Weekly Sewing Report

I am feeling the strain of working on the intricate blocks every day so I am going to weekly reports for a while. I feel like I want to do things other than quilting.

I will do some work on my garden quilt this week. I need to do some appliqué edging.

Behind this block I have my doll clothes sewing ready to cut out and try a new design.

I also have a lovely tea towel that my daughter brought from Japan that I want to cut into two strips and hem. There is also a cute piece of fabric that I want to quilt as a table runner.

Lots to keep me busy and give me a break from piecing.

Cheers,

Val

Do I cut up the tea towels? Yes!

My DD1 gave me some Christmas presents wrapped in gorgeous matching tea towels from Target. One was red and white check, one was red with white spots and one was white with a red line design and the fancy rick rack border.
My tea towel hangs on the back of the pantry door so it doesn't really get seen much so I decided to cut them up and make three sets of matching placemats or tray mats, coasters, napkins and mug rugs.
This is the basic layout. I allowed 2 cm extra on the edges that would need hemming. The place mat size was based on the size of my trays. I found in the past that I needed a mat on the trays because the tea pot slipped across the tray if I wasn't careful carrying it. The coasters were in the bottom corner so I could use the already hemmed side.

As a guide:
tray/place mat is 40cm x 28cm
napkin is 29cm x 28cm
coaster is 12cm x 12cm and 14cm x 12cm (one needs three sides hemmed)
mug rug is 28cm x 19cm

The bits left over were just the right size to add a border trim and do some applique. I have enough left over now to put a bit of applique on a white or red tea cosy.

Here are all my lovely sets.

Coasters

Mug Rugs

Napkins

Placemats/ Tray mats

Complete set

Complete set

Tray mat in action

Back in September 2012 I took the plunge and made one of my souvenir tea towels into a tray mat. It is nicer than washing it to death as a tea towel of just having it folded up in the cupboard.

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Happy Quilting and Crafting,
Val

mug mats and weeks 39 and 40

I soooo love doing my aerobic exercise. I run. I walk. I jump. I have managed to increase the time to about 50 mins of interval style where you do high intensity for 1 or 2 or 3 minutes then walk for 2 or 3 mins to get the heart rate back a bit then high intensity again. It is very doable.

I have been drawing up a storm using the pictures I have pinned or seen in magazines and I have decided to make a quilt from 12 inch blocks of random design both applique and pieced. I have finished block 1 this week. I copied this lovely design from mamacjt 's blog.

I wanted to get some new skinny folders to file my old drawings a bit more user friendly rather than in the big fat ring binders I have now. They are too hard to pick up and flick through. I also wanted a 12 inch album to store my new drawings. I ended up getting two snap load albums from Aldi for $5 each. They are normally $20 at Lincraft. I have been using my stash of 12 inch scrap booking papers that I have had for maybe 10 years to make the designs into 12 inch blocks. The papers are the ones you get 100 for $15 from Big W. Perfect for quilting designs.

I have been carrying my brekkie outside each morning with my tray. To stop things sliding around I need a tray mat. I have been folding in the edges of my fancy tea towels to use as mats. I don't use them as tea towels because they never get seen then. I had an urge to sew so I  took one of the tea towels and cut it into a mat. I even appliqued a tea pot on the back side and I have enough tea towel left to make a tea pot cover.

I couldn't help myself and just happened to start sewing selevedges together again. They make great kitchen counter mats because spills don't show up. An applique was needed of course so a mug with marsh mallows and a cup of coffee were applied and voila another nice mat to make my tea on. The owl is going on the cat quilt instead of the parrot DD2 didn't like.

I tidied up the sewing table a bit and put all the small UFO's into folders in a hanging file box. I then started putting steps required to finish them in my Errands app so I can do a little bit if I am looking for something to do and then tick it off so I know exactly what is required next time I am looking for something to do.

The folders were left over from my teacher days. This is my half finished tote bag.

Finally I redid my workout routine folder, putting it into a ring binder instead of a display folder. I have quite a few pages now and with the ring binder I can place the current routine in the front of the folder. The routines are made up of some printed out ones from Pinterest and various websites as well as photocopies of routines from my Oxygen or Shape magazines. Having the folder makes it much easier to actually do the exercise rather than looking for, then looking through the magazine or website.

Leslie Maxwell is my inspiration. She is 55 in the photo.

Happy Quilting,
Val

Selvedge applique

I put the cat on a tea towel and then I got busy and made the 'ribbon' tree.

I think I will make 6 for the Christmas table. Not all with trees. Maybe some curved decoration shapes and a dove and a gingerbread man. I have just made some tea cups with selvedges I was given. I will put them on a counter mat for the kitchen.

Edit
Couldn't for the life of me remember where I had seen the ribbon tree - til Karen commented from Sunburnt Quilts

Happy quilting,
Val

sewing strips

I saw a pattern for a folded pouch made from 1 1/2" strips and I just got the urge to sew strips. So I put together 10 width of fabric strips in Christmas fabric. I didn't really want a Christmas pouch so I cut it into 4 squares and made a table topper. So I could use it all year I made the backing with some of my NZ fabrics - the Tui's and matchng green.
My travel bag sits very patiently while I play.

I also saw that someone had done a lovely ribbon tree and thought that idea would be perfect for selvedges. I have drawn it up ready to do. I got side tracked with a stripy cat that just had to go first. I think it will go on a tea towel.

I drew the pattern on thin interfacing sewed on the strips then stay stitched around the outline and cut it out. I will use a bit of spray basting to hold it on while I stitch it on the tea towel. There is a tail and a stitched face to complete it.

 Mum and I had time to go and have morning tea up at Mt Tamborine at the Polish Gallery. There is a lovely view down the valley. It was a bit hot so not a good place to go in summer.

And finally here is the garden progress. When the cucumbers grow big I will train them back over the bed to keep the sun off the lettuce and maybe a capsicum. The sun is so fierce here all the veges can do with some shade.

Happy Quilting,
Val

Monday's Show and Tell

I have been making a few more tea towels. This time with pumpkin pie and chocolate cake. I used my silicone mat. It really makes it easy to put the bits together. Here is the cake ready to put on the tea towel.

I also got Sandi's pincushion in the mail today. I looks great and it feels really nice too. All soft and blankety :)

The weather here today is perfect autumn weather. Just a few clouds gathering and a balmy breeze. There is supposed to be a storm this afternoon. A few weeks ago I took a few pictures on my walk up the road. About 500m down my street then turn right into this street and down to the creek.

Then up the hill and around the corner to the top.

This is looking back down my valley towards my house. You can't see it. It is past the white roof pretty much in the centre..

Hop on over to Cookies and Cream Craft to see what others have to show. Why not grab the Show and Tell button and join in each week.

Happy Quilting,
Val

Being Creative

This month I joined up a fun arty group where you can use any medium to create something related to the given theme. March was 'garden'.
I made two tea cosies and a butterfly brooch and a pumpkin applique and stitched tea towel. My regular blog friends are probably sick of seeing what I made this month. Next month I will try to save my finishes up for the final reveal at the end but I was just too excited about it all this month :D

Front

Back

The yellow is felt background and the feelers are thin wire. See how I made it here

Thanks everyone for your nice comments on the flickr photos. I also enjoyed looking at all the photos and can't wait to visit blogs with the linky.
Being Creative is hosted by Julia Crossland. There is a linky on her site for visiting other 'Being Creatives' at the end of the month.

Cheers,
Val

Christmas through the year

I have had a great time making some designs and playing with free motion applique. I still managed to make a gift. I have appliqued two tea towels with an Orpington rooster and an Orpington hen. I love chickens. I drew these from photos and I wanted to use my brown tone fabrics on the orange tea towels. The rooster was almost those colours but the hen was supposed to be black.

I used my silicone mat (bought it to use in the frying pan) to iron the rooster pieces together first then put him whole onto the tea towel. The mat is a bit see through. It goes on top of the pattern picture and you build the picture on the silicone, put a cloth over and dry iron. When it cools it peels off the silicone ready to stick on your project.

You can view and download the patterns.
Rooster
Hen

You can visit Allie-oops Sweet Happy Life to see what others have made.

Happy Applique,
Val

Pumpkin Tea Towel

I have made an applique pattern of a pumpkin and vine that I have used on a tea towel. I have made this one to put away as a gift.
I wanted the vine stitchery to stand out so I tried Pekinese stitch. I used fusible applique paper and machine stitched a narrow satin stitch  (3) around all the edges and did the detail with a narrower satin stitch  (2).

Because one of the leaves overlapped the pumpkin I have changed it slightly to make it suitable for stitchery as well.
You can view and download the pumpkin applique and the pumpkin stitchery
Just remember to trace the applique in reverse if you want it in the right hand corner.

If you use my design unmodified please give me credit - Design by valspierssews

Happy Quilting,
Val