yikes, time sure flies, doesn’t it? i can’t believe i’ve been so remiss about posting my work-in-progress.
i’m working on another mochimochi creature. this time, it’s a mix-n-match monster from the super scary mochimochi book.
and there’s been some more free-form embroidery.
aaaand a knitted wingspan scarf.
aaaaaaand another collaged card.
guess i’ll see y’all again in june!
another card:
a reusable duster:
some stuff i found in the back of the fridge:
a couple of books i read and some doodling with embroidery (also known as the work in progress):
knitting needles:
[another scant hat]
[AND ANOTHER. I CAN'T SEEM TO STOP.]
[umbilical hat, for a baby. very 3-D with those red and blue stripes.]
embroidery needles:
[old yoga pants with a new year's snake]
and the knife:
[collaged cards, made with actual paper bits that were cut with an exacto knife (no 'shooping here!)]
i tried out the alien illusion pattern from Debbie Stoller’s Stitch ‘n Bitch book…
i finished one panel, added a border around it, and pinned it to my sewing machine cover.
and then there was some embroidery…
the center is a shisha mirror.
i had fun practicing my stitches, but i don’t know what i’ll end up doing with this piece. hmmm.
and then there’s Spherey, a new project that’s just over 1/2 done…
i also made some birthday cards recently, but won’t be posting them until they’ve been sent to the birthday celebrators.
i woke up thinking it was saturday. what the heck happened to my weekend? so sad.
last month, i picked up a copy of Simple Modern Sewing at jo-ann (using a 50% off coupon, thankyouverymuch). i like the styles in the book, so i figured i’d try it out. i started with something simple, pattern #2c, a raglan-sleeved ruffled-edge jacket.
the pattern is pretty straight-forward, and thank goodness i read through the directions so i knew to add seam allowances. i don’t like that extra little bit of fiddling, but whatchoo gonna do?
i traced the pattern and transferred it over to an old bed sheet. i’ve learned my lesson about using an unfamiliar pattern and cutting up nice fabric, only to find it doesn’t fit in any way, shape or form. so YAY for old sheets!
the sewing directions were easy to follow, and it took no time at all to get it all put together. so thumbs up on that.
HOWEVER…
i have to agree with some of the book reviewers who mentioned the fact that these patterns are cut for a slimmer person. i made the LARGE (long-sleeved) version, and had two issues:
1) it was too snug under the arms and
2) the sleeves were too short
fixable problems, to be sure, but like i said, i’m not big on doing a lot of extra fiddling. i’ll try some of the other patterns and see how they work out.
in other crafting news, i experimented with some more linen scraps.
napkins!
quick-and-dirty machine embroidery. serged edges on three of them.
and then there was some hand-stitched embroidery:
not sure if i’m finished with it yet…
the seasons don’t change dramatically around here, so the best way for me to tell that it’s fall is when all the pumpkin-flavored products hit the shelves. i think it must be fall by now!
so much delicious pumpkin-y goodness.
the anticipation of cooler temperatures made me pull out my box of velvet scraps a couple of weeks ago.
i pieced together some big scraps and some little scraps, mostly leftovers from random projects over the years. and rather than take the time to get rid of the wrinkles, i decided to leave the pieces as is.
some of it was left over from little velvet pouches i used to make and sell over 20 years ago; some of it (like the light purple millinery velvet) from hat-making projects around the same time frame. some of it was embossed using a wooden printing block. the dark red used to be part of a set of theater curtains.
all in all, it was a nice way to decimate part of the slowly-decreasing fabric stash. but MAN, it sure did serve to remind me how much i really don’t enjoy sewing velvet.
i also pulled some leftover linen out of the stash, cut a square out of it and hemmed it to make a napkin.
i don’t have any linen napkins, so i wanted to try one out to see if i like them better than plain ol’ cotton.
added some quick and easy embroidery, and the napkin is ready to go! i’ll be trying it out this weekend and if i like it, then i’ll make a few more, hopefully in time for thanksgiving.
this was one of the leftover stuffed skulls from last year’s dia de los muertos project. i decided to practice my embroidery.
the eyes are sparkly paillettes, attached with a net of embroidery stitches, like shisha mirrors.
the sides and top of the skull have paillettes as well, but they are the plain silver kind.
the threads are size 5 perle cotton and 6-strand embroidery floss in cotton and in rayon (split into 3 strands for the actual embroidery).
i learned the van dyke stitch while working on this skull (in bright green on the sides). i’ll be using that one more in the future.
time to get back to the craft table!
thank goodness for embroidery floss. sometimes a little embroidery can save a piece of clothing. have some random oil stains that won’t come out of a favorite shirt, skirt, etc.? pull out your needle and some floss, and hey, no problem!
i suppose you could also cover the offending marks with fabric patches or maybe some flowers. speaking of which, i pulled some fabric strips out of my stash and tried out some quick-and-dirty flower-making.
i foresee more flowers in the future. i may have to cover a vest or purse with them, just for funsies.
