WIP Friday

OK, I'm jumping on the Work In Progress Friday bandwagon here in the hopes that it motivates me to actually complete all my works in progress. Although these particular works already have deadlines, so I should be sufficiently motivated ;).


First is a bag I've almost completed for July's Whiplash competition. All entries are due the first two weeks of July, but I'm going on vacation without my computer or sewing machine (eek!) on the second week of July, so I only have a week to finish and take pictures and post about it. I'm really excited about the bag and the competition and I hope it all comes out well. I didn't want to give away too much with the picture - just a teaser ;).

The second WIP is a baby carrier for a baby shower that is next Sunday. I will be on vacation so I won't be at the shower, but I promised to deliver a gift before I go out of town so I need to get it done soon. This is only technically a work in progress because I have taken the steps to purchase fabric and pre-wash it. Other than that, I have done nothing! I have some serious work to do.

My final WIP is my sewing room and I am too embarrassed to post a picture of that. It is a certified disaster area. There are piles of crap everywhere, to the point where I'm surprised I can find anything and/or get anything done. The problem is that I get so involved in projects that I don't want to stop to clean. So, I don't clean until the situation becomes dire. And, believe me, it's dire now. I think after I finish these two projects I need to commit myself to not starting anything else until I do some serious work in my sewing room. It's just so hard to not start new projects - I have so many floating around in my brain!

On a different note, I just discovered today that there is a quilting blogger out there called KC Quilter who actually started her blog on the same exact day that I did!! I would consider changing my blog's name, but I've already registered KCquilts.com as a domain name. And I'm planning on using it as a business name. I just feel so tacky now.

Success!

After making five coin purses, I've finally created a version that I am totally happy with. AND, I wrote down all the steps in the process so I won't forget what I did and have to do all that work all over again. I have a tendency of doing most everything from memory. So far, it has worked for me, but I don't want to count on that always being the case.

I solved my zipper problem by consulting the search engine at Crafster.org. It is my new favorite place on the internet. I'm sure most crafty type people have known about it for quite some time, but it's a recent discovery of mine. If you want to know how to do something, do a search on it on Craftster and you'll probably find more than one post explaining how to do that very thing. Brilliant! So, now I can shorten my own zippers. As a result, zippers are my new favorite thing and I just bought a whole, huge amount of them on Ebay. Yay zippers!

Baby Pants - Practically Free!

I found instructions for making baby pants from old t-shirts here on crafster. The original tutorial can be found here. The tutorial on crafster specifically tells how to make the pants from old t-shirts (which is fabulous, since you don't have to hem the bottom of the pants!). The original tutorial gives instructions for making pants out of just about anything, and I needed it for help with the elastic waist.

I know what you're thinking - I wasted two perfectly good shirts to make one, little pair of baby pants. But the beauty of it is that these shirts were already discarded. My husband and I went through all of our clothes this spring and made a huge pile of clothes we no longer wore. We bagged them up and I asked my husband to remove them from the house and donate them to charity. Well, he removed them from the house, but they only made it as far as the trunk of his car - where they remained for a month and a half! He claims that he brought them to a drop-off point, but the bin was so full that he couldn't leave the clothes there. I know - lame. Anyway, it ended up being a good thing because I was able to go back and find some shirts to resurrect into pants.

I copied the pattern for these pants from a pair that are a little fitted. I think the next pair will be made with more room in the legs. Simon likes the pants, but he says that he wants to be more stylish.

You can see a photo set of the whole process here.

Somebody Stop Me!

I made a little lined, zippered pouch using a method I found on Craftster, but it didn't come out so great. So, I made up my own way of making one and here it is! I need to make another one so I can "perfect" the method. I want to use interfacing next time so it's stiff. Also, I want a smaller zipper, but apparently they don't come any smaller than 7"?? This is really my first foray into zippers, so I don't know. Perhaps I can get them shortened at the store...

It's a Quilt, It's a Purse...

It's a quilted purse!!!

The purse I am currently using is really a tote bag. I made it two years ago and it's a sad, floppy affair. The colors are awesome: black on the outside with a bright pink on the inside. However, the pockets are so large and bulky that they get in the way more often than they actually help hold things. And I can never find my cell phone in time when it starts ringing. So, I figured it was time for a new purse. A real purse. One with bells and whistles.

The idea of using scraps to make the purse came to me one night when I should have been in bed, but was instead trying desperately to convince a cranky baby to go to sleep and let me do the same. The mind visits funny places when it is sleep deprived. Anyway, the idea stuck and I thought it was a fabulous one: using up scraps is great because it helps to make my sewing room neater by reducing the clutter and I don't have to spend any money to make this great purse since I already have the materials!

