Perhaps I should have used more blues and greens and held on to this for summer? Nah! I was ready for some cheerfulness after the unbelievably grey skies of the past few weeks.
My plan worked. My plan was to alleviate the depressing grey that was shrouding my town. It worked! Today was beautiful out! Blue skies… no clouds. It was gorgeous, even from the window of my office. And, peeking out of my bag was this cheerful (bordering on loud and obnoxious??) journal cover. It made me smile every time I caught sight of it.
I used the Philip Jacobs fabric I bought at Always Quilting after PIQF 2010. I still want to make a bag or something larger, but I haven’t gotten to it yet.
I didn’t plan on centering the flower, but it was a pleasant surprise.
Journal Cover - open
I used a bit of hand dyed fabric for the inside and added a little to the edges of Philip Jacobs fabric to add interest.
I have finished all of the pages my current journal, which has the Innocent Crush cover. I am sorry to be finished with that journal, because I wanted to carry it around in the Innocent Crush Flea Market bag. Adrianne brings her Flea Market bag to the BAMQG meetings and I admired it again at the last meeting. I wasn’t happy with the way my bagn turned out so I took it apart – not the whole bag yet, but the straps. You can kind of see the unevenness in the photo (the one I linked to above). I like the fabric and the design and didn’t want to just abandon it. When I made the bag, I was not able to sew the straps smoothly which meant that I tried to ease the handles together, which, further, left tucks in them. I didn’t like the way the tucks looked. I have unsewed the handles and am working on lining them up better. I haven’t done any further sewing on them. We’ll see.
Yes, I can reuse the Innocent Crush journal cover and I might do that. For now, though, I am loving the cheerful and fun Philip Jacobs cover.
This is a quick project. I made the journal cover in about a half an hour on Saturday morning.
I really like the Martha Negley giant vegetable prints. I am not sure why except that they are really different. This one was a much darker color than I thought when I bought it (online), which I mentioned when I made this pattern back in October. I was a little unsure what I would do with it.
This tote bag pattern is great! It is a good size and it is a useful size. I sew the straps a little differently than the pattern suggests, because I prefer the straps to be inside the seam. Otherwise this is a very clever pattern that goes together relatively easily and quickly.
I also think large scale fabrics show up very well on this pattern design.I finally learned to put the contrast fabric behind the pocket! TFQ likes to use the same fabric for the middle panel, but I like the way I have done it in the picture. I hope I remember to do it that way next time!
I have an idea in my head to make one of these a month all year. We will see: two months down, 2 bags complete.
My next wishlist item for this pattern is to make a bottom out of the fusible Timtex like stuff that Anna Maria Horner uses for the Multi-tasker tote and insert that to give the bag some stability.
I finished Passionate Purple in December, but didn’t post it for some reason. This is the latest in a series of Bullseye quilts. You can see Seeing Red and Feelin’ Blue on other pages. The information about this project has its own page under Series quilts.
This fabric was really a pain to cut. I cut it raw edge to raw edge, because I wanted the coffee cups to be right side up when I carried the bag. It really took a long time to cut, as a result.
I am pleased, however with the results. I wish I had switched the pocket fabric and the front panel fabric, but the colors go together, so I am ok with the way it turned out. I do have to sew up the opening on the inside that I used to turn the bag.
I am not working on one in the Martha Negley black vegetable print that I used before. I wanted to use up that fabric in the black for these style of bags.
I am trying to decide if I will make enough of them to give as gifts at Christmas. Shock, horror, I know, but I have to start thinking about it now, because I have to make 12 or so if I do decide to make them.
Here is the finished (completed! done!) Red Journal that I started on Halloween at A Work of Heart. I went to the second (and last) class on Sunday and finished. I could have done a lot more embellishing on the pages, but my ephemera wasn’t that good and I wanted space to write. Yes, I want to use this as a journal and not just a scrapbook. If my ephemera was more personal, then it would have been a good scrapbook making project, but I like the idea of writing in something that I made.
Red Journal - page 1
Above is the first page. You can also see the Malka Dubrowski fabric that TFQ gave me as a gift. I like the idea of see it more often. I may not really like writing in the Red Journal, but it is only 40 pages, so I can blow through it fairly quickly. What pen to use will be an issue. I see a Sharpie in my future.
