Commentary about works in progress, design & creativity
I made this Cotton Candy pouch for a friend’s birthday.
It ended up being a ‘slimline’ version as I sewed the side panels to the wrong end of the main panel and had to trim extensively. It worked out and she liked it so no harm.
However, I need to get this right. I have made so many of these pouches that I am shocked and amazed that I made such a big mistake. I am going to make some others to cement the process in my head.
I don’t know how this shape came into my mind, but I was driven to learn to make this combination of shapes when I took the Latifah Saafir class in 2021. I have a sort of idea for a quilt using this shape, but it hasn’t come to fruition yet. The closest I have come to drawing it out or designing it is the Bubble (circle) donation quilt I made with Gerre a few years ago.
Ever since I learned to make these Orange Peel Circles, I have wanted to write a tutorial. I wanted to remember how to make them whenever I wanted. I also wanted to share the knowledge with you so YOU would have another use for your Clammy rulers.
Supply List:
Notes:
For this tutorial, I am using the 8 inch** Clammy. Adjust if you use other sizes.
Steps:
The directions for cutting an Orange Peel are on the front of the Clammy ruler.
Start with a square. If necessary, give yourself some wiggle room by cutting the square a bit larger than called for in the directions.
My Orange Peel Circle came out perfectly using the sizes on the ruler packaging. Try out some test circles to gauge whether you need to start larger or not.
Cut your Orange Peel from this square. Line up your ruler as shown. You can see the lines of the Orange Peel shape clearly on the ruler. You want the straight dividing lines to be on the edge of the fabric and the Orange Peel shape to be completely in the square. Review the directions on the front of the Clammy packaging* to line everything up.
If you have cut a larger square, you will trim more.
Cut the first part of the Orange Peel. This will yield a shape like you would use for Drunkard’s Path.
This is where your rotating cutting mat** comes in handy.
Turn your fabric and re-align the ruler. You can see how your Orange Peel piece will look through the ruler.
Cut the second side of your Orange Peel. Set this part aside. Toss the leftover background fabric into your scrap bin.
Now you are ready to cut your full circle
Based on the 8 inch Clammy, cut a 8.5 inch square of fabric. Adjust if you are using a different Clammy.
This will be the main part of the circle.
Fold your square in half and place the fold closest to you.
Place your ruler on the fabric. This is a good time to review the instructions or one of Latifah’s videos.
Cut the full circle.
Open the full circle and admire your work! I always feel excited when I see that circle opened up.
Troubleshooting: If your circle is not whole (cut in half) when you open it, then you need to realign your fabric and make sure the fold of your folded square is close to your body before you cut.
Line up your ruler to prepare to cut the Orange Peel out of the full circle.
Note: For most of the cutting in this tutorial, I used my regular 45 mm rotary cutter**. For this step, however, I switched to a 28mm rotary cutter**. It is easier to cut the inside circle with a smaller rotary cutter.
The photo above shows the Clammy lined up and the Orange Peel cut out.
Cut an Orange Peel out of the full circle. Turn the circle if you want to avoid cutting into certain fabric motifs. In this case, I wanted to leave the full crescent moon on the fabric, so I avoided cutting the Orange Peel out of that part of the circle.
Throw the Orange Peel from the full circle into your scrap bin
Fold the circle and the Orange Peel in half to create registration marks. I do this to allow me to line up the two pieces more precisely.
Tip: If you fold one piece RST and one piece WST, you will be able to nest them in the next step.
Line up the two pieces using the registration marks. The fabrics should be right sides together.
Pin at the registration marks to keep the pieces in place.
I anchor the ends of the Orange Peel with pins as well.
Pin the rest of the Orange Peel to the circle using 2-3 pins between each end and the center.
Sew the Orange Peel to the circle. I sew with the Orange Peel on top. Take out pins before your needle gets to them.
I keep the two pieces of fabric as flat as possible while sewing the curve. If necessary, make little clips in the curve.
Your Orange Peel is now sewn to your circle.
Press the seam allowance towards the Orange Peel.
Your finished circle is ready to be pieced into a background. Stay tuned for that tutorial or check Latifah’s site.
If you make one of these circles, send me a photo and I will post your work here! I’d love to see your efforts.
Notes: I prefer the smaller versions. The Orange Peel circle I made with the 12 inch** (above photo) just looks too big to me. If I made a bunch of them, it might be fine.
*If you have tossed the packaging or can’t find it, download the information from Latifah’s site. I downloaded one and the information is laid out very well. You can also check Latifah’s videos on YouTube. One video shows how to cut different shapes, though it focuses on the half circle. You can get some good tips even if you don’t get the full instructions. Take a look at all of her videos.
