IHSW That Was All About Sewing

I'm back!!! There are a ton of photos I want to share with you all from my trip but I will hold off and keep this post all about the crafty frenzy I had this weekend.  I am slowly going through posts and hope to be caught up this week if I'm lucky, since this is the last week before I head back to school...sigh.  Summer's end always makes me a wee bit sad.  But this weekend, I tried to forget all about the onset of school and cooler temps and got crafting.  I went on a fabric shopping trip with my cousin-in-law gf and we spent about 3 hours at Dress Sew. A fabric lover's heaven.  While she picked out funky and fun fabrics with chickens and horses for her child to be, I found some wonderfully soft yarns on sale for $1.99! There were only three colours so I scooped them up.  I also found two pretty fabrics that I know I will use at some point.  

The packaged fat quarters are from the Quilting Shop on the Sunshine Coast

Let me back up a bit on my two big projects I have started.  While we were on our vacation on the Sunshine Coast, there is this marvelous quilting shop that we have cycled by a number of times and I always exclaim while cycling by, rather loudly since we are on bikes, "I really want to go there baby!!!" To which my baby replies (for the past 4 years) "Next time!! Let's just get to the ferry!" So this time, as we had a bunch of time to kill waiting for the ferry, I finally got a positive response to my query..."Let's go to that quilting store you've always wanted to go to." YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!! So off we went and I was giddy with delight at the selection of fabrics.  Let me back up yet again.  Before my vacation, I read Nicola's post about her jelly roll quilts that she made and linked a video about the jelly roll races.  I was hooked; line and sinker.  I wanted to make one!! So I started researching jelly rolls and found that Vancouver, as massive as it is, doesn't have quilting stores.  SERIOUSLY VANCOUVER... GET WITH THE PROGRAM!!!!!!! Anywho, I was going to order a pretty jelly roll online from Moda, but with shipping it would've cost a lot.  Back to my trip....while I was browsing the amazing quilting store, where there were machines on "sale" for $8000!!, I asked the lady "Do you have any jelly rolls?" To which she replied, "Why yes we do!" And showed me...GASP...the Moda jelly roll I was yearning for online!! Yahoo! It was on sale too.  So I looked to my hubby and said "Pretty please!! I will make us a fabulous quilt!" And he said "Yes!" Wow...I should've gone for more if he was in such a carefree mood. 

Pretty Moda strips laid out - Double Chocolat

Back to present time, IHSW weekend...so it began with a sewing Saturday with my cousin. I unraveled the jelly roll and started sewing the pieces together.  It takes a lot longer than an hour to do since I'm not even finished sewing all the parts together.  

Disorganized mess makes me panic!

The strips sewn together in a jumble.  I can't stand jumbles and even though the ladies on the video say "Don't worry, this is not a fussy quilt" I had to iron them all out and organized the strips....I'm too particular with details as my cousin and husband say!

So nice and organized!

Much  better!! Here's where I'm at now.

So far I have 4 panels sewn and I'm going to make it into 8 panels tonight.  Maybe16 if my back doesn't give me too much pain.  The red and brown beneath the panels are going to be my backing and front panels to frame the quilt.  We picked that out today and the lady at Fabricland was AMAZING.  She helped me with the dimensions, the colour choices and even drew me a design.  I love her!! 

After researching quilting online, I have decided once all the parts are together, I will hand quilt it.  Since I cross stitch...lol...I think the rocking hand motion will be fine for me.  I like stitching in hand at times and I want this quilt to be really special. 

Guess what I never knew what this object is for and feel silly admitting it to all of you... a THIMBLE! It's for quilting!! AHAHAHA!! I always thought it was for embroidery or darning or something.....never for quilting...silly me. The rubber thimble is for your index finger!! My Nana has one that I used to play with as a child. 

To all you quilters...if you have any tips or tricks for me that have helped you quilt please pass them along to me! I will collect them all and print a copy to refer to.  

