Baby Lock Quilter's Choice

Well, I finally broke down and bought a new sewing machine. My previous one had been purchased by mom and dad as my high school graduation gift -- yeah, it was really old! Now I am the proud owner of this Baby Lock Quilter's Choice. I decided to go with this one over the Decorator's Choice as it came with the larger table, more functionality and it sews sideways. Although I do not know yet when I'd need to sew sideways I am certainly intriqued by the fact that I can. I bought the workbook binder that goes along with it as it is very well illustrated -- I'm one of those that needs pictures. My owner's class is April 19th.

Beach Umbrella Tote

I couldn't post this earlier because it was Lois' birthday present and I had to wait for her to open it! I just loved this fabric. This being the second try at this bag style went much better. The top image is of the inside pockets which I think are very handy. I still need to try serging the quilted fabric to see if I can make a nice overlock edge. Always another experiment.

Boat Bag #1

This weekend's project was a boat bag. I selected an indoor/outdoor nautical print fabric with a solid canvas. I quilted the fabric before sewing the bag together -- a move I regretted later as it produced seams that were far too thick for my sewing machine to handle -- lesson learned -- heavier fabric, no quilt; light fabrics, quilt. The other thing I'd do differently is lengthen the handles so you could carry the bag more comfortably on your shoulder. I would not quilt the handle fabric again as the support stitching then looks a bit goofy. The size is great though at 17"W x 15"H x 5"D. It also has a nice pocket on the outside and large pocket on the inside. I was originally thinking I could make these and sell through Float, but given the time it took for me to construct, I'd have to charge $800! I now have a new appreciation for Vera Bradley's pricing!

Watch for Boat Bag #2.

Donna's Project

Donna sent me her leftover fabric from when she had her valances made. She wanted a couple pillows and a 40" square throw for her coffee table. I bought some moleskin which I cut bias strips from and made piping for the pillows. The gold braid seemed too formal, not to mention I haven't mastered blending the ends together! For the 40" square, I decided to create a picture frame with mitred corners to add some interest. Although I finally got them to work, I'm sure I am not doing the mitred corners correctly as it took forever and was very fussy.

Perