Holiday Craft Bash Final Week!

Welcome to Holiday Craft Bash week 6!  It's the last week, so be sure to check out the offerings from Meredith, Jessica and Jacey.  Don't forget to add your projects to the Flickr group for a chance at prizes - there is a big prize on the horizon!

This week's projects are table runners/placemats.  Now, I know when I did my centerpiece I said that table runners sometimes annoy me.  And that is true when I put them on a table I use every day, BUT, I love how they look on a table or buffet that doesn't get such constant use.  Making a table runner is such almost instant gratification - small and pretty :)  What can be better than that (especially this time of year)!

My Randot table runner was inspired by two things - round Christmas ornaments and the quilt I made last year using Sweetwater's Countdown to Christmas line.  The colors in this line are so rich - black with a yellowy green and cream and a lovely red.  I love black and white, but the cream and black combo that Sweetwater uses adds so much warmth this time of year.  The black and cream prints in my project are from Sweetwater's Mama Said Sew line as I don't have any of the black and cream Countdown to Christmas left.  The cream with little dots and the red with cream lines are from Countdown to Christmas and the rest of the fabrics are from my stash.

So here is what you need to make your own 13" x 35" runner:

½ yard green background
scraps for background insets and circles (green, black, red, cream)
¼ yard black print binding
½ yard backing
17" x 39" batting
fusible webbing
thread to match circle fabrics
circle template with 2¾" - 3½" circles (optional)

Background prep:
Cut a 13" strip of your background fabric.  Cut sections 13" x 10", 13" x 14½" and 13" x 7"
For the background insets, cut two pieces from your scraps, one 13" x 3½" and one 13" x 2½"
Piece these together following the diagram below (note that sizes are cut sizes, not finished):

Circles:

Using your circle template or various household objects, trace the following circles on the paper side of the fusible web:

4  2¾" circles

2  3" circles

3  3¼" circles

2  3½ circles

Cut the circles apart and attach them to the back of your scraps.  Cut each one out along the traced lines.

Lay out the circles on the background in a random fashion and fuse in place.  I placed my background on my ironing board before I placed the circles so I didn't need to move it to fuse them in place.

Satin stitch the circles in place with matching thread.

Finishing:

Layer your table runner with the backing and batting and pin baste.

For quilting, I drew a rough zig zag sort of following the line of the circles and echo quilted from there.

Bind with the black print binding and you're finished!

You'll never guess...

Janome Horizon 7700 QCP

or I could have titled this post "It's about time" because...   I bought a new sewing machine!!!  It is kind of ironic that just a few days after I participated in Shruti's blog hop, Know Thy Machine, about my trusty Kenmore, I finally replaced it :)

It really was time.  I don't have a bad word to say about my old Kenmore, but, there are just things a 30 year old 8 stitch machine can't do that I need to be able to do.  I sewed on my Mom's machine before I received the Kenmore as a wedding gift so, in my entire LONG sewing life, I have never bought a machine.

I had done a fair bit of online research and decided that what I really wanted was the 7700.  However, I was kind of ready to get the 6600 instead and save some money.  My local Janome dealer didn't have the 6600 set up and explained all the differences between the two - some of which were important to me.  In the end, I took a deep breath, and said "I'll take it!"

It took me a few minutes to utter those few words because, honestly, it is a lot of money.  But, if not now, when?  What was the point in waiting?  After all, I do sew kind of a lot.  So here I am, proud owner of a fantastic new 7700 :)

I can't tell you how much I love all 11" of the throat space and all the "new to me" things like needle down, a walking foot, a quilting guide (OK, my old machine had one of these, but it didn't work), a needle threader and thread cutter.  These last two weren't even on my wish list, but I'm surprised by how much I like having them.

The one feature that appealed to me but I haven't used much is the knee lift.  I love the idea, but the position of it doesn't seem to work well with how I sit at the machine.  The bar is too far over to the right - maybe I'm just too short.

I can't wait to try some free motion quilting.  Learning how to FMQ was a big reason for getting a new machine.  I love my straight line quilting, but, sometimes, the quilt needs something else.  I'm sure my first few attempts will be awful, but I'll get there.  Tomorrow I'll be using the satin stitch for the first time as I work on an applique table runner for the next installment of the Holiday Craft Bash.