I gave myself a zippered pocket to hold all those things that fly around my purse and I can never find. It is currently holding a wallet, a business card holder I bought from Three Green Apples, a chapstick and a pen (I made sure the top was on!). And look over on the other side at that snazzy cell-phone pocket! It even has a little velcro clasp to keep the phone from falling out accidentally. With all these added features it has become apparent to me just how low maintenance I am. The only thing that is actually in the main portion of the purse is a pad I use to write grocery lists. In addition to the organizational features, I put in a magnetic snap to keep things in the purse and to keep pickpockets out. I also covered a piece of cardboard with fabric and placed it at the bottom of the purse to give it a nice, sturdy bottom.

By the way, the business card holder is empty because I still don't have business cards. I'm hoping that innocent bystanders with notice my groovy purse and ask me about it, giving me the perfect opportunity to pull out a business card and tell them that, yes, I make these purses and other fabulous quilted items! This plan will backfire entirely if I don't have business cards.

Since i have a nice, new purse I decided that I needed a matching wallet to go with it. My current wallet is just too big and I want a smaller version. I found this super-easy pattern for a wallet here on Crafster.org. The wallet holds all my essential cards and fits in my zippered pocket with room to spare! I feel so coordinated.

KC the Dog: v2.0

Here is my second attempt at making a stuffed puppy. I decided that the embroidered face just wasn't working out, so I used felt instead. I also gave him a diet: skinnier torso. I think he looks better, but I'm still not satisfied that he's done. I just don't know what I want to do to make him better!

And, I must admit that I have a problem. I gave Simon this dog as well as the first dog. I felt bad that his dog was not as good as this dog and I didn't want him to feel slighted. OK, I just wanted to make him happy. He likes the dogs, but prefers toys that make noise when he hits them. He's such a boy.

Quilting For Charity

Being a stay-at-home mom, I try very hard to save money. I have cut back on lots of things: cell phone, cable, new clothes, eating out, etc. However, I feel lots of guilt in cutting back on donating to charities. If I can't donate my treasure, then I must donate my time and talent. I have a goal of making several quilt tops a year for charity. However, since I'm trying to save money I've challenged myself to make charity quilts entirely from fabric in my stash.

My local quilt shop collects unfinished quilt tops for Project Linus. Several times a year, they have a "quilt in" where people volunteer their time to finish all the donated quilt tops. I'm hoping to be able to join in the quilting once Simon is no longer breastfeeding. In the meantime, I can keep making tops. Project Linus always seems to be in need of quilts for boys, so I gave this top one a camping/fishing theme (you know, rather than flowers and butterflies!). There are lots of prints with cabins, bears, fish, etc. It's rather busy, but I didn't have any solid fabrics in my stash to compliment the prints. I like to think that a little boy would appreciate all the business, anyway. There's lots to look at!

Happy Father's Day

I've always loved redwork, but I don't really know how to embroider. OK, that's not entirely true. I've looked at diagrams of how to embroider, but I need lots of practice. So, I got some quality practice in by making these onesies for Father's Day. My husband appreciated it more than any thing I could have made for him to wear ;).

KC the Dog - Take One

This was my first time drafting my own pattern for a toy and my first time sewing with microfleece. Both turned out to be a bit of a challenge. Hopefully KC the Dog v.2 will look a lot better.

I love the microfleece for a stuffed animal. It is so, so soft and is easily shaped with the stuffing. However, my sewing machine seemed to have problems handling the fleece and I'm not sure what to do to fix it. It kept skipping stitches and I was only able to fix it by sewing the seams twice. Another problem with the fleece is the embroidery. I embroidered the eyes and nose on his face after he was stuffed. Well, apparently the fleece is very stretchy and distorts the embroidery. That is why the eye on the cotton is so much bigger than the eye on the fleece. Next time I will use an embroidery hoop and embroider his face before sewing and stuffing his body.

As for drafting the pattern - I don't think he came out that terrible. His body is obviously too large. He looks fat and squarish. I've already adjusted my templates to make him skinnier. I just hope he isn't too skinny next time! I also think his legs are a little too long and possibly too skinny. But I'm not changing the legs yet because they might not look as skinny with the skinnier body. I really like the way his feet and ears turned out. I'm not sure about the head though. The flat face isn't very doggish, but I wanted to stick with a really simple pattern for my first time. His eyes are too far apart, I think. We'll see what he looks like next time, I guess.

My test market isn't sure what to make of the puppy. He's more interested in chewing things than cuddling them. I made the puppy nice and big so he'd be good for snuggling. And he's so soft, too! I think it's time to introduce a lovey - Simon is having serious sleeping issues. Maybe KC #2 will do the trick.

Chinese Coins Wall Hanging

I made a quilt very similar to this one about a year and a half ago. It was a wedding gift for a good friend. At the time, I cut out twice as many fabric rectangles than I needed and saved the ones I didn't use in a tidy pile in my sewing box, where they waited. And waited. I'm not sure what inspired me to finally dig them out, but they sure were happy to see the light of day!