Onto the second big project.  Remember way back when I talked about granny squares and attempted to make one? Well, I've been wanting a decent selection of yarns that are of the same weight? consistency? to make one really large granny blanket.  I'm not making several little squares but one massive one.  Check out Bunny Mummy's large granny. I spent quite late last night trying different methods and was getting frustrated with the differences in patterns.  My eyes were hurting so I put it down to work on it another day.  

I think it looks okay.  The lady's pattern I'm following reverses the square and I'm not sure if I like that method as the chain stitch gets a bit wonky.  Again...I'm toooooo picky and precise!

Stitching? Yes, I did some of that too! I finished BBD's Bluebird as a Redbird and stitched a Hannah motif.

Stitched on 32 ct. Platinum Belfast with CC's Cupid

I don't think I'll have Hannah done by the end of summer...possibly September.  That's my new goal.  I am also stitching a little RAK for someone and picking out three more to make.  If only I had more time!! 

Last but not least, before we bought the quilting fabric, we browsed through the Salvation Army and found this great hardcover book for $2.99 on Traditional Samplers! Great book at a great price!

I love this sampler and hope to make it one day.

I miss everyone and am looking forward to reading your posts and catching up.  Thank you all for your lovely comments on my last few posts.  I haven't been very diligent with responding but I mean to!!  I'm always inspired, uplifted and grateful for each and every one of you!!

For my next post as a little teaser....Clams, nocturnal animals circling our tent, and bears....

BIG HUGS TO YOU ALL!!

edited to add details for Margaret and Missy Tannebaum :D

Hannah's Crosses

Thank you all for your supportive comments on my tutorials.  No tutorial today, just a quick Hannah update before we head off on our camping/cycling trip tomorrow.  I plan on taking a couple of little smalls for me to work on as I really enjoy stitching outside while I hear the birds sing!  I've been working on Hannah pretty steadily and had one whole day of stitching...but then I had bad tension headaches afterwards.  Anyone else get those from a long bought of stitching? I really enjoyed stitching Hannah's crosses and the little bird motifs but now that I am close to the finishing line, I'm already thinking about my next sampler.  I have about 9 more blooms, a couple of motifs and the 1 over 1 stitching to do.  I hope to finish it by the end of summer. 

I had to post a photo of Titus because I forgot to the past couple of posts.  We are going to miss our big baby but he will be in good hands of our neighbour.  

Take care everyone!

Hugs

Anne

Twist and Shout...Twist and Shout! Come on Come on Baby Now!! Twisted Ribbon Tutorial

Okay, so I have that Beatles song in my head.  Why is it still so good 50 odd years later?!?!

Thank you all for your lovely comments on my last post and welcome to my new followers.  Today I am going to attempt to describe how to do the twisted ribbon finish.  I stress the word "attempt" because I may leave out some info.  If I do, please don't hesitate to let me know, alright?

Twisted Ribbon Tutorial with Two Ribbons

1. Pick two different coloured ribbons, a neutral thread and a sewing needle.  You also need some patience as this is a fiddly project!

2. Knot the end of your thread and poke it through the middle or to the left side on the bottom of your pillow.  I usually like to start at the bottom because if you are displaying the pillow in a bowl, then the bottom isn't really seen. 

3.  Take your two ribbons and wind your thread around the ends and poke it through the pillow again to make it secure.  I did this two times because the silk ribbons are delicate and I didn't want them coming apart. Don't worry if your thread is visible.  When you come back towards where you started, you can add a couple of loops to hide the start!

4.  Next, poke your needle through a bit of the seam under the ribbon, then poke it coming up through both ribbons (it should be coming from underneath the ribbons so that the needle is poking upwards not downwards into the pillow).  Twist the ribbons and squish them a bit so they make a little bulge. 

5. The tricky part.  Come back down into both ribbons a teeny bit away from where your thread is coming up from and into the seam of the pillow a little bit away as well.  

See how the thread is going down into the ribbons?  Don't worry about the loose ribbons, when you put it into the seam and pull a bit they will tighten up.

Here's a better photo of coming up and down into the ribbon and into the seam.

6.  Keep twisting your ribbon one or two times clockwise and squish a bit so they look loopy...lol.  I often changed the direction of the twisting and sometimes twisted counterclockwise to create a more haphazard la-dee-da effect.  

