps are on...
... they are made from bias cut strips, each 36 inches long. I could have used broad bias binding, but I hadn't got any, so I had to cut my own strips. Each strip is 2 inches wide and folded in half, a double thickness binding. I could have cut them a bit broader, to measure say an inch and a half when folded, but any narrower than an inch would have been too fiddly.
The middle point of the strip needs to be lined up with the side seam, and I attached it to the inside of the dress on the underarm edge, with about a quarter of an inch seam allowance.
The side seam was pressed towards the back.
Then it was time to rethread the machine with thread to match the binding, and fold the binding over for the second line of stitching. Where the binding extends beyond the seam to form the shoulder strap, it is best to iron the fold down the centre of the strap before doing the stitching.
The second line of stitching is worked on the outside of the dress...
...and continues on along the edge of the strap.
Because the strap is cut on the bias, it can have a tendency to twist if it only has one line of stitching. For this reason I do a line of stitching along the folded edge also, and stitch across the end to prevent the raw edges fraying.
So all the dress needs now is a narrow hem around the bottom,
and it's finished.
Let's hope that somewhere in the world a little girl will be thrilled to wear it!
This time last year I had a great time at Cordial and Grace making dresses the charity Dress A Girl. This Friday it's all happening again.
Today I started a dress so I can post some instructions. This is the pattern I have used, which I have adapted from the pattern that can be printed off at LBG Studio. What I have done is added a bit of flare, and a curve to the hem, so the dress isn't so straight and a little girl can have more room for running.
Here are the dimensions for the top part of the pattern.
And here is the lower part of the pattern, showing the curve at the bottom edge.
And here are the measurements of the two vertical lines.
The pattern is placed on the fold of the material, and two pieces need to be cut out. The front and back of the dress are identical.
The first step was the two side seams. These need to be French seams, totally enclosing the raw edges and giving a hard wearing seam.
The seams need to be sewn from the top, the underarm, to the hem. If the pieces are not an exact match, then they can be cut and evened off at the hem edge.
The next bit to do is the top edges, which will have elastic inserted. First fold over and iron down just under a quarter of an inch.
Then fold over again to give a turning of three quarters of an inch.
The turning is then stitched down by machine, and I like to add an extra line of machining about an eighth of an inch from the folded edge.
Next, cut two lengths of elastic, each six inches long, and put a small safety pin at one end.
Insert the elastic, feeding the safety pin through the turning, until the end of the elastic is level with the edge of the turning. Machine stitch it in place. I always do three lines of stitching to be sure - elastic can fray and pull itself off the stitches if there is only a single line close to the end.
Now the fun starts at the other end. This is how to prevent the elastic pinging back and losing itself inside the turning. Pull the safety pin until the end of the elastic is level with the end of the turning, and hold the elastic in place with a large pin.
Now secure the elastic again with a safety pin. This means the first safety pin and the straight pin can be taken out, and the elastic stitched in place in the same way as the other end.
This is how the elasticated top edge looks when finished.
That's all for today! Tomorrow the shoulder straps will go on...
Welcome to Barbara, the latest follower - thank you for joining!
The final stage - putting on the binding. Once the lining was inside the outer shell of the cover I secured the two layers together with a line of stitching about an eighth of an inch from the edge.
Because the outer shell is a fraction bigger than the lining, I used large hand sewn running stitches to gather in the slight fullness before doing the machine stitching at the edge. Fortunately there was very little discrepancy in size between the two layers - had I needed to I would have done an extra line of machining, as I did with the tea cosy.
After that it was an easy job putting on the binding. The African print had a narrow border, and there was enough for me to use as the binding with only an inch and a half to spare.
Exceedingly jammy.
Here is the completed cover with the Singer 201K treadle hiding underneath. I am actually going to use it on the 15K treadle, but the 201K treadle had to stand in to do the modelling job because the 15K is surrounded by sewing room chaos.
And this photo is of the 15K hand machine hiding underneath - entirely appropriate because this is the machine that did all the work on the cover except for the free motion quilting. Because I used the dimensions of the bentwood cover of this machine for the measurements when cutting the panels, the cover fits snugly around the base.
