oh fransson

Octopus Baby Quilt & Applique Tutorials

These applique patterns are now available for free download at Sew, Mama, Sew.  Enjoy!  If you're interested in a lengthy explanation of how I make machine appliques, you can also check out my earlier article here. 

These bags are just simple linen with linen handles threaded through large eyelets.  The patchwork strip is Cake Rock Beach.  The appliques are made with Kona cotton.

And here's a baby quilt made with the Cake Rock Beach fabric, white Essex linen/cotton blend (the best stuff ever) and more Kona cotton appliques.  The Cake Rock Beach fabric is lovely, but it was challenging to quilt with.  I really wanted to use the large dot print, but it just took over the top, so I unpieced all the blocks and used the one with the botanical drawings instead.  It may not look like it, but that print had to be paintstakingly fussy cut (also for the binding) since the images are pretty far apart.  The fabric is gorgeous though and that solid teal from the Net of Jewels line really sets it off.  For some reason, I'd gotten the impression from what I'd read online that Net of Jewels was shiny.  It isn't.  It's really beautiful stuff.  It's one of those fabrics that has a different color weave going in one direction  (I know there's a proper way to describe this, but it's escaping me now.)  Purlsoho has a fat quarter pack of the full series that I'm seriously considering. 

The freemotion quilting worked really well with the watery prints!

I usually use Minky on the back of baby quilts, but I just didn't want to introduce a synthetic fabric here.  With the Cake Rock Beach prints and the linen blend and all, I decided a white cotton chenille would look better.  I put it on the same way I would a Minky back.

Vintage Sheet Project 1: Workbaskets

I really like the word workbasket.  I'm not actually sure it's a word, but it seems like women in classic literature often have them.  Maybe it's really work basket, but I like it better as a single word.  If you too need a place to place to tuck your embroidery project while relaxing in the drawing room (the groovy Brady Bunch drawing room) then this is the project for you.    

First, you'll need a basket with straight sides.  I found mine at Joann.  Baskets made of soft fibers will make your work easier, since you can sew right through them.  You'll need to determine your basket's measurements before you cut your fabric.  My basket is 11.5" wide, by 5.5" tall, by 7.5" deep.

You'll need two fabrics, which I'll refer to as your "main print" and your "accent print."  In this case, I used pieces of vintage sheets.  (The one on the left is a my main print and the one on the right is my accent print.)  You'll be making two panels, each with a handle, that will be sewn together along the sides to form a tube that you'll attach to the basket.  Use the formulas below to calculate what size pieces you'll need:

To determine the width of your panels, add one inch to your basket's width plus your basket's height.  My panels are 20" wide (1" + 11.5" + 7.5").  Cut two strips from your accent print that are 2.5" by whatever width you've just calculated.  (In my case, that's 2.5" x 20".)  The pieces you cut from your main print will be this same width by however tall you want to make them.  For a basket with similar proportions to mine, I suggest making these pieces twice the basket's height.  In my case, the pieces cut from my main fabric are 11" x 20" (11" being 2 x 5.5").

For your handles, you'll need two strips of your accent print that are 3" wide by however long you'd like them to be.  For a basket with similar proportions to mine, I suggest making them three times the basket's height.  In my case, that's 3" by 16.5" (3 x 5.5").  Reinforce the handles with lightweight fusible interfacing.

You'll also need: hand sewing needles; one package medium rick rack; twill tape, ribbon or cord for drawstring; four large buttons and matching embroidery floss; disappearing ink marker; and white Perle cotton floss.  Needle-nose pliers may be helpful, but are not essential.

My baskets came with ugly liners, which i removed.  If your basket has liners that you'd like to re-use, detach them from the top of the basket, but leave them attached to the bottom of the basket (so they look a little like the picture below).  You can then reattach them to the top of the basket when you're done adding the drawstring panels. 