BTW, we are taking this week off from the Holiday Craft Bash - the final installment (Table Runners or Placemats) will begin next week.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends!

Christmas Tree Farm - HCB week 5

Welcome back to Holiday Craft Bash week 5!  I hope you are all enjoying the holiday project fun that Jacey, Jessica, Meredith and I have been dishing up for you.  Between the four of us, we have a lot of different styles so there must be something for everyone here :)

This week I've made a cute little wall hanging/mini quilt to share with you.  Since I had some lovely pieces of the Joy fat quarters I bought for last week's project left over, I decided to use one for the background and some scraps for the trees.

Here's what you need:
background fabric:  12 1/2" x 18 1/2"
10 scraps for trees (approx 3 1/2" x 5")
fusible webbing:  1/4 yard (sorry - forgot to include this in Meredith's post!)
binding: 2  2 1/2" x WOF strips
batting and backing:  15" x 21"
hanging triangles:  2  4" squares of scrap fabric

I used two tree shapes for this wall hanging.  You can get the individual tree templates and the tree placement templates here.  Or, if you'd like to draw your own, both trees are equilateral triangles.  The "A" tree is 4" tall and 3" wide.  The "B" tree is 4 1/2" tall and 2 3/8" wide.

Trace 6 A trees and 4 B trees onto the paper side of the fusible web.  Cut the shapes apart without cutting on the traced lines.  To keep track of which trees go where, I suggest labeling the A trees, b, d, e, g, h, j and the B trees, a, c, f, i.

Further cutting marks need to be made on all trees except trees c, f, and h.  For example, lay the b fusible tree over the b tree on the placement template.  Noting where the c tree will be in front of the b tree, draw a line about a quarter inch past the line where the trees overlap.  This will allow the fabric from the b tree to go underneath the c tree without adding a lot of bulk.  Repeat this process for the other fusible trees.

Now, remove the paper backing and stick the fusible to the wrong side of the tree scraps and cut them out on the drawn lines.

To make the placement templates easier to work with, cut them out along the outer lines and turn the whole piece over.  At this point, I like to put my background fabric on the ironing board so I can fuse the trees once I get them in place.  Place the bottom corner of the far right tree in the 4 tree grouping 4" up from the bottom raw edge of your background and 1 1/4" in from the right edge.  Remove the paper backing from your trees and slide them under the template to their final position.  Fuse in place.

Repeat the process for the 6 tree grouping, placing the far left corner of the first tree 6 1/4" below the top raw edge of the background and 1/2" from the left raw edge.

Satin stitch all the trees in place.

Layer the quilt top with the batting and backing and quilt.  I started my quilting by drawing a modified "Z" from the upper left corner to just below the upper line of trees, then I switched direction til  I was even with the bases of the bottom row of trees and then turned back the other way.  I echo quilted around this line right over the trees.

Prepare your binding as usual but before you stitch the second half down, fold the hanging square triangles diagonally and align them with the raw edges along the upper edges of the quilt back.  Stitch the binding in place as usual.  Cut a dowel rod to the same size as the quilt back (about 12") and insert each end into the pocket made by the triangles.  Hang and enjoy!

Don't forget to add your projects to the Flickr group for the chance to win prizes!

Modern Quilt Show and Sale!

Join the fun!  Members of the Ann Arbor Modern Quilt Guild are having a Modern Quilt Show and Sale this Thursday, November 15 from 5-9 pm at The Corner Brewery in Ypsilanti, MI.

There are lots of fantastic quilts available and many smaller items too.  Get some of that holiday shopping done locally and early :)

Hope to see you there!

(PS, The Corner Brewery is at 720 Norris St)

Joy Centerpiece - HCB Week 4

Welcome to my project for week 4 of the Holiday Craft Bash!  This week Meredith asked us to make toys or some sort of home decor.  My girls are in their late teens and I'm not much good at 3D objects so I decided to make a small holiday centerpiece (just under 18" diameter finished).  While I love table runners, when you use a table every day, sometimes they feel like they just get in the way.  Something smaller that didn't need to be moved all the time or make me fret if salad dressing got spilled on it seemed just the thing.