I really enjoy this project because it is an easy way to use up some scraps. I love scrap quilts and will often buy those $0.05 pieces of fabric they sell at the quilt shop, which defeats the point of using up scraps but what can you do? It would work with any number of color or fabric themes. I have a lot of bright colors and think it would be nice to make a wall hanging using all of those brights - like a rainbow - and do the borders in a light blue - like the sky. It would make a nice decoration for a child's room.

The rectangles were cut to 1.5" x 3.5" pieces and there are fifty total (ten in each row). There was no hard and fast rule as to where to place each patch - I just tried not to place any similar colors next to each other. The sashings were cut to 2" and the outer borders to 3". I put two sleeves on the back, so it could be hung either vertically or horizontally.

It's a quick and easy project. Unfortunately, it took me much longer to complete than I anticipated because half-way through I sliced my finger with the rotary cutter! When I tell people who don't know much about quilting that I got eight stitches from a sewing injury, they think I am crazy. When I tell people who do know about quilting about my rotary injury, they think I am crazy for a completely different reason. They seem to think that I cut my finger because I put it directly in front of the blade and then rolled right over it. Let me assure you that it didn't happen that way! Somehow, my blade slipped up over the ruler and embedded itself right into my finger. I always knew they were very sharp and that I needed to be very careful, but accidents do happen I suppose. Still, I feel pretty stupid.

My husband, who thinks he is very funny, thinks I should call this quilt "the Emergency Room Quilt." I am not taking his advice, although it does make for a good story. It's a shame that I do not yet have business cards, because several nurses and other hospital-type administrators asked me about the cut and quilting and it would have been the perfect opportunity to talk up my business and get some advertising in. Of course, they might not want to consider buying a quilt from someone who, as far as they know, can't sew without mutilating herself. Oh well.

Somehow, the quilt managed to not get any blood on it. Thank goodness for small miracles.

My Least Favorite Part of Making a Quilt

Wikipedia has the following to say about quilt labels:

During the late 1900's, the quilt community started to encourage quilters to label their quilts, starting with a name for the quilt, in addition to their own name, and completion date for the work. This was an important step in taking the craft of quilting into the art realm. A quilt's name implies there is some meaning to a quilt beyond its creation, to whatever degree. Though meaning maybe found in quilts without names as well.

I am a big proponent for quilt labels. Whenever somebody shows me a quilt they have made by some relative or other, I immediately look for the label and am almost always disappointed when I don't find one. However, I can't really blame the quilter for not putting it there, because I hate labeling my quilts.

I think it's because, in my mind, I am already done with the quilt and am ready to move on to some other project. Taking the time to make a label is just delaying all of the new quilts that are living happily in my brain from making their debut. So, most often, I don't label my quilts right away. I tell myself that I will label them later - when I get around to it. For a while I was just embroidering my initials and the year on the back of quilts, but I have recently rededicated myself to making actual labels. I'm going to try to make them interesting - not just a little white square. I started small, but hopefully as I make more labels they will evolve into more artistic expression. Or at least some kind of expression.

Fabric Addiction

Yesterday I went to the Quilter's Unlimited Annual Quilt Show, which was great fun. There are always so many quilts on display that it is often exhausting just to get around to viewing them all. There was one quilt that used these adorable fabric panels that I thought would be just perfect for a little boy's quilt and I fell in love just a little bit. Not long after viewing this quilt I was walking by a vendor and noticed that they also had a quilt using these same fabric panels. Well, I went right over there and discovered that they were selling them and knew they would be mine!

I bought two panels, just in case I messed up any of the prints on the first one. That way, many years from now when I actually get around to making something out of them, I won't have to start crying when I make a mistake. I say many years from now because my son is only 8 months old and will not be in need of a twin-size bedspread anytime soon. But I bought this fabric especially for him and now I can spend many long months pondering what exactly I will do with these cute, cute blocks.

Feeling Very Productive

I made my third softie last night for a little 8-month old. She is the daughter of some friends who will be visiting this weekend. This one is a free pattern offered at neststudio. It's called a minimoopy, although it's really a bunny. At first I thought it was a little freaky looking, but now I find it totally endearing and I kind of want to keep it for myself. I suppose Simon might be getting one of his own soon.

I also recently finished the last of my unfinished quilt tops. I really like the way the quilting came out on this one. Unfortunately, I didn't take a picture that really shows it off. I'll have to do that sometime soon.

With the completion of this quilt, I now officially have no more unfinished projects to work on! I'll have to fix that by starting several new projects. I just went to a quilt show and bought a whole bunch of new fabric, so I'm feeling pretty inspired. And I want to start using them all right away! It doesn't seem fair to make one set of fabric wait while the other one gets to have fun. They should all have fun at once. That way, my sewing room can once again be cluttered with many unfinished projects. Or should I say, works in progress?