**I use affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
As mentioned, the Hildegarde Notions Trunk is finished.
I have to confess that the end of making the Hildegarde wasn’t as smooth as I would have liked. The Velcro was the challenge.
The photo left shows the dividers in the interior. They velcro to the side strips of Velcro, which I sewed to the lining. The problem is that the I sewed the wrong side of the Velcro to the sides. It was the same side of the Velcro that I used on the dividers, so the dividers didn’t stick very well. Yes, I should have checked I had the right part of the Velcro, but I assumed. Always a problem.
The Hildegarde looked really good, so I thought about not changing out the Velcro. I decided, in the end, that I would never be really happy with it-and I really like this bag, for once-, so I ripped the lining apart and sewed the correct Velcro sides to the lining sides.
The Velcro strips are originally sewn before the lining is sewn together, so it is very easy to sew them to the sides of the lining. I used the sewing holes to place the new strips of Velcro and took my time. I didn’t want to take the whole lining apart, so I unpicked as little as possible. I used some washaway tape to hold the strips in place and resewing worked pretty well. Later, I realized I could have changed the Velcro pieces on the dividers, which probably would have been a lot easier.
In my defense, I rarely use Velcro, so I forgot to check that I had the right Velcro side. I won’t make that mistake again. At least I hope I won’t!!
I am glad I did, because now I am super happy with it and the dividers actually work!
It turns out I had to unpick the turning opening a second time, because I forgot to put the Peltex in between the lining and exterior. Again, I thought about whether I really needed to do it, but the bag was saggier than I wanted, so I did it. I had to insert the Peltex around the stitching of the lining to the exterior. It wasn’t easy, but it was doable and the bag doesn’t look as saggy. The reason this happened is that I didn’t notice the last page of the pattern! In my defense, half of the second to the last page was blank so I thought that was the end, though I did think it ended a little abruptly. I have made a note on my pattern in case I make this bag again.
I went out of town with DH and it wasn’t a great weekend. I was just in a bad mood all weekend, it was hot and the events were not interesting. Or I just couldn’t appreciate them. 🙁
I found a couple of quilt shops, but when I had time, I decided I wasn’t up for the half hour drive each way on my own. A friend with whom I usually spend time wasn’t available.
In an effort not to be a sourpuss and to try and see the good in the trip, I wanted to share a couple of photos with you.
One of the good things during the trip was Fosselman’s. Fosselman’s is a full-service, old-fashioned soda fountain that offers both sit-down and to-go items. They make all our ice cream on the premises in small batch freezers.
I went there while DH was at a members only event and ate WAY too much ice cream. I sat and wrote postcards and wrote in my journal while I ate a hot fudge sundae, etc. It was a good way to spend a couple of hours.
1824 West Main Street, Alhambra, CA 91801
(626) 282-6533
Monday – Saturday 10:00 am to 10:00 pm
Sunday 11:00 am to 10:00 pm
The activities were centered in San Gabriel, California right near the Mission San Gabriel Arcangel. The organization dedicated a girls’ high school, Mission San Gabriel High School*. I was impressed with the principal’s dedication and the students that I met. We had dinner in the courtyard of the mission after a tour of the recently restored church.
The tour guide was a parishioner and she was very good.
The church had an arson fire in 2020, which required $8 million in restoration. The entire back of the church was significantly damaged, though the walls did not fall. The altar was not touched, though had smoke and water damage. They still need another few million.
I have seen a lot of amazing altars all over the world. I was really impressed with this one. I have never seen one with statues like this. It was really different and interesting.
The painting on the altar is tempera on wood. The statues on the altar are:
We had dinner in the courtyard. The location was beautiful and I am sure the food was delicious. I wouldn’t know since they had nothing gluten free and weren’t prepared for me.????
We went to take a look at the garden and saw a beautiful view of the bells.
The garden has a wonderful fountain where Native Americans hold ceremonies now.
I thought Mission San Gabriel was worth a visit, though I would have rather been at home in the cool sewing.
The big check presentation was worth the less than stellar weekend. The hospital does such great work with the kids AND their families. The treatment lasts from birth through 18-20, because of the changes happening as kids grow. The treatment is holistic as well. The program includes surgeries, speech therapy, orthodontics and dentistry, psychological counseling for the whole family and many other aspects that help develop a happy, healthy, mentally stable person. I am so proud of the Native Sons for this effort. The spaghetti dinners, BBQs and raffle baskets contribute to the donation every year. There is no corporate angel giving the money and the Board of the Charitable Foundation does not get paid or reimbursed for their work. All the money that comes from $5, $10 and $20 fundraising gifts goes straight to funding treatment. You can donate at the NSGW website.