I bought a layer cake of Joy by Kate Spain from Pink Castle Fabrics earlier this year (I think Brenda has sold them all now) and the prints were just what I wanted for this piece.  The layer cake pieces weren't quite big enough, so I made a quick trip to my LQS for a few fat quarters and I was in business.


Here's what you'll need:
Fabric A (center):  8" x 8" square
Fabric B:  2 3½" squares and 4 3" x 8" rectangles
Fabric C: 4 3" x 8" and 4 2½" x 9" rectangles
Binding:  approx 60" x 2½"
Batting and Backing:  22" square


Sew the 3" x 8" rectangles from Fabrics B & C together on the long sides.  If your B print is directional as mine is, sew the "bottom" of B to the "top" of C.  Press toward C.  Make 4.

Cut the 3½" squares on the diagonal to make 4 triangles.Mark the center of the longest side of each triangle with a pin.  Match, right sides together, with the center of a 2½" x 9" rectangle.  Stitch and press toward the triangle.

Line up the corner of your ruler with the corner of the triangle.  Trim excess Fabric C rectangle to make a B/C triangle.




Lay out your centerpiece in three rows as in the diagram.  Sew the three pieces in each row together.  See below for the top and bottom row.

The triangle units are over-sized, so in sewing them to the rectangle units, match the B/C seam and not the edges.  I put a pin 1/4" from the raw edge at the B/C seam on each piece and pinned it in place.

Your top (and bottom) row will look like this:
Notice that the triangles are bigger than the center rectangle on both the top and bottom edges.

Trim the triangles on the long edge even with the center rectangle unit.


Sew the three rows together.  You can trim the outer triangles now or wait until you have quilted the centerpiece.

Layer the centerpiece with your batting and backing and quilt as desired.  I quilted my centerpiece by sewing a big "X" through the middle of the piece and then echo quilting inside each of the sections.

Now you are ready for binding!  It might look tricky to bind an octagon, but it really isn't.  Miter the binding corners the same way you would on any quilt and it will work out fine.

If you are interested seeing more projects with Joy, hop on over to the Fat Quarterly blog (or Moda Bake Shop) where they are showing a quilt and pillow from their Christmas issue.


Don't forget to check out the projects by Jessica (yesterday), Meredith (Wednesday) and Jacey (Thursday) and to add your projects to the Flickr group to be entered to win prizes each week!

Know Thy Machine

Today, I'm participating in Shruti's (13 Woodhouse Road) Know Thy Machine blog hop. Shruti has over 30 bloggers telling you all about their machines and a ton of prizes too!

So let's get to my little workhorse of a sewing machine!

1. What machine(s) do you have? Brand and Model. I have a Kenmore 1345.

2. When and where did you buy it? What were the reasons for selecting this(these) particular model(s). What was its approximate cost. I received my machine as a wedding gift 30 years ago from my sister and her boyfriend (who is also my husband's brother). I believe it cost in the $200 range.

3. What do you like about your machine? Have you named it? Have you made a cover for it? It has been a fantastically reliable machine for me. I don't want to say this too loudly, but it has NEVER broken down. It has had a few minor maintenance issues over the years, but, considering how much I use it and how infrequently it has been serviced, it is a champ! I have not named my machine and have not made a cover for it. I did receive an amazing cover for it, made by the talented Yeechi/kirianth, earlier this year as part of the For the Love of Solids Swap. It is totally me and I just love it!

4. Does your machine give you any problems? Could you tell us a few? Occasionally the bobbin tension goes crazy on me for no reason that I can tell and several of the 8 stitches don't work any longer.

5. What do you sew on it mainly? Quilts, Clothes, Bags etc. How much time do you spend sewing on it? What are the features of the machine that help you improve your work? I sewed mainly clothes and home dec items on my machine for the first twenty years I owned it. I made some of my work clothes, much of my maternity wardrobe and lots of baby outfits and Halloween costumes. Now, 90% of the sewing I do is quilting. I sew quite a bit - most weeks at least 10-20 hours. It is rare for me to go two days in a row without sewing. Given that my machine has few features, I'd say the one that I most appreciate is the adjustable presser foot pressure. This helps me do decent quilting without a walking foot (they don't make one for this machine any longer - if they ever did :)).