Red Journal - pink crayon
The pink page looks like it was made with a crayon. I don’t remember doing it, but it came out of a big box of paper I had saved. I like it. We’ll see if I can write on it.
Red Journal - Star12
I really can’t say what possessed me to make the pages the way I did. It just seemed like the right thing to do at the time.
I had homework and kept putting it off. After class last time, I knew there was no way I could finish all the sewing if I waited until the next class (Sunday’s). I was finally able to get to my Red Journal project in a serious way on Friday afternoon and evening. Essentially, in between the Frosted Stars and Frosted Stars Leftovers I worked on the pages of the signature.
Red Journal Signatures - in progress
I was particularly happy with this page, which was made from just an image that I had been saving for awhile. I was happy because I finally got to use it.
Red Journal Signatures - in progress
Making the pages took a lot of sewing. There are 2 signatures of 10 pages each, folded in half to make a total of 40 pages.
I really want to make another one of these journals. I can think of two people who would really like them as gifts. It is a ton of work, so I would only be able to make them for people who would really appreciate the time and effort. We’ll see.
As I have probably said 42,000 times, the outside of this journal is made from fabric I made by sewing scraps of red fabric together a la Shannon Williams.
The Cheerful Baskets is finally finished! I am pretty excited, because this quilt has been long in the making. TFQ had some trouble getting it quilted, so we dropped it off with Colleen in Long Beach and then picked it up at PIQF. She did the most amazing job of quilting it. The quilting is masterful.
TFQ put the binding on (in case I have never said, she is the fastest binder in the universe!) and I just finished with the label and sleeve.
Cheerful Baskets detail
This quilt will go and live at TFQ’s house after I get it photographed. She has a gorgeous periwinkle wall where it will look fabulous.
Another quilt is finished. This one didn’t take very long, aside from the cutting, but it was a monster to deal with. The binding took me a long time. I probably spent 10 hours on the binding alone.
This is a gift for one of the nephews. Hope he likes it.
My Fabric of the Year 2009 project is finally done. DONE!!!
I was pretty sick of it when I quilted it back in April, so it took me awhile to get the facing on it and then the sleeve. Fortunately, the label is part of the back.
This is not the most spectacular photo, but it is better than nothing and, I hope, you can get the idea. I am thinking of hanging it in my office . I can get a better picture if I do that.
The last bit of the Chocolate Box I had to do was the sleeve. I made it in a short amount of time and then it seemed to take me forever to sew it on. I really had a hard time keeping the tucks out of the back of the quilt. Not sure why. Anyway, another project off my plate. Hooray!
I had to finish something this weekend aside from the interminable pressing and patch cutting. I pulled out one of the pillowcases I had prepared when The Child was making his and finished it. These pillowcases are soooo unbelieveably easy. The worst part is cutting the fabric. I think I have one more prepared and then I’ll have organize more fabric to make a few more.
TFQ is making a bunch and she tried sizing down the Twiddletails pattern slightly. She said it came out fine and she didn’t have to cram the pillow into the case. I want to avoid that at all costs. I want the pillow to slide in so it is a 2 second linen changing job rather than a 20 minute pain and torture session.
One of the best things about this particular pillowcase is that the seam where the cuff, trim and body of the pillowcase all come together matched up! I was really excited about that!
Matching Seams
I know it is silly, but I really like doing the best job possible so that people don’t say that I didn’t pay attention. Since these are going to kids with cancer, I really want mine to be the best they can be.
On another, but slightly related note, my mom loved her Sweet Dreams Pillowcase. She left SoCal almost as soon as she received it, but she said she used it at least once.
I am still working on a number of projects on which I have made incremental progress. That is one reason I needed to whip out the pillowcase. I needed to finish something!
Yes, the Knitting Box, which seemed like such a failure, is finished. It took me much longer than I thought it would. Even though I should be done with this project, I am tempted to make another just because I would like to perfect the process as well as make a few modifications.
Knitting Box Open
SIL likes it and I hope she will find it useful. I was nearly finished when she dropped off her child and requested a wrist band instead of the belt loop she originally requested.
Knitting Box One Flap Open
No dice. I did not want to rip out the seam and insert a longer loop. I didn’t have it in me. Fortunately, SIL is very thin and the belt loop was generous enough to fit over her hand. It is tight enough not to slip off as she is in transit.
The above photo shows that I added some snaps. I had some large black snaps on hand, which SIL said would be fine to use. I decided I wanted something to match the piece. I looked for pink snaps in several local shops with no success. I am sure I have seen colored snaps before, but I couldn’t find any. I must have seen them online. I finally bought clear snaps and they work well to keep the box closed. I was able to finish it while she was out.
Corner Detail
Part of what I wanted to do was secure the corners into a small box shape. I did that with beads and Laura Wasilowski hand dyed Perl Cotton. I hope it holds up. If not, I can fix it.
Snaps in Action/Corner Detail
Above you can see the snaps and unfolding action as well as a bit of the corner detail.
Open View from the Side
I put two snaps on the edge covering the section where the yarn will come out. I thought that SIL could only snap one in order to allow the yarn to flow out more smoothly.
Another View - Closed
You can see how the yarn would come out with one snap open.
Another View - Closed
I will be really interested in how this project actually works in practice and if SIL uses it. I like the way the box looks in this picture and wonder if it will stay like that while she is on the go and knitting.
One of the things I really ended up liking about this project is how it became a group effort. I appreciate my SIL and my niece helping me figure out the solution to my challenges and to all of my readers who gave me resources. I also appreciate the opportunity to do something a little different and to Ruthann Logsdon Zarroff of Mirkwood Designs for posting the original Truffle Box pattern.
Yes, it is Teacher Pillow time of year. I had resolved to not leave it until the last minute, but being in bed with a nasty virus for over week did not assist me in my resolve.
I made one pillow last weekend after I was feeling a little better. I also made a block during the week for one of the pillow tops, but spent the better part of Friday finishing them up. School is out on Friday, so I had to get it done.
Resource Teacher Pillow
Above is the pillow for the Resource Teacher. She has been working with The Child for the past four years. She has made my life a lot better, because she gets The Child. She has provided support that I wasn’t getting from the lower school resource teacher (through no fault of his own). I will be VERY sad not work with her anymore.
Every year I pull out the same fabrics and make a different block. Now she has a set. I am thinking of making a quillow next year. I have never done that, but my SIL is an expert and I can draw on her expertise.
I was surprised to see that lozenge design show up in the middle of the block. I amy have miscolored the blocks when I sewed the pieces together. The block is called Crockett’s Cabin in Around the Block. That lozenge shape is very appealing and I am wondering if it would work for a FOTY piece?
Literature Teacher Pillow
As The Child has moved up in the grades, I spend less time in the classroom, thus I know the teachers less and less. I try to get a sense of the colors of the teachers and it is very difficult when I have only spoken to them 3-4 times. The literature teacher, who also happened to be The Child’s homeroom teacher had a hard year this year. She was out for four months at the beginning of the year, because of the death in her family. I thought The Child would have a hard transition when she came back to school, but he took to her like a duck to water. He liked her because “she doesn’t think she knows everything” and I found her to be a very intuitive teacher. I don’t know if the above colors or design are her style, but they are what immediately came to mind when I thought of her. I hope she likes it.
Literature Teacher Pillow-back
I force The Child to do a little drawing for each of his teachers. He had a hard time this year. He is getting out of creative practice and I have to get on him about that. (N.B. I blacked the names to protect the innocent!)
Making the backs fit is the most time consuming part. I couldn’t seem to get it right on any of them. This one is actually sideways on the pillow. I figured that nobody would care, if they even noticed.
Social Studies Teacher
I really hope she doesn’t sincerely dislike purple. This block, in Around the Block, is called Star of Hope. It looks to me like a basic Ohio Star. I don’t really believe that blocks should have different names just because they have been recolored. I haven’t taken the time to look this up in the Jinny Beyer’s new book, The Quilter’s Album of Patchwork Patterns.
Social Studies Teacher - back
The Child kind of got into his drawing after a bit. He has a subtle sense of humor. I thought this drawing was very funny. Do you get it?
Science Teacher
I mentioned on Tuesday that I found some fabrics I didn’t really like while I was cutting FOTY pieces. A couple of the above fabrics are those fabrics. However, the Science Teacher is male and I have not had the opportunity to make pillows for many male teachers. I found these fabrics to be great for a science man. I think they look a bit like rocks. I only had a fat quarter of each, so I had to add some others and I don’t have any to match next year, but may continue with the rock theme.