I did make it to Roxanne’s in Carpenteria. That shop makes me super happy. You can see a review of my previous visit or wait for my new review.
*If you live in SoCal and your daughter needs an amazing high school, this on has an amazing curriculum and the tuition is unbelievably reasonable.
I don’t consider FQ size pieces of fabric to be scraps. My scraps are small. I have had some larger pieces of fabric that get lost in my fabric bins, so I have cut them up into as many of my normal sized pieces as I could. With additional large-ish pieces, I have also, now, cut some rectangles.
These rectangle pieces have been hanging around for awhile. I finally had enough to make a donation quilt.
So far, they are just on the design wall. I need to cut white or background pieces, hopefully from scraps also, to put the top together.
This bag has taken a long time to finish. I am not sure why, because it came out really well and I really like it.
It is quite a large bag, for one with a handle. The finished size is 12.75 inches in length x 6 inch tall by 5.75 inches deep.
I am pretty pleased with my fussy cutting. The fabric I chose, a Heather Bailey print called Aflutter in pink. I find it very cheerful. It is from an old line, so I don’t know if you can find it again.
I worked really hard on lining up the birds on the top and in the front panel. I can’t remember doing that kind of fussy cutting before. Sara models fussy cutting on her sample in the pattern.
I think the little bit of top stitching on the back looks really good as well. I used pink for most of the topstitching, but there is also a bit of white as well.
I like the plethora of birds on the back.
Remember I said that I thought the dividers were unnecessarily complicated? They weren’t. They now seem super useful. I am glad I took the time to follow the directions and make them. I wonder if I could (should?) put another mesh pocket on the other side of the divider?
I don’t often use Velcro and this application went better than expected. I seem to remember sewing Velcro in the past and having it stick to the bed of the machine or the foot or something. I had no trouble sewing it this time, which was a relief. I think the design using the movable dividers, works very well.
I found a good place for my label, as well. It is not really hidden at all. I like the placement.
I also like how open this bag is. It is like an ‘open-wide/wide mouth bag. I am able to see everything inside.
Side note: when I went to get a label for this bag, I realized I only had two Wunderlabels left. Another thing for my To Do list.
I was pleased with the way the front pocket came out. I think the elastic technique worked out very well. I haven’t tried using it for thin tools, but I will. One thing I was thinking about the design is that the tools stored in this pocket would be available without opening the main zipper. I think that would be a good thing.
I plan to use this bag for notions to take to Sew Day and Retreats. I plan to place it inside the Crafty Carrier . I am not sure how I will use this large open space with the movable dividers. I need a lot more space for long thin tools like pencils, tweezers, etc. Rotary cutters will go well in the mesh pockets, I think.
I ending up giving away one of the EPP balls I made to a surprise baby of a friend. I had some leeway with the great niece/nephew due in October, so I made another one very quickly.
This one doesn’t have any novelty fabrics, but is still fun.
Slowly, but surely I am making progress on this green improv donation quilt. I am exclusively using it as leaders and enders so I can finish it for the guild Community Quilts project.
It is about 40 inches wide and I want to make it that long as well. That is about the minimum useful size for a baby quilt, I think.
It is fun to remember quilts and bags I have made with the various fabrics in this piece. I am pleased to be cleaning out the random bits of green, but it is hard going. Piecing ‘made’ fabric takes time.
I know it seems like this bag is taking forever. It is sort of, but I have been diligently working on it a little at a time in between working and managing the house. This is turning out to be quite the complicated bag. In addition to all the pieces I had to cut there is a lot of other prep before I am able to start sewing the actual bag itself together. Oddly, I am not in rush to finish. Usually, I am, but for some reason I am ok with how long this project is taking.
I am sure it will be worth it.
After all the cutting and interfacing, I had to make the dividers. These dividers were a little complicated and I wonder if they were unnecessarily complicated? I guess I’ll see once the whole bag is together.
I am pleased with the front section elastic. I thought the way Sara told makers to put this together was really clever. I am a bit confused about the top part – the ‘slots’ are larger – but I am sure it will work out. I have to wait and see.
This is a Sew Sweetness pattern. It is part of Minikins Season 4 bundle. You can see the various projects I have made from the Minikins patterns on the Minikins page.
This month I sent off one of the actual travel pillowcases. Last month was the camping pillowcase. I suppose you have to travel somewhere to camp, but it didn’t feel like ‘real’ travel to me, whatever that is.
This was also a birthday gift since the nephew turned 18 yesterday. I stuck a card in the package for him. I actually got a thank you text! Unnecessary, but much appreciated.