6. What advice would you give others when deciding about which machine to buy? As wonderful as this machine has been, I am really ready for a new one. I've been thinking a lot about what features are important to me. Since I do my own quilting and plan to continue doing so, I'd love more throat space. Many of the other features my machine lacks are pretty standard on today's machines - things like needle up/down, ability to drop feed dogs for free motion stitching, walking feet, etc.

7. Will you share with us a special memory associated with your machine? I have some great memories of things I've made with my machine. One that stands out is when I made my four year old daughter a full wedding dress and veil for Halloween. Having her own ideas, she insisted that the lace overlay go over the skirt, not the bodice as is more common. I thought I was being kind of crazy investing that much time and energy in a costume, but it was so much fun! Of course, she loved it.

8. If you had unlimited resources in the world, which machine would you choose to buy and why? I've been drooling over the Janome Horizon 7700. Such fantastic quilting space and every other option I can imagine!

So, if you hop on over to Shruti's blog, she'll have a question about what I've told you above. Answer the question on her blog and you'll be entered to win a prize this week.

Quilt Market - New Fabrics!

Simple Marks, Architextures
and Noteworthy

I'm finally starting to dig out from my trip to Quilt Market and get some fabric pictures to you.  Honestly, I didn't take many pictures this time.  I've mentioned before that I tend to get so absorbed in what I'm doing and thinking that I totally forget about pictures.  Also, not having a phone that takes pictures, I'm lazy about hauling out my little camera.

But, I brought fabric home so I can take pictures here.  Smart of me, huh?  The sacrifices I make....

Architextures

There are two fabric lines coming out that totally blew me away.  The first is Architextures by Carolyn Friedlander for Robert Kaufman (available in December).  Carolyn trained as an architect and this collection is full of great little blueprint inspired prints.  As you can see, there are some text prints, some topographical map style prints, a ledger print, a cross hatch, a print that looks like little tree/plant drawings and a blueprint design.  Fantastic!  (I could do a whole post on Carolyn but my friend Lynn, TheLittleRedHen, already did - check it out here).

Comma fat eighth pack

I'm a big fan of Brigitte Heitland's pattern and fabric designs under her Zen Chic brand.  Her first fabric line, Juggling Summer, came out in October.  I'm working on a project with those fabrics right now.  I love the rings and circles in that line and the worn/sponge painted textures of several of those prints.  Her new line is Comma, due out in February - quite different from Juggling Summer and I love it even more!  This one has more clear color and graphic print.

Doesn't this comma print just knock you out?!  And the colors are so right up my alley - black, white, grey, yellowy green, orange, mustardy yellow.  YUM!  Here are the other prints in the line too:

Text prints, overlapping circles, asterisks, dots.  Sigh....

A few years ago, I NEVER bought a whole line of fabric because I usually only liked a few of the prints.  These days, I'm much more likely to like many or most of the prints, but it is still rare for me to like them all.  These two lines don't miss a beat as far as I'm concerned :)  In case you're starting to think I'm a little too enthusiastic, I assure you that I have no commercial connection to these designers.

Some of the other lines I saw are Simple Marks by Malka Dubrawsky for Moda, Noteworthy by Sweetwater for Moda and Stof Fabrics from Denmark.  Malka's new collection is in the same vein as her premier Stitch in Color collection - fantastic prints that look hand made in bright, citrusy colors.  Noteworthy by Sweetwater has some great prints too.  My favorite is the small scale bird on a line print.  Stof had some really great graphic prints in a Scandinavian style and some gorgeous linen prints that have me thinking of summer.

Stof

Stof linen

Stof linen

So, have I gone on long enough?  Quilt Market is such an overwhelming visual feast that it is hard to digest it all.  There is so much talent in this industry!

I'll be back on Monday and Tuesday with posts in blog series.  Monday I'll be part of Shruti's Know Thy Machine blog hop and Tuesday will be another project in the Holiday Craft Bash.  See you then!