Under my Umbrella

For the past few weeks, I have been busy sewing up my projects for the Umbrella Prints Trimmings Competition and now they are all done. I discovered Umbrella Prints a few years ago when I came across a local shop stocking their fabrics and instantly fell in love with their beautiful prints and hemp fabrics.

I have tried to make the most of the Trimmings pack by making a few different projects from my original pack of Floating Worlds Trimmings.

Firstly is a table runner in the style of Sarahs lovely Stepping Stones runner. I cut a square from each of the larger pieces of prints which were in the Trimmings pack. 

It measures 42" long x 14" wide, and I have used a seeded cotton for the background, with a woodgrain print for the binding.

 Second up is a mini quilt using the mini Raincheck pattern from Camille Roskelly  @ Simplify which I thought was the perfect pattern for the "Umbrella" Prints fabrics:)

All of the Trimmings pieces are appliqued on and I have hand stitched each of the umbrella handles, then added some angled quilting to replicate falling rain. 

This mini measures only 8 x 10" and is now hanging in our dining room.

Next up is a shoulder bag for which I made a QAYG panel for the front pocket. along with some black denim for the rest of the exterior. 

.

It is lined with a cute elephant print and closes with a recessed zipper.

With all of the scraps I had left, I made a coordinating little zip purse/pouch which is lined it with some soft suede.

It is large enough to hold my mobile phone - our little underwater camera even fits in it nicely.

This was the Trimmings Pack which I started with - it really is amazing how far those small pieces will go!! 

I have already seen a few other beautiful entries for this competition - you can find more details on the Umbrella Prints blog . Thank you to Amy and Carly for holding this great comp again too.


These projects were on my list for the Q2 FAL hosted by Katy at The Littlest Thistle.
Kirsten.

WIP - Umbrella Prints trimmings

We are in the middle of school holidays here but I had a chance to sit down and do some sewing yesterday as I really want to finish off my Umbrella Prints trimmings projects.

(apologies for the late night flash pic)

I have used some of the Floating Worlds Trimmings pack to sew up a table runner like the one I made about 18 months ago, which in turn was inspired by the one made by Sarah.

Then most of the remaining scraps were made into a QAYG panel - although I have kept enough aside for another little project too:)

Linking to WIP Wednesday at Freshly Pieced.

Kirsten.

Wishful thinking - my Q2 FAL list!

We are already into the second quarter of this year, so it ts time for another list of projects that I am hoping to get done by the end of June.

1. Cargo Duffle : inspired by a beautiful duffle I saw on Owens Olivia which uses the same fabric I did to make one of Amiras Girlfriends wallets recently, I would like to make a large quilted bag so am going to attempt of the Cargo Duffles from Anna @ Noodlehead.  I have all of the pieces cut out and have started quilting the large panels already. Sophie from C'est La Vie has just held a Cargo Duffle sew along, with more helpful tips in the flickr group too!

2. Umbrella prints Trimmings project: I purchased one of the Umbrella Prints Floating Worlds Trimmings packs and have already started sewing up the first of a few planned projects.

3. DS mini quilt swap: I recently bought a Fat 1/8 bundle of DS Ansonia form Westwood Acres and I can't wait to use this in the mini quilt swap. I am thinking of doing one of the many "mini" versions of quilt patterns available now for my partner.

4.  A "Social Tote" : I have already made the little pincushion which is included and I suspect that it may have been the easy part of the pattern :)

5. My sons are going to NZ with their Rugby club later this year so I making a rugby jersey inspired throw rug in their club colours that can be raffled as a fundraiser. 

And a couple of projects that are carrying over from last quarter...

 6. Table runner: 

and 7. Feathers quilt: using the beautiful blocks made by my fellow Aus Mod Bee members.

 Linking to the Q2 FAL list with Katy @ The Littlest Thistle.
Kirsten.

Girlfriend's Wallet Pattern by Amira @ Little Mushroom Cap

A few weeks ago I saw a post by Amira, who was my partner for the Sew Sew Modern swap, and she was putting a call out for testers for her cute Girlfriend wallet pattern.

I had seen a few of the wallets that she had made and posted photos of on IG and immediately volunteered.

I made the first one in some Juliana Horner leaf fabric, using the woodgrain print for the tab.