I had some extra fabric, so I added the trim pieces to some of the pillowcases for this project
One of our guild members hosted a special sew day at her house last week. I was deputized to get there early as the hostess ended up having an appointment that day. I got there super early as traffic wasn’t bad, so I had time to stop at the GF bakery near SueS’ house. Sadly, they didn’t have many breakfast items. They had a lot of cupcakes! I bought a blueberry muffin, which was very tasty.
I set up a lot of the chairs, and other things we needed while waiting for SueS to return. The tables ended up being too heavy for me to manage alone, so I set them up when Carrie arrived to help.
The workspace was good. SueS has a very open plan kitchen, so we were able to set up a cutting station on her kitchen island. A few of us worked on the kitchen table.
Tim, Sue and I worked there. Sue worked quite a bit on EQ8 as she is working on a project. She also worked on a Mariner’s Compass quilt that she wanted to finish up. It was all foundation paper pieced on a special printed interfacing. I didn’t hear the brand, but I did hear a discussion of the Midi and Mondo bags. It was similar to this QuiltSmart pattern/kit**, but is actually from a company called EZ Piecing. The pattern is called Ruby’s Star. SueS made it her own with an added border from the same company.
Tim was working on something with strips. It is called the Dreamlines Project. I missed getting a photo, but it looked very cool.
I started with sewing a pet bed together. I also worked on some Cotton Candy pouches and a block for the Wrap the World in Quilts Sunflower block Ukraine project organized for the guild by Lee Ann.
I decided making this block would be a good use of my time at Sew Day. I went searching for block ideas and found a similar one to this one. I made it because I love Sawtooth Stars and I thought I could make it quickly.
In general, I like the block. I am not 100% happy with my sewing of the block, however. EQ did not print out the instructions for the center and I cut it too large. I ended up cutting off more of the yellow corners than I wanted when I trimmed the center. It isn’t terrible and will work for the project. I may make another one just to make myself feel better. You can make a similar block using my pattern. It works with scraps, except maybe for the center.
The living room gang were laughing up a storm the whole time.
Julie talked about her work on her blog the other day. I love the shapes she is making.
Maria picked up work on a quilt from a Libs Elliot class. I didn’t see what Joelle was working on before she left. I’m sure it was great.
Of course, we had plenty of food. 😉 I made a lemon pound cake. Carrie made some of her excellent chocolate chip cookies. There were chips and banana bread and all sorts of things. Even some fruit!
It was a great day and I really wish I could spend every day sewing with friends.
**N. B. : Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
Time marches on. The year is more than half over and I ate up most of my yardage progress with the fabric that I bought on vacation. I don’t regret it. I had a lot of fun on that trip and saw some great quilt shops. Still I am back in the green and continuing to sew up a storm.
As you know, I don’t quilt much. I really enjoy the collaborative effort of making a top and allowing someone else to quilt it. Thus, the quilts below are mostly tops, but I will include a finished quilt once someone else finishes it for the group.
This category covers bags, toys, aprons and knitting as well as other non-quilt projects.
WIPs are projects on which I am working. This means that I am past the cutting out of pieces stage, some sewing has taken place.
I still have UFOs. Who doesn’t, after all? A project in the ‘UFO’ category means I am stalled, it hasn’t been worked on in awhile or it is waiting its turn to be worked on. The list is a lot shorter and the projects are newer, for the most part.
I am annoyed that some of these are still UFOs. I have to give myself credit for completing some of them last year.
Admin
I made a lot of changes to the Quilts in Print page after the last V&S was published. I only include books I have read and recommend. I also don’t update the page that often, mostly because I don’t have the time. I had completely omitted Frances Dowell’s quilt novels as well as Marie Bostwick’s Cobbled Court series. This was a serious omission since they are both excellent writers. I originally wanted to add books that weren’t specifically in the quilt fiction genre, but I think the books by these two authors needed to be included. Now they are!
I also updated the Minikins page. I have been making some non-Minikins Sew Sweetness bags and was reminded recently that this page has some non-Minikins patterns at the bottom. I don’t think all of the non-Minikins bags I have made are there, but there are some.
The Color Strip & Chunk page has been updated to include the Green Strip #3 (The Swamp Thing) quilt.
Projects, Classes, Patterns, Techniques & Tutorials
I saw this “How to Write a Quilt Pattern” course in an email recently. I haven’t heard of the person who sent me the email, though I obviously signed up for the newsletter at some point! Neither have I heard of the teacher. It is a good idea, though. Forget writing patterns! Teach people how to write and market them.
