Commentary about works in progress, design & creativity
I took this picture soon after I gave the Hackneys to my mom. She is really great when I give her gifts. She puts them to use right away, which is very gratifying. On our trip to Portland, she had at least 3 of the Paint Tube bags with her.
This is the small Hackney. I am not sure what she was using for her pens and pencils before I gave her this Hackney. She liked being able to see them all. I am continually amazed to see how much these Hackneys hold.
As mentioned a few weeks ago, I gave my Mom two Hackneys for her birthday. She is already using them.
Obviously, they go with all the other bags I have made her. She was excited to receive some smaller bags she could put in one of the larger bags.
Cyndi brought her Essential Tote to Sew Day. I really like that pattern and am so pleased that she finds a use for it.
One of the things I like about that bag is the way the maker can showcase a large print fabric.
I really want to make some more of those. The pattern* is really great. You should buy one!
*no affiliation. Just a happy customer!
I have mentioned Gerre using the bags I make her in one or two posts. I always find it nice when people are actually able to use the bags I make. Sew Day was an ‘in the wild’ bonanza!
Julie and Gerre , as you have read,were both there and are both regular recipients of some of the bags I make. Gerre had three bags there screaming with Sugar Skulls.
They look really nice all together and the stripes and dots are good compliments tot he Sugar Skulls
Gerre and Julie both said they love the ByAnnie project bag, which you know I was a little annoyed with,but only because of the size. The large didn’t seem very large to me.
I actually found my project bag** useful for the Metro Twist pieces and patterns. There is something good about it. Both Gerre and Julie said that they could use many others. They thought a row of them hanging up in their workrooms would look really nice. Maybe I will make them each another for a gift. We’ll see. I do want to try making the larger size (extra large) as well.
**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.
Amanda was kind enough to text me yesterday just to say that she was thinking of me. We had a text exchange and in it she mentioned the Hackney I made for her birthday. She was kind enough to send me a photo of it in use.
I am constantly amazed at how much these hold. I am glad to see that she though the pen/tool holder in the top / lid was useful.
Maybe I should make one of these for myself?
I met Sue G at Sew Day and she had the Hackney I gave her along. She had it filled with supplies, which made me super happy.
You can see how much stuff it holds.
I am so pleased when people use the bags I give them.
At Sew Day, Gerre was quilting the donation quilt I made in January. I am always super happy when the donation tops I make get quilted quickly.
I don’t know how much she was able to finish. Progress is really good.
Another quilt in the wild!
I didn’t get to see all the quilts I have sent or taken to Austria, but, as you have seen, I was able to see a few.
Russian Rubix was the last one I saw. It was also one of the first ones I sent to Austria. It looks pretty good.
One of the issues is that Austrians use a different kind of bedding, so the quilts don’t really fit in. Still, I am glad to see it on a bed, even if they just put it there so I could see it.
I also got to see Metroscape in the wild. I feel like I am educating people in Austria about quiltmaking
I was pleased to see my color round robin in use in Austria.
It is being used as a rug, but I am told it is used as a road for cars and a hospital for dolls as well. I love it when my quilts are well used.
I talked a little about the random things we did and saw in Portland the other day. There were also several bags that I have made which made the trip with us.
I didn’t want to bring A Place for Everything, which would have carried everything, but it is big. I was trying not to bring my entire workroom, so I brought my Take a Stand/Without a Trace bag. Using the supplies I fit in this bag, I knew I would be able to work on La Pass Month 18. In it I stuffed my La Pass Sew Together Bag. To carry my La Pass thread, I brought the Inside Outside pouch, pattern from Aneela Hoey. Both of these bag fit snugly in the Take a Stand.
I keep the Sew Together Bag handy when I am working on La Pass, because it has everything I need. I know it is hard to see what is going on, but trust me, it is super useful.
We stopped to stay with Mary and Michel on our way home. Mary wants to make this bag and we spent a lot of time talking about the construction.
It was useful to have everything I needed fitted into the Take a Stand. I knew nothing would fall out, so I didn’t have to worry. I also didn’t have to change bags in order to make everything fit.
Mom also brought her Take a Stand. I am not 100% sure what was in there, but it was hanging around the house.
She also brought her Percheron Pouch with her, which I didn’t photograph in situ. She used it a lot. It houses a crochet project I bought for her that she has been working on for quite awhile. She had a big space she could use to lay the piece out so she could see what she was doing. If I remembered the pattern, I would share, but I don’t.
i really enjoy seeing my gifts in use.
I was really pleased to see the Sew Together Bag I made out in the wild.
I went over to Tim’s the other day and saw the bag I made for him. It was full of supplies, which made me very happy.
I made a Sheffield Tote for Gerre as a gift in 2020. I make gifts because I want people to know I am thinking about them. I do know that what I think is great may not be great for someone else, but I don’t have hard feelings when someone doesn’t use a gift I made for them.
Alternatively, I am super thrilled when I see a gift being used. This ‘t the first time I have seen Gerre bring it. She says she uses it all the time. Whenever we sit near each other I see it packed with supplies. It makes me so happy that it is a useful tote.
I was ironing fabric the other day and looked up to see my journal covers staring back at me. I had been thinking about making a journal cover from some leftover fabric from the Frolic! back and the journals on the shelf caught my eye. They sit on a shelf at about eye level. Since I have cleared off some of the books on my shelves, I can see things I didn’t see before.
Looking at these journal covers has made me think about beauty and fabric. I am much more careful now about choosing fabrics to purchase. Some of the fabrics above reflect some, if not poor, ill advised combinations of poor fabric choices. Something appealed to me about the fabrics, but the combinations and how they appear on the shelf do not all appeal.
I don’t plan to remake the journal covers, but I do plan on paying more attention to how the new ones come out. I have several that need covers and journal covers are a good use of scraps.
This is part of the process. I probably made the covers I no longer like a long time ago. I have evolved in my color choices and the way I put colors together since then. I also realized that I can see these journal cover, so I need them to be pretty. I need to take more care in choosing fabrics.
I use a medium gridded Leuchtturm journal now, so I don’t need journal covers. I still like the Miquelrius journals. I plan to use up the blank journals I have and to make journal covers for them. I find that the Leuchtturms fit in my purse and seem more compact. I can also put a spine sticker on them saying which month is contained within.
Last weekend one of our members commandeered her clubhouse and we had a mini-retreat. A ‘mini-retreat’ for our guild is where we don’t stay over, e.g. no hotel or travel. As far as I know everyone, except the hostess, drove back and forth to the location.
I didn’t take a lot of photos, even though I thought about it. I worked on a new Running with Scissors case and did a little with Frolic! as well. We didn’t have a ton of time to sew – 10-5 every day. The bonus was being together and seeing what other people did.
People were also able to come and go. A few people stayed for a couple of hours and others attended both days all day.
Julie and I sat across from each other, as per usual. I got to see all the things I have made for her in action. Check out the Mega Pinnie with mini-Pinnie in the wild!
I had a great time. I would prefer to go out of town, but sleeping in my own bed is good, too.