Welcome to Kelly Hughes, the latest follower - thank you for joining!
Even though it is Wednesday, this post is being linked up to Show and Tell Tuesday - lots more projects to see there...
The lining is now made. I have used a stiff thermal curtain lining, which is fluffy on one side. I cut one large piece, 21 and a half by 24 inches, and two side panels. The side panels started as rectangles measuring 8 and a half by 10 and a quarter inches, and I used the same 8 inch plate for rounding off the top corners.
Here is the completed lining, standing up all by itself and showing the fluffy side. The seam is stitched smooth sides together with a quarter inch seam allowance. This material does not fray, and these raw edges will be hidden between the two layers of the finished cover.
Let's see if I can have the binding on by tomorrow...
Today I have been working on the machine cover, using the free motion pieces that I had made in advance. The cover will be for my Singer 15K treadle. I have used the dimensions of the bentwood cover of the 15K hand machine as a guide.
First I cut a large panel, 21 and three quarters by 25 and a quarter inches. Then I cut the two side panels, 10 and a half by 8 and three quarters. On the photo I have shown the two side panels opposite ways up - the density of the quilting only really shows up on the back.
Next, to get the curve at the top corners of the side panel, I cut around the edge of an 8 inch plate.
Here is one of the side panels with the top corners rounded off.
The side panels were then sewn onto the large panel, using a three eighths of an inch seam allowance. Here is the cover, inside out. Already it can stand up on its own.
To help the cover keep its shape, the seam allowances need to be sewn down by machine - exactly the same method as I used for the tea cosy. I worked from the right side...
... and this is what it looks like on the inside.
Here is the outer shell of the cover completed. It will stand up more firmly once the lining is put in. That is tomorrow's job.
Welcome to Ria Vogelzang, the latest follower - thank you for joining!
Linking up to Connie's blog Freemotion by the River for Linky Tuesday - lots of bogs to visit there!
The bright African print which I picked up in a charity shop recently is being put to use already. I have decided to make a cover for the Singer 15K treadle, my wonderful free motion work horse. I use the machine so often that I never put it away, and it could do with a cover to keep the dust off it.
The pattern is so busy and the red so bright that there was no point in doing anything fancy with the quilting. The variegated rusty brown thread blends in well, and the meandering infill is easy enough to do quickly over a relatively large area.
The quilting shows up better on the back, which is going to end up hidden anyway. I didn't even bother agonising over the colour of the thread underneath - I just used bobbins that were already filled, and made sure that it was a dark thread so there was no contrast with the top thread if it showed through. The backing is a lightweight polyester and cotton which I had in the cupboard. Cheap, but very irritating. It doesn't glide across the bed of the machine as smoothly as pure cotton, so I was working against it for much of the time.
Once I have quilted a couple more panels I should be able to assemble the cover fairly quickly...
Welcome to Graham Wilson, the latest follower. Thank you for joining!
Linking up again with Leah Day's blog for Free Motion Friday - plenty of blogs to visit there!
And also with Barbara's blog Cat Patches for the September New FO Linky Party, to see what people have started, but not necessarily finished... And here is a link to my July New FO, which is well and truly finished!
Here is the photo of little Karol in Poland gazing through the window at the snow. The picture was taken by my brother in law, Richard, and he loves the picture (and Karol) so much that this is his screen saver on his computer. When Richard said he would like a miniature quilt based on this photo I wasn't at all sure how I would do it. I thought of appliqué for the shape of Karol, but really could not work out what colour to use. In the end I decided that the answer lay with free motion quilting, not appliqué...
... and here he is!
Thank you to everyone who has posted comments about this project - you have all been wonderful and helped me along!
I think Richard will be pleased when he gets this little wall hanging - it is only 13 and a half by 15 and a half inches. I'm not sure that Karol is going to be too impressed. He is a big boy of 5 now and will want to know why I have shown him as a little baldy with a wrinkly neck. I fully expect his granny Bogusia will want one, so I will see whether I can make a better version.