SPEAKING OF PURSES… over the years, i’ve made loads of purses and shoulder bags, for myself and for friends. i started out winging it, with a couple rectangles of fabric and some webbing for a strap. nothing fancy, strictly utilitarian. eventually i learned how to add lining, flaps, pockets, handles, different types of straps… and i eventually found some patterns here and there, but mostly i’d just wing it, using whatever fabrics and trimmings struck my fancy at the time.
earlier this year, i figured i’d come up with a nice basic shoulder bag pattern. something that’s the size i tend to find useful, that i could modify with pockets, zippers, whatever, but that i wouldn’t have to “wing” every time i needed a new version. i made a few prototypes, two of which were sent to friends. the third was made from my “fancy fabric scraps” stash, and is now kind of falling apart after half a year’s daily use.
the flap is fabric i printed with my inkjet – it’s a scan of a page from a “strawberry moshi” book.
there are pockets on the front, sides and back. it’s fully lined, and has an inside zip pocket for my wallet.
you can see where that back pocket silk is tearing. so sad.
but that’s what prototypes are for! see how they wear, see how the pockets work out, whether the strap is long/wide enough, etc.
so i changed a few things with the pattern. made the sides wider, added some different pockets, and used cottons instead of random polyesters, rayons, nylons and silks. and this is what i got:
i used fabrics from the stash, mainly in red colorways.
the outside is reinforced with heavy-weight fusible interfacing. the flap has a layer of cotton batting, as does the strap (in fact, i think the strap may have two layers).
i forgot to check the strap length before sewing the lining to the outside, so it ended up being too long.
no problem – i just made a loop in it, which is a perfect place to clip my keys.
there’s a zipper pocket on the back, and another one on the inside.
i added a fabric divider in the middle, which was a bit of an experiment in itself. if i make another of these, i’ll have to reinforce/stabilize that middle divider a little better.
in any case, i call this one a success! it fits all my stuff, and it reduced my stash. win-win!
last sunday, i took a trip to my local michael’s to pick up some more sugar ‘n’ cream yarn (on sale, of course), and i happened across some interesting Red Heart Boutique yarn called Sashay. and seeing that i had a 40% off coupon, i picked up a ball of the stuff, in the “Rumba” colorway.
thank goodness they have how-to videos on the Red Heart site. it’s a little tricky to get started with this yarn, but once i knitted up a few rows, it was smooth sailing to the end.
i like the look of it, and dang, didn’t it knit up quickly. almost instant gratification.
and i made a couple more potholders.
yup.
aaaaand some more dishcloths.
and i found a couple of teeny holes in the sleeve of one of my old work shirts, so i covered it up with some quick-and-dirty shisha embroidery, using a pailette instead of the handful of shisha mirrors i’ve been hoarding for 20 years.
it’s been WAY too long since i’ve done shisha embroidery and i think i need to do some more and get a little better at it.
i’m thinking about adding some more to this shirt, just for funsies. the directions i have for shisha embroidery are from some books from the 70s, but i’ve been finding some nice (more contemporary) tutorials and ideas on the interwebs.
a yoga bag:
it’s a big ‘un, made to fit a mat, a couple of blocks and a blanket or two.
all the fabrics were sitting in the stash, so the stacks are that much smaller now.
and i added some embroidery to a pair of plain black yoga pants:
boy, the lint on the pants sure does show up nicely in photographs.
the tree trunk is variegated cotton floss, 3 strands. the branches are variegated cotton floss and size 8 perle cotton (purchased a very very long time ago). the “fruits” are 3 strands of rayon floss. i like how shiny that floss is, but it’s a pain to work with unless it’s run through beeswax first.
and i sewed some cut-up t-shirt fabric on to another t-shirt, but i’m not sure it’s finished yet.
and yesterday was my first foray into bagel-making!
they were delicious and pretty easy to make, using the recipe from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything.
and of course, i’m still making the knitted dishcloths, which i’ve posted previously. i’ll have to take a picture once i get up to a couple dozen in stock.
