New Fabric...

 The sewjo is slowly coming back and I am starting to prep for winter.  That means I purchasing fabric.  Here is my latest purchases:

This is a stretch suiting in a denim color.  I purchased two yards with the intend of it being a skirt. It is a very nice fabric. Machine wash gentle cycle, low dry temp.

This is a blue/white striped chambray.  I intended to make a button down shirt with it but the fabric is very thin (sheer) and I am not sure that I would wear it.  I purchased three yards.  Other than being fairly sheer, it looks like the picture.

 
This is a checked fabric that I found in the Wal-Mart precuts.  I purchased it thinking it would be nice for a pant muslin but it is much nicer than I thought it was.  I plan on making a long skirt.

This is a striped sweater knit.  It is another Wal-Mart pre-cut and there are two yards.  I plan on my a t-shirt type top or sweater.  I can not tell what type of fabric it is but I will do a burn test to check.

So, I think I have purchased enough fabric for now.  I only piece I am disappointed with is the blue/white chambray.  The website had it listed as heavy enough for shorts.  I think that they missed the boat but maybe I can find an interested blouse pattern that will work but I still want a blue/white striped button down.

Happy Stitching!

Grief Shopping...

 Why does shopping make you feel better when you sad?  I have been trying very hard not to purchase much fabric this year as I just do not have space to store it anymore.  With the loss of my kitty, fabric shopping seemed to distract me for a little bit.  Fabric from fabrics-store.com:

I purchased 12 yards of this natural linen to finish my loveseat.  Fingers are crossed that 12 yards is enough after washing.

This is a waffle weave linen/cotton blend.  I purchased 6 yards to make a robe for my husband.  Hopefully, 6 yards will be enough and shrinkage occurrs.

This was a doggie bag purchase.  One yard of a grey pearl linen.  This will be a top of some sort for the hot summer days.

This is a doggie bag purchase.  Three yards of an asphalt linen.  This will become some sort of an outfit - pants with a matching top, a dress, or a skirt with a matching top.  Yeah, I try not to purchase anything without a clear idea of what I am wanting to make but I had been eyeing this color for a long while and it is rare to see a piece this large in the doggie bag.  

I have not purchased this amount of fabric in a long time.  I have my eye on another piece of fabric but I do not if I will get it now.  Although, it is possible that I may need another distraction.  My kitty that passed was like a baby to me.  He was the first one that I had raised from a kitten.  Believe me when I say that adults cats are much easier.  He never seemed to outgrown that kitten behavior and was still bouncing off the walls until about 2 days before his death.

Happy Stitching!

Trapunto…Have You Tried This Technique?

This year my sewing buddy and I are going to attempt learning new techniques.  Instead of doing a project in January we met to decide on some new techniques to learn.  We ended up picking two techniques to start.  The first one is trapunto and the second one is using fusible thread in the serger to help with putting the binding on a quilt.  These will be small projects like pot holders or place mats or maybe even a table runner. 

I found a tutorial at quiltsocial.com  (link) that uses snowflakes. There are other techniques that use the same design.  I might attempt some of them also.  I think the snowflakes would make a cute winter table runner.

Here’s is a fairly good video tutorial from Landauer Publishing - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDjw4Wo37ew .  It isn’t exactly like the tutorial on quiltsocial but it provides some great information.  There are also a ton of great videos by this company.

I didn't realize when I suggested the trapunto technique that there was machine quilting involved.  This isn't something I’m very good at but maybe I can figure out how to do an outline with my machine.

So, we left our January meeting with a small list of items to get:

1.  Water soluable thread

2.  Water soluable backing

3.   Fabric for our project – front and back

4.   A high loft batting for the trapunto

5.   Regular batting for whatever project we decide to make

6.   Fusible thread for the serger so we can finish our projects

This might turn into a two month project because we’re doing two separate techniques.  I know the machine quilting will be difficult for me but I’m hoping the rest of it will be super simple.  I'll keep you updated with our progress or even the lack of progress.  First sewing meeting is first Saturday in February.

Happy Stitching!

I'm back....

Sorry for the long wait for the finish of the bathroom project.  I've been sewing, crafting, and gardening without blogging about it.  It was nice break.

Here's the before picture of the main bath in my house:

Yes, it was the 60s Pepto Pink.  The shower is pink, the floor is pink, the toilet is pink, and the walls have wallpaper.  It now looks like this:

Doesn't it look better?  A very neutral pallet.  We did add a small cabinet above the toilet after this picture was taken.  The only thing that I would do differently in this room is have a gray counter top instead of the black.

Here's a picture of the rug that was made for this area:

This little rug did not turn out exactly as I thought it would.  It is fluffy.  If I were to do it again.  I would add a layer of batting and another backing piece.  Creating the chenille was probably the hardest project that I have ever done.  It was heavy and the sewing machines didn't like it much.  I did purchase a tool to use for cutting the chenille but it was useless.  It was the Havel's Chenille Technique Rotary Cutter:

I was unable to get this to cut anything.  It wouldn't even cut 1 layer of fabric.  I was disappointed.  This tool was not inexpensive but if you're going to do chenille it is easier if you have a cutter.  I ended up using my scissors and it took many days to cut the channels plus it made my hands very sore.  I'm glad I tried the technique but I'm not sure that I will make anything else using the chenille technique unless it is much smaller than the rug.

Here's a picture of the potholder from Oh Fransson!  :

This was a fun little project.  We did free-motion quilting.  I'm not sure that I'm a fan of the free-motion quilting, but it was fun and we did have a lot of laughs at my attempt at the free motion quilting.  Let's just say that my stitches were really big.  It is definitely something that you need to practice to perfect.

Ok, that is enough for now.  I'll be back after the first of the year and I intend to be more active 2014.

Happy Holidays!