Science Teacher-back
You can see that The Child got on to a roll with his drawings as he progressed through them.
The drawings are done on an 8.5×11″ piece of paper. First I fold the paper into quarters and then I draw pencil lines to mark the seam allowances. I also make a note as to which rectangle on the paper goes to which teacher. This year I also put in the name and the year. The Child knows now to keep within the seam allowance
Math Teacher
In the past, The Child has chose the blocks for each teacher. This year he didn’t really care that much, so I mostly chose them. He was adamant about what he wanted for the math teacher. He saw the piece of pie I appliqued on the Tarts Come to Tea piece. He was adamant that he wanted that on the math teacher’s pillow. This is the first time I have done applique’ for a teacher.
Math Teacher-back
The Child kept with the Pie/Pi theme for the back. Again with the sense of humor!
So done for another! YAY! I am going to a party today, but am going to find a fun project to work on tomorrow. I am glad I soldiered through and don’t have this project hanging around for tomorrow, except for the wrapping and the card writing.
I have to admit that I am sick of this project. There is only one year left and I am finished. I am not doing them for high school. I don’t think it is really appropriate and would embarrass The Child, but there are also too many teachers.
It is funny how you think something is a good idea and then a tradition and expectations start, which turns the fun into a chore.
I do enjoy looking through Around the Block and picking out the blocks to use. I am tempted to make blocks for next year’s pillows while I have the fabric out and just tuck them away until April or May so I have less to do next year. We’ll see.
You might remember about a week ago I talked about selecting bag fabrics. I just couldn’t decide so, instead, I started on a different bag where the selections were already firm in my mind.
AMH MTT in Progress
I really enjoyed working with these fabrics. I loved the colors and the feel. I finished the bag on Saturday and took it out with me on Sunday. I have to admit that even if I give bags away, I try most of them out. I intend to keep this one, but tote bags flow through my life so quickly that who knows?
These are fabrics that I bought in Ferndale and the large flower print is by Martha Negley. I do love that color, a reddish pink tending towards salmon. It is a cheerful color.
This is the first time I have made the pocket panels the same color as the exterior of the bag. They are the pieces right under the dot fabric you can see peeking out of top left and right.
It made the fabric selection process a lot easier. The pocket panels aren’t highlighted at all; they look like part of the exterior. I don’t know yet if that bothers me. I did a lot of work on the bag and wonder if I need people to see the pocket panels? I’ll have to think about it and let you know.
I like to make the inside of the bag a light color, so I can see what is hiding inside the bag. I really like that dot fabric! I got some a long time ago with a chartreuse-y / olive background. This colorway works very well for the inside of a bag.
I realize that this is another non-quilt project. Yes, I have quilt projects; I just don’t seem to be working on them. Two quilts, Chocolate Box and Passionate Purple are ready at the quilter and I haven’t gone to get them yet. I also finally called for a longarming date. I could have had March 26, but have to work that day, so FOTY 2009 will be quilted on April 23. Don’t give up! Some quilts are coming.
Yes, boys and girls, I finally finished Beach Town. You can read about starting it in the post about the Pamela Allen class from last year. I liked looking at the piece in that post (one of the things I LOVE about blogging!), because I could see the differences including all of the handwork I have added.
Beach Town Back
I made a smaller version of the Robbi Joy Eklow sleeve (from her book Free Expression) for this piece. I don’t know if it will ever be hung using a rod, but it is ready if someone wants to hang it that way.
One of the things I need to think through when I use this technique in the future is the back and the label. I like to include the label as a part of the back. As you may have noticed, I often piece the back and include the label in that piecing. This allows me (or my quilter) to quilt over the label so that it cannot be removed if the quilt is stolen. Jill, one of the creative prompt participants, talks about this in her recent blog post.
Another reason I piece the back is that I have the fabric, so I might as well use it.
Smaller quilts, and particularly this Pamelala technique are free form and quick. The maker usually lays down the back and batting first with no opportunity to piece the back or make a label. When I take a Pamela Allen class again, perhaps I should just put down the batting and work on the back later?