I decided to make some quick liners from a single piece of white linen.  If you'd like to do the same, start by measuring the interior dimensions of your basket.  They will be slightly different from the exterior dimensions.  My basket's interior dimensions are 11" wide by 5" high by 7" deep.  The width of your lining panel will be interior width, plus interior depth, plus 1".  (In my case, 11" + 7" + 1" = 19")  The height of your lining panel will by two times height, plus depth, plus 2".  (In my case, 10" + 7" + 2" = 19")

Fold your lining panel in half, width-end to width-end and stitch both sides together using a half inch seam allowance.  Clip the bottom corners, open up the seams and press them flat (top left).  Open up the lining (top right) bringing each corner to a point.  Use a quilting ruler to measure up the seam by half the basket's interior depth measurement.  (3.5" for me.)  Use a disappearing ink marker to draw a straight line across the point, pin and stitch along the marked line.  (This line should be the same length as your interior depth measurement.)  Repeat on the other corner.  Trim away excess fabric about half an inch from each seam (lower left).  Place the lining in your basket to verify fit.  Your lining should be a bit taller than your basket.  Fold it toward the outside until it is the proper height and press in place (lower right).

At this point, I attached my lining to the bottom of my basket by piping hot glue onto the seam allowances and pressing it into place with my fingers.  The top of the lining will be secured once the drawstring panels are sewn onto the bag.  Now, on to the fun stuff! . . .

Make handles:  Fold your handle pieces in half, long sides together and press.  Open up, press both sides to the center, refold in half, and stitch along both long edges (upper left).  Lay one of your main fabric panels on your work surface with one of the wide edges facing toward you .  Measuring along this wide edge, use your disappearing ink marker to indicate the center point.  From this point, measure and mark 3" to the left and 3" to the right.  Taking one of your handles, pin one end to the left point and one end to the right point.  Tack the handles to the panel using a zig-zag stitch (upper right).  With right sides together, pin your 2.5" wide strip of accent fabric your main fabric panel.  Use a half inch seam allowance to sew the two pieces together, securing the handle in the process.  Press handle and seam allowance toward the accent strip (lower left).  Stitch a row of rick-rack over the seam you just sewed (lower right).  Repeat the last three steps to make your second panel.

With right sides together, pin together the sides of your finished panels.  Use your disappearing ink marker to mark 2" from on one of the two sides.  (It doesn't matter which.)  Using a half inch seam allowance, stitch from the mark you've just made to the bottom (top left).  Stitch the entire other side.  Press open both seams (top right).  Now turn your seam allowances under, press and stitch in place (lower left).  This will keep the inside of your drawstring panels from having any raw edges.  Make the drawstring casing.  Fold down the top edge by about a quarter inch, and then fold again by about one inch.  You don't need to hit an exact measurement, so long as you're consistent and your drawstring will fit.  The 2" space where you didn't sew the panels together will become the drawstring opening.  Once you've pressed the casing in place, stitch around the entire thing along the bottom edge of the casing, backing up to and reinforce the opening.

You should now have a tube of fabric with handles, a drawstring casing and a raw edge along the bottom.  Press this raw edge under by a scant half inch (top left).  Now it's time to attach the fabric to the basket.  Starting from the bottom of the basket, and with the bottom edge of the fabric tube (which has not yet been turned right-side-out) slide the fabric onto the basket (top right).  Gently shift the fabric, centering side seams with the center of the basket's sides and aligning the folded bottom edge about 3" from the top of the basket.  Once you're satisfied with the placement, open up the folded edge and secure fabric to basket using pins (lower left).  Using Perle cotton, stitch fabric to basket along this pinned, folded line, removing pins as you go and keeping your stitches about 1cm each (lower right).

When you're through stitching, gently turn the fabric right-side-out, pulling it toward the top of the basket (top left).  Using embroidery floss, securely sew one button at the base of each handle, making sure your stitches go all the way through to the inside of the basket and back.  It may be helpful to use needle-nose pliers to pull your needle through the fabric, rick rack and basket layers (lower left).  Thread your drawstring through the casing (lower right) and finish the ends as desired.  If you added lining, now is the time to go back and glue or stitch the top edge in place.

Because these are workbaskets, I made little pincushions to match each one.  They're made from a simple four patch block (2.75" squares), a white linen back and bamboo fill.  I finished them each with a vintage button.

If you make one of these, I hope you'll consider posting a photo in my Flickr Pool!

Wristlet Mania

I just finished a bunch of wristlets and wanted to show them off.

Made with, from left to right: 1) Jackie Shapiro's Botanical Pop with red satin, 2) Alexander Henry Noguchi and Necco with black satin, 3) Alexander Henry butterfly rint and Denyse Schmidt Katie Jump Rope basketweave print,

4) Jennifer Paganelli's Bell Bottoms & Girlfriends with chocolate satin, 5) Amy Butler's Nigella and Lotus with teal satin, 6) Michael Miller Ginger Blossom with Kaufman floral with kiwi satin,

7) Kaufman Origami Flower with Bell Bottoms check with turquoise satin, 8) Amy Butler's Midwest Modern with aqua satin, and 9) Amy Butler's Midwest Modern with cornflower satin.