A long time ago, I used to keep this list of small projects up to date. I might do so again. Since various holidays are coming, this list might give you some ideas for gifts for your friends.
I am thinking of making another version of Flying Around with curved Flying Geese. I looked for a tutorial on how to make them myself. I found this Better Off Thread tutorial. I will take a closer look at it and try to make some curved geese later.
–> Join Jeni Baker’s Lined Drawstring Bag Sew Along coming in November! If you want to try making a bag, this is a great way to do it. This is an easy project and the support makes it completely doable. It’s a great way to get started sewing and you can use the bag as a reusable gift bag for the holidays, if you don’t use it for a gift! Also, she has a free version as a tutorial. If you want to make a striped version, she has another tutorial!
Tools, Books, Fabric, Notions & Supplies
I went to the Sewtopia site to look at fabric and was disappointed to find that you can’t view more than 12 fabrics at a time. That means a lot of clicking. Bleah. I prefer sites that allow you modify how many fabrics to view. They have a lot of, what I would consider, novelty fabrics on their site.
A friend pointed out Common Threads Press to me. I am not familiar with these books and wonder if they are scholarly? The topics certainly seem interesting. Have you read any of the pamphlets?
Media, Books and Articles
The Washington Post had an opinion piece by one of Ruth McDowell’s daughters.
I posted a new book review recently with a lot of links to old books. Books have changed a lot since I first started quiltmaking. Books now don’t usually have techniques. They only have patterns and one way to make them. Older books had techniques and different ways of making quilts and I always thought that was useful. Often you can find these books at a used bookstore.
I don’t remember mentioning the Quilters’ Guild. This is an overall guild for the entire UK. I am sure there are smaller groups around the island as well. They have a large historical collection of quilts. You can shop for patterns and tools and all sorts of things. The guild also supports historical research. They have one quilt from 1718 that was the one quilt in a book, The 1718 Coverlet**. The book talks about the history of the quilt, how to make a replica and how to make individual blocks using two methods.
Other Artists
Carrie, a former student, is also a glass artist. She makes Halloween and Christmas gifts for some of her family. This is the 2024 Halloween decoration. Isn’t it great?
I love how the wings are sort of see-through. I used to know what that glass was called, but can’t remember.
NQR
I saw a cool story telling chair somewhere last week. This is built by Hal Taylor. Don’t complain about his prices! Beautiful work like this should be rewarded. It is a great chair if you have multiple children or grandchildren.
Dogs seem to be a recurring theme lately. My sister is still working on getting the Recovery Ranch Sanctuary off the ground. You can still help out! See the Cups for Pups club. I have also been spending some time with some puppies my awesome niece is fostering. They are Schnauzer and Husky. I went back to visit the other day and my favorite was gone to a different foster home. 🙁 Two puppies are easier than three!
I still got to have a cuddle with Ginger and Paprika. They are little energy bombs and then they switch off and go to sleep. It is funny.
And a reminder: Cups for Pups: Join my Lil Sissy in helping to fund the Recovery Ranch Sanctuary via GoFundMe. She is working on creating a place where the dogs of those needing recovery will be taken care of while their people are getting help.
**N. B. : Obviously, you should shop at local quilt shops and small businesses. However, if you are too busy or can’t find what you need there, I use Amazon affiliate links and may be paid for your purchase of an item when you click on an item’s link in my post. There is no additional cost to you for clicking or purchasing items I recommend. I appreciate your clicks and purchases as it helps support this blog.
More blocks for more happy people who need quilts. I am eeeking out green strip blocks as I work on the Green Improv piece. I don’t have many strips of the right size left, so every green strip block I get is a bonus.
There are very few blocks this month as I have been focusing on using up scraps in the Swamp Thing. I did hand in three donation quilts, however.
I have a few photos and some info from recent Sew Days.
Gerre has been working on her paper pieced fish blocks. They are really cool looking and a lot of work! They are small paper pieced master pieces. She works on them on and off depending on her whim. One of the reasons I like Sew Day is that I get to see various people’s projects. When people bring the same projects once in a while, I enjoy seeing the progress.
I am tempted to use the pattern to make my dad another quilt. The first one just used fish fabrics and was one of my first quilts. I know I wouldn’t enjoy a completely paper pieced project, however.
Tim brought the same quilt he has been working on for a month or so. He worked on this quilt at our sewing session at his house. He was chunking it at Sew Day and it was looking fabulous!
He used a pattern called Silas Pew by Jittery Wings Quilt Co. I wouldn’t choose that name, but I am sure the designer has a good reason for calling the pattern that. Regardless, Tim used solids and few tone-on-tones for his version and it really glows.