Let the ribbons go where they may and continue this pattern until you finish the edging.  There were a few times I didn't like the way the ribbon looped so I took out a few stitches and re-twisted in a different direction for the loops to look good. 

I tried to keep the loops somewhat the same size but allowed a few to be a bit bigger and smaller as that was what I wanted.  

7. To finish, I knotted my thread under a loop and pulled it through the seam a couple of times...no one can see it!

There you go! The twisted ribbon finish inspired by my hubby and finished by me! 

Warning!! Make sure cats are not nearby the ribbons as they will play with the tail ends of the ribbons!!

Another warning...don't pre-cut your ribbon because you won't know how much you will use!

Recognize that fabric Mouse?


Onto other news, I have been cycling like a mad lady and am super sore today.  We met up with a serious cyclist friend (we aren't that serious trust me!) and we toured around the most darling little town yesterday, Fort Langely.  Such a quaint little place! We went to the cutest little candy shop and our eyes popped out of our heads.  I bought some Popeye candies, Gold Rush gum, licorice for my Nana and some other sweets for my hubby.  It was a dream going in there! Here's some photos of our trip!

Bliss

I so wanted this but didn't have room in my bike paniers

Lord of the Rings Pez dispensers!! $40!! Crazy

Our serious cyclist friend.  Hubby...not so serious

A cool wheel from the 1940's in the most amazing antique shop

Fort Langely's Community Hall...beautiful

A gorgeous house now a doctor's office

View of the street before my camera died

Hope you enjoyed this tutorial and a peek at Fort Langely!

Take care

Anne

A Box Finish

Today I woke up to a bright and sunny Sunday morning.  A perfect morning!  I thought I would share with all of you how I do my box finishes.  It all started with Angela's box, from Hooked on Stitches.  This will be my third box so far this year and now I have requests to make more! My brother wants one with some sort of moose/deer or hunting theme.  If anyone has a good monochromatic design that fits a hunting theme could you let me know?!

So here's a mini tutorial.

Step 1: Buy box! I usually get my boxes at the dollar stores although I have purchased one at Michael's.  It would be good to sand it down first before painting. I have yet to do this! I just found some sandpaper in my hubby's tool box so I'll be using it for the next box I do.

Step 2: Disassemble box by taking off all the hinges with a little screwdriver and set aside in a cup or bowl so you don't loose the tiny screws.  The clasp part of the box doesn't come off so you will have to paint carefully around those pieces.  If you do get paint on the hinges, don't panic.  Take a q-tip and some water and dab off the paint.  Start applying paint with a medium, regular paintbrush (you can get this at Michael's), using a craft paint.  I usually give the box 2-3 coats, letting each coat dry before I apply another coat. You can also use a glossy paint for a nice finish but those are more expensive.

Step 3: If you don't use a glossy paint, then you can spray hobby craft enamel over the paint.  I usually take the box outside to do this because there are so many warning signs on the can!! Let the box dry completely to touch before attaching any sort of stitching/fabric onto the box.

Step 4: This step can vary depending on if you want to put your design directly on the top of the box, or if you want a more raised look, like the Ink Circles box I made.  For this design, I used some batting on top for a more cushy look. I used some craft glue to attach the batting to the top of the box.

Step 5: Attach your design with a craft glue. I used a toothpick to apply the glue along the sides of the top of the box and made sure my design was square before gluing down the sides.  I folded the edges like I would wrapping a present. I added a little glue to the triangled edges to make sure they stuck to the fabric on the sides.

Step 6: Embellishment!  The fun part!! To hide those unseemly edges of fabric, add a ribbon, lace, or flat embellished cording. After attaching the sides with glue, I looked at my assortment of ribbons and played around with a few options.  I settled on a purple ribbon but decided it was too plain and added buttons on top of the ribbon.  I think it turned out great! 

Last step is to reattach the hinges and screws into the box and there you have it, the box finish!

Stay tuned and I will be back with the twisted ribbon finish!
 


(Edited to include Annie's questions!!)