Anyway, I'm happy with the end result, and I hope you all like it too. It was nice doing a project just using the two Singer 15K machines - the 1949 hand machine for all the straightforward straight stitch, and the 1945 treadle for the free motion work. Truly marvellous machines.
This post is linked with the BedTime Quilting blog for the TGIFF link up- lots more Friday finishes to see there.
Also to Sarah's blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday.
And to Leah Day's blog for Free Motion Friday
And to Vals Quilting Studio for Tuesday Archives.
Here is the top of Karol's head. I needed to make him stand out a little better against the background, so with the Singer 15K hand machine I put in a line of stitching in yellow thread to make him stand out from a distance. Perhaps white might have worked better, but it's too late now.
The curtain behind him isn't exactly neat. I had no clear idea of what free motion pattern I was going to do. My approach to free motion quilting is to thread up the machine, put the work under the foot, and then think "now what?". The results vary. The curtain is a bit messy. I had to put in extra quilting over the pattern I had already done because from a distance there wasn't enough contrast between little Karol and the curtain behind him.
Anyway, it's nearly finished...!!!
Linking up today with Connie's blog Freemotion by the River for Linky Tuesday - lots of other projects to see there!
Thank you to everyone who commented on Monday's post.
The general consensus was that it had to be a night sky with a shining moon, so here it is! I hadn't got any navy blue thread so I had to buy some, and I finally settled down for a spot of serious treadling this afternoon. Stitching the sky was tricky at times because the thread was difficult to see against the background. It was a bit like flying by radar. The stitched moon isn't perfectly round, and there is so much thread packed into a small space that it is stiff as a board.
I'm really pleased with the result. It is my first stitched landscape and now I have a hankering to do some more.
Linking up again to Leah Day's blog for Free Motion Friday - plenty of exciting projects for you to see there!
And also Sarah's blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday.
It was my husband's birthday yesterday. He works as a supervisor at a workshop for disabled adults. They take birthdays seriously. Apart from cards and scones with jam and cream at work, he got this wonderful spectacle case. It was made by a young man called Paul, with a bit of help from Linda, a member of staff. It fits into his shirt pocket nice and snugly, his glasses are well padded with the double layer of felt, and with the bright colours he now has little chance of mislaying his glasses. Also, he loves fish. This looks like a juicy fat salmon. A perfect present - he is very attached to it already!
Welcome to Jodi, the latest follower - thank you for joining!
I did a bit more free motion quilting today on the little wall hanging of Karol at the Window - a few shrubs and trees. It looks quite intriguing at the moment with the dark blue sky and the bright white moon. It's almost a shame I can't leave it as it is, but the sky needs to be filled in with quilting because otherwise it will billow out. The moon is in fact a circular sticker I put there to find the best position for the sun. Originally I was thinking of putting in a pinkish setting sun, but now I am getting used to the sticker, so perhaps I will do the moon instead. Such an agonising decision. I think I will mull over it for a few days.
Thank you to everyone who has posted comments about this project so far. This is only the second project I have posted as I make it (the first was the tea cosy). It is very encouraging to have you all cheering me on!
This post is being linked to Marelize's blog Stitch by Stitch for Anything Goes Quilt 'n Sew - lots of projects to be seen there!
Also linking up to Plum and June's blog for the Monday Link Up.
And Connie's blog Free Motion by the River for the Tuesday Link Up.
Progress has slowed down a bit on the little wall hanging of Karol at the window. It felt a bit odd sewing a snow scene in the middle of a heatwave, and it has been too hot for treadling. Also, I have a secret project to be getting on with, a doll quilt for my partner in Minnesota, Diane.
So here is Karol's hand against the window. I have done the bit which I was a bit worried I might mess up, the quilting in the tight spaces between his fingers. The middle finger is a bit wobbly , and there is a crease across the hand, but so what I tell myself. It's all an experiment. However it turns out I'm sure my bro in law will be pleased.
This post is being linked to Lee's blog Freshly Pieced for WIP Wednesday - lots of interesting projects to look at there, and also to Sarah's blog Confessions of a Fabric Addict for Whoop Whoop Friday.
