March | 2007 | I knew that!

Doll Quilt Swap button

March 30, 2007 at 7:54 am | Posted in Quilting, Sewing/Crafts, swaps | 3 Comments

Here’s the button for your blogs, folks!

I can’t figure out how to put the code into a post, so ~~I’ll post it in a comment below (I hope!)~~

Edit: Whoops! Can’t figure out how to do that either. I’ll work on it this afternoon.

Another Edit: I can’t figure it out: grr!! I’ll just e-mail the button code to you as you sign up, to use or discard as you see fit. Lisa K.

Doll Quilt Swap

March 30, 2007 at 1:30 am | Posted in Doll Quilt Swap, Quilting, Sewing/Crafts, swaps | 25 Comments

edit: We’re soliciting feedback for this swap and recommendations for the NEXT ROUND of the Doll Quilt Swap here! Thank you in advance for your ideas.

(pic from womenfolk.com)

On Whipup last week, Maitreya joked that doll quilts were taking over the world. It certainly does seem that way! To wit:

Hillary of Wee Wonderfuls has grand plans to cover the room of her baby-to-be in doll quilts. She’s already made several cuties, like this one, this one, and this one.

And speaking of Hillary, the lovely Vicki of Turkey Feathers sent her this beautiful doll quilt, and – AND! is GIVING AWAY another one to a lucky someone on April Fool’s Day, and that’s no joke! All you have to do to enter is leave a comment on this post.

Amy at Ibby Bee has also made some very pretty quilts, too.

So…let’s all get swept up in the doll quilt zeitgeist, shall we? (you know you want to) and have a DOLL QUILT SWAP!! They’re so sweet, and they’re much quicker to make and easier to handle than a bed- or even crib-sized quilt. If you’re a newbie quilter, this is a perfect way to develop your quilting chops. If you’re a seasoned seamstress, you can try out a new technique (applique, anyone?) or maybe hand quilting or machine quilting. And, you probably have all the material you need in your scrap bag.

Construction: Pieced, appliqued, wholecloth (like my favorite one, from Liesl of disdressed), or yo-yos; quilted by hand or machine; and bound (see below for a link to a great binding tutorial). Embellish at will. Embroidery? Rickrack? Buttons? None? You decide.

Fabrics: Let’s do natural fibers: cotton, linen, or wool, please!

Size: At least 18″ in the smallest dimension, up to, let’s say…24″ in the longest.

Deadlines: SIGN UP by Friday, April 6th, and matchups will be sent out by Sunday, April 8th (my birthday!), at noon. SEND YOUR COMPLETED QUILT OUT to your partner no later than Monday, April 30th.

Patterns and tutorials: Of course you may choose your own patterns, but here are a couple of ideas if you’re stumped.

Country Lane’s site has free patterns for two cute little quilts.
Womenfolk.com’s America’s Children and Baby Quilts links to pages with doll quilt history and patterns.
Heather Bailey (HELLOmynameisHeather) has wonderful tutorials for both yo-yo construction and quilt binding.

Signup: Please send an e-mail to me (e-mail address is near the top right, just under the search box) listing your:

full name
mailing address
blog url, if you have one

I was so excited about this idea that I drove right past the DHL place tonight on my way to drop off a shipment! I hope to have great response, and of course a lot of fun with all of you. I’ll set up a flickr group to post pics and make a button for you to grab this weekend.

Feel free to comment with doll quilt links and other recommendations. This is my first time hosting a swap and I’m sure I have plenty to learn.

Fun Flickr Image Mosaic Generator

March 27, 2007 at 6:10 pm | Posted in Sewing/Crafts | 9 Comments

Have y’all seen this? I just found it via How about orange.

Take an image, like, say this one:

And go to this site. Follow the prompts, and you’ll get a mosaic version of your original image, made up of teensy little photos from flickr!

Here’s a close-up of the owl’s left cheek!

Cool!

Another thrifty score

March 27, 2007 at 10:38 am | Posted in Quilting, Thrifty Goodness | 5 Comments

I know it seems like I’ve been spending all my free time in thrift stores, but….okay. You got me. I’ve been spending all my free time in thrift stores! You can find some real treasures there. One-of-a-kind things. And at such low prices, you feel a little guilty. For example:

This baby quilt belonged to the cashier at the thrift store where I purchased it. She said it was hers or her younger sister’s, she couldn’t remember which. Her mom and dad bought an RV and were selling or giving away many of their possessions, and so this (she thinks) 100-year-old, hand-pieced and quilted beauty is mine, all mine (insert evil laugh). I assured her that I was a quilter and would take good care of it, and that seemed to lessen some of her wistfulness.

The most interesting part of the quilt, for me, is that each of the teeny colored squares is appliqued on individually. For example, in the “stem” in the pic above the two-square-tall blue rectangle is actually two squares sewn separately onto the white background. Is this a crazy technique that I’ve never heard of before? Or was it a cross-stitch sampler pattern adapted into a quilt? And speaking of patterns, does anyone know what that tree/flower bouquet pattern is called, if it is a traditional pattern?

Each of the squares is a hair less than an inch. The entire quilt is about 40″ long, and it’s in great shape. Couple of tiny worn spots in the binding, but that’s it.