And it was so much fun to put together that I made another one late last week, this time using Denyse Schmidt Chicopee fabrics for the inside...

And some black denim for the outside which  I pre-quilted in straight lines.

photo source

I can thoroughly recommend Amiras pattern - there are 16 pages in the pattern and her instructions are very clear. The pattern includes about 50 photos too, which makes it quite easy to understand the clever construction of the Girlfriend's Wallet. Amira has released the pattern now and it is now available on Craftsy and Etsy.

Linking to Fabric Tuesday at Quiltstory. Kirsten.

Five Finishes for First Quarter FAL

It is once again time to link up for the Q1 FAL list hosted by Katy @ The Littlest Thistle. Back in January I listed a few things that I would like to do and I am happy to say that I have completed the majority of them.

1. First up is a project that I have selected fabrics for but didn't really get a look in this quarter - maybe next time...

2. Feathers quilt - it is too hot during summer in Australia to tackle a big quilt so I am really hoping to get these blocks sewn together and quilted in the cooler months which are coming up.

3. SSM4 project: this Noodlehead Super tote and crochet roll up were mailed off at the end of January to my partner.

4. I stitched up a pair of comfy lounge pants using this pretty DS fabric.

5. This ottoman was made using a tutorial by Made By Rae which I pinned a while ago. The fabric I used was a fun drill in a chair print - my cat seems to think it was made just for him and has claimed it as his own so it is already covered in grey kitty hairs:( 

6. I used my favourite black denim, along with some AMH feathers linen to make one of Anna @ Noodleheads fabulous divided fabric baskets and have already filled it up with some FQ.

7. I ended making a couple of items for the Pantone Radiant Orchid challenge - a scrappy Swoon "Soft Kitty" pillow and a Giant Starburst quilt. These pinks and purples have certainly grown on me:)

So with 5 out of 7 projects finished, I am linking up once again to the Q1 2014 FAL with Katy at The Littlest Thistle.

Kirsten.

Noodlehead Divided basket

One of the projects I had on my FAL Q1 list was Anna @ Noodleheads divided fabric basket - I had made one of these recently for a swap (here) but really wanted to do one for myself too:)

So I started with some beautiful AMH "feathers" linen and chose a few other fabrics to use with it in the basket.

I used a pretty blue and white sewing themed fabric for the basket lining.

This basket is just perfect to keep my newly acquired stash from Spotlight's FQ sale last week!

Linking to the Q1 FAL with Katy @ The Littlest Thistle. And be sure to also check out her blog as she has some fab tutorials this week.

Kirsten.

Q1 FAL tutorial - Plastic bag holder

Whilst we all try to avoid getting plastic bags when we buy groceries and things, occasionally it is unavoidable.  So here is a simple and pretty way to store them ready to be used and recycled for another purpose such as lining your kitchen bin like we do.

Requirements:
One tea towel 
Button
Elastic - approx 1cm/half inch wide and 1m/1 yard long
Woven cotton tape - one inch wide and about 20-25cm/ 8-10" long
General sewing supplies - pins, thread, safety pin,sewing machine

 1. Firstly, fold the tea towel in half right sides together along the long edge, pin  and sew along the long edge.

2.Fold over the bottom edge about 2.5 cm/1 inch to form a casing about an inch wide for the elastic. Pin and sew this seam leaving a small gap for the elastic to be threaded through.

 3. Do the same for the top casing, again leaving a gap for the elastic near the long seam.

4 Using a safety pin, thread the elastic through both the top and bottom casings .

After trimming the elastic to the right length, remove the safety pin and sew across the ends to secure them.

5. Taking the piece of woven tape, fold the short edge over and sew across this to secure the end from fraying. 

Make a button hole at this end of the tape to fit the size of the button you have chosen.

Then pin and stitch the tape down along the casing seam.

6 .Make a loop across the top of the bag woven tape. 

 Then you just need to fold the other end of the tape over, and again pin and stitch it down.

 8. Sew the button on and it can then be hung off a door handle. 

Then you are ready  to fill it up with bags ready to use.

I hope you liked this tutorial and if you make one of these to brighten up your kitchen area, I would love to see it.  A big thanks to Katy for hosting the Finish Along this year and also to the many great sponsors!

Kirsten.