(My lawn somehow changed color for this photo!)

Here's a shot of the quilted satin backs. . .

. . .and here they are all lined up.  I love making wristlets!

Pattern Questions

I wanted to take a minute to answer a couple of questions that were asked about the "Paper or Plastic?" pattern/tutorial.

How long does it take to make?  It takes me less than an hour to make the Plastic version and about an hour and a half to make the Paper version.  I would imagine it would take anyone else (i.e. anyone who didn't make up the pattern) a little bit longer, but they're both pretty basic designs.  The Plastic version is slightly easier than the Paper version, but I wouldn't say that either project is particularly challenging.

Are pattern pieces included?  Much like my other tutorials, this one doesn't use pattern pieces, but provides a list of the different sized pieces you'll need and from which fabric they need to be cut.  It's been my experience that, for a project like this where all pieces are rectangular, rotary cutting is considerably more efficient than using patterns.   

Can you really use the bags to carry your cat?  That depends entirely upon your cat's level of cooperation.  My cat doesn't like to be carried -- she just likes to sleep in the bags.

May I sell bags made with this pattern?  Unfortunately, no.  I realize these are sort of generic bag styles, but I want to keep "not for commercial use" consistent across all my work.  There's big IF though.  IF you want to sell these for a non-profit event (school bazaar, church fundraiser, etc.) please contact me. 

Please let me know if you have any other questions and I'll add the answers to this post.

Paper or Plastic?

Just in case anyone is interested, I wanted to announce that my first "for sale" pattern/tutorial is now available in my Etsy shop.  It's called "Paper or Plastic?" and includes directions for making two styles of grocery bags: the plastic-style bags pictured above. . .

. . .and these paper-style bags.  This is my first attempt at selling a pattern I've made, so I'm a little nervous.  We'll see how this goes! 

"Paper" Grocery Bags

I've been getting a lot of use out of my "plastic" grocery bags, but I wanted to make something a little bigger and more sturdy.  I used a paper grocery bag as my model for size and shape.  From left to right, these are made from canvas, twill, and denim.

I added little pockets between the straps on both sides.  The pockets are lined with the same fabric as the interior of the bag.

And here's a shot of the interior of the natural twill bag.

And here's the interior of the gray canvas bag.

Maeby thinks the denim bag makes a good bed . . .

 

. . .or hiding spot.  This bag is lined with part of a pink floral sheet.

And, for good measure, I'll end with a photo of another "plastic" bag I made today.  The outside is part of a pillowcase and the inside is part of a sheet.  Speaking of pillowcases, I was very excited to learn that both projects I submitted were accepted for an upcoming book about making things from vintage pillowcases.  Very exciting! 

Lunchbox Inspiration 4: Wooden Handles

 

Hello, lunchbox swappers!  As a reminder, the "send by date" for the swap is this Friday, April 25.  If you think you'll be sending much later than that, please let me know so I can give your swap partner a heads up.

This week's lunchbox inspiration is about wooden handles.  I had a bunch of them laying around, but had never actually tried to use them. 

This bag was my first attempt and, while it looks okay in the photos, it was only partially successful.  It took me  couple more attempts to get the handle case just right.  I am kind of fond of the fabric flower I made though.  It has four petals, just like the ones on the Kaufman Kitschy Kitchen fabric I used.

I made this one next.  It's made from a pink linen blend with red eyelet-like stitching all over it.  I made the casing and lining from a polka dot cotton and added a felt daisy (pretty much exactly like the ones on all my other lunchbags). 

As you can see, the handle casing came out much better on this one. 

Here's the third "granny style" bag I made.  This one features Kaufman's famous sushi print and a basketweave print from Denyse Schmidt's Katie Jump Rope.  I love the basketweave print with the sushi -- it reminds me of the fake grass you get when you buy those little sushi roll packs at the grocery store!

This one had the best handle casings yet!  They're kind of tedious to attach.  I made them almost exactly the same way I would make quilt binding -- machine sewing the "front" and hand stitching the "back."  The big difference was having to get the handle in the middle of everything when doing the hand stitching.