I’ll post again tomorrow: another thrift store find, and some cool Japanese books I got on eBay. I have to run: it’s our weekly crafty day today! Apron and potholders to make!

Pistachio bunny

March 15, 2007 at 10:49 pm | Posted in Sewing/Crafts, Thrifty Goodness | 8 Comments

Betz White, of Martha Stewart and cupcake pincushion fame, shared a tutorial for making cashmere bunnies on her blog this week . I was lucky enough to have bought 2 armloads of cashmere at a local thrift store (I went back the next day and found five more, after the original six; I still haven’t paid more than $2.20 for one), so this seemed like a perfect project for Kath and Lisa’s Weekly Crafty Day.

Fun fact: I held him upright with a miniature Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup, which I promptly ate after taking the last photo.

I traced Betz’s templates and cut everything out, including two ear linings from one of my favorite springtime fabrics (same stuff I used for the egg– and heart-shaped yo-yos). I was a little worried about sewing the stretchy sweater, but it wasn’t too bad. Just make sure if you try it to pin, pin, pin. Did I say pin? I experimented on the ears with sewing with the sweater on top and then on the bottom. I seemed to have better luck, strangely enough, with the cashmere on the feed dog side (on the bottom). It’s just s’darn slippery. I haven’t tried it with the walking foot. Next one, maybe.

When turned, the bunny looked super wonky, especially just in front of the feet (his ankles?). Stuffing seemed to resolve that strangeness. Now, as a notorious overstuffer, it’s hard to know when to say “when,” since the knit gives so much. I actually ended up un-stuffing his rear and re-doing it because he had a little too much junk in the trunk.

Oopsie, I plumb forgot to sew on his tail! Well, you get the idea. I’ll re-shoot him with some brothers and sisters before the weekend’s out.

Tales from the thrift

March 13, 2007 at 9:04 pm | Posted in Thrifty Goodness | 7 Comments

I visited a thrift store this afternoon, and holy cow, did I score. I picked up six cashmere sweaters, two wool sweaters, a sleeveless top, a tin, a tablecloth, and a cute vintage valance. Any guesses at my grand total at checkout?

$12.98. Yup. I almost cussed out loud. Here’s a look at the haul:

Wool sweater 1 is by Norm Thompson. They actually still sell this one. It was originally $129.00. Mine was $1.20. I liked the rose motif and think I might turn this into a pillow.

Wool sweater 2 is by Tommy Hilfiger and has pretty colors in an allover diamond pattern. Here’s a detail of the pattern; I like the brights against the beige.

I also scored two red cashmere turtlenecks, one from Gene Meyer ($1.80) and one from Country Shop ($0.80). One of them actually fits me, but I already have a red cashmere turtleneck. Ha. Figures.

Here’s a soft grey SO brand scoopneck with ribbed details, only $1.20. The pistachio cardigan on the right was also $1.20.

Two last sweaters: A navy blue J Crew polo sweater for $1.80 and a camel crewneck for $1.20.

I plan to felt the sweaters and use some of the cashmere ones to make the cute bunnies from Betz’s tutorial. I might try to make some pillows or purses or pouches with the rest. I actually kinda wish I could make a luxe patchwork throw blanket with them, but I’m a bad estimator and don’t know how much square footage I’d get out of them, especially once they’re felted. I’ll post my progress.

I love this little tin for so many reasons. Many of the graphics on it are filled in with pretty calico patterns, like the cow in the fourth photo.

Here’s the top:

I also picked up some textiles. I’m not sure what they’ll end up being. This yellow fabric is a valance with some cher little animals. I just this moment realized that, like the tin above, some of the “fills” are calico prints, a little like feedsacks. Only $0.90!

I tried to put this tablecloth down a couple of times, but each time, the happy vegetables won me back over. For less than two dollars, how could I not? I think they might have been a hand-painted transfer, since the color’s a little uneven. But they’re so cute!

My highest-priced item was a $2.80 Dockers top with pleats in the shoulder seam and a cute band collar. It’s covered with fuzz from all those sweaters, but it fits perfectly. Can’t wait for summer!

Speaking of summer, it was actually 72 degrees here today, but March is just teasing us: it’s supposed to snow later this week.

Care for a spot of tea?

March 12, 2007 at 1:23 pm | Posted in Sewing/Crafts | 4 Comments

I recently bought the CUTEST teacup pouch from someone I’ve long admired. Her name is Laurraine, of Patchwork Pottery, and she’s so skilled in both of those media!

The workmanship in the bag is just great. Check out the detail of this linen “tea” tag. So cute.

She was so sweet to include a little lagniappe* with my order, including some really cute button magnets and this amazing fabric. Can you read it? MILK, MILK, MILK, MILK….

If you want to get your own teacup (she has great coffee cup ones, too!), please run, don’t walk! to her etsy shop. You’ll be glad you did!

Best of all, it matches the tote I made the same week. Don’t adjust your monitors, kids; it’s a HUGE tote because inside are my rotary cutting mat (25″ by about 20″) and rulers. And a million other things, since they fit! I have been traveling a lot with my machine and it was a pain to tote all my gear in several ill-fitting bags.

Here’s a closeup of the vintage avocado green rickrack and patchwork pocket. You can ALMOST see the free-motion quilting on the brown floral fabric (April Cornell Sonnet from Moda).