I also made this more lunchboxy bag.  It's pretty straightforward -- boxy and insulted with Insulbrite, the kind of insulation that retains heat or coldness.  These handles were pretty easy to attach -- I just made little fabric loops that are sewn into the top seam and reinforced with additional stitching in the seam allowance.

It's been really fun seeing what everyone is posting in the Lunchbox Swap Flickr Group.  I can't wait to see what will show up this week! 

Nan's Birthday Bag

   

My grandmother really liked the bag I made her for Christmas, so I decided to make her another one for her 93rd birthday, which is coming up on Sunday.  (We also have a Brandon Roy bobblehead for her, since she's the world's biggest Blazer fan.) 

The bag is really simple, made with a light blue suiting fabric and patchwork.  The front has a dimensional flower detail and the back has a bird-shaped wool felt applique.

The bag closes with a magnetic clasp and has a simple slip pocket inside.  The straps are made from the suiting fabric and lined with printed cotton.  Nana doesn't carry much around with her, so this is a pretty small bag.  She wears a lot of red, blue and navy, so hopefully she'll like this color combo!

Lunchbox Inspiration 3: Zakka-Inspired Basket Bags

Hellow, lunchbox swappers!  Have you looked at the Flickr Pool recently?  More great projects are showing up all the time!

This week I made some zakka-style basket bags, inspired by ones like these that I'd seen on Flickr.  There seemed to be two types out there: tote bags made with basket bottoms and baskets with fabric drawstring tops.  I decided to make a hybrid of the two.  I plan to use this yellow and black one as a work basket for embroidery projects, but it's also the right size for a lunchbox.

All of the instructions I'd read suggested sewing the fabric sleeves directly onto the baskets, but I didn't think that technique worked well for baskets with tapered sides, where the top was wider than the bottom.  For this yellow and black bag, I ended up measuring the fabric top to fit around the widest part of the basket.  Then I made a small elastic casing around the bottom, which cinches the fabric in around the narrower part of the basket and holds it in place.  Both fabrics are from Alexander Henry.

I sewed big buttons onto the end of the twill tape closure to keep the tape from disappearing back into the casing.  This picture also shows some unfortunate stitching.  I'm still getting the hang of my mother's machine, which she's letting me borrow while mine is in the shop.  (Thanks, Mom!)

Here's another basket bag in a similar style.  Because this basket had straight sides, an elastic casing wouldn't have been a very secure way to attach the fabric part.  Instead, I pressed a 1/2" hem along the bottom of the fabric part and then used the fold line as a guide to hand stitch it to the basket with embroidery floss.  The soft fibers used on this basket made it really easy to sew through.  To give some additional stability to the handles, I also sewed the buttons all the way through the basket.  These fabrics are Birdseed by Alexander Henry and a dot print from Michael Miller's new Ginger Blossom.

This is an entirely different kind of basket.  I thought it might be nice size for storing a knitting project.  Because this was another tapered basket, I used the elastic casing method again.  I also embellished with some ball fringe I had laying around.  The fabric is Noguchi by Alexander Henry.  (I realized when I was done that it's a mostly directional print and that I used it upside down!)

Here's kind of a cool close up showing the drawstring top and some of the bottom of the basket.

And here are two mini baskets I made for practice.  Both use Japanese fabrics.  The fabric portion of the basket on the left is secured with an elastic casing.  The fabric on the right is stitched directly to the basket.

I also need to give a shout out and thank you to Adria for recommending daylight simulating lightbulbs.  They're kind of disconcerting at first (like being in a clean room or something) but I was able to take these photos at 10:00 pm without them being overly yellow, so that is definitely a step in the right direction.  Thank you, Adria!

Another Shopping Bag

Here's another bag that I made in a "plastic grocery sack" style.  The main body uses a heavier-weight print from Superbuzzy called "Dreaming in French" which features a bunch of conversation bubbles with (mostly nonsensical, often misspelled) French words and phrases. 

I constructed this one a little differently, making the gussets from a contrasting fabric (Masquerade for Red Rooster, which I had never heard of but purchased at Fabric Depot).  I made the lining the same way.  The main part is solid black, but the gussets are a red, black and white Kaufman floral print.

I appliqued a felt bird on the front. I'm not so sure about the stuffed animal eye I used there, but I like the red bird!

I thought that, with the applique, a tie closure would be too fussy, so I just made a simple elastic loop (made, as usual, with a ponytail holder) and button closure.

And here's one last shot of the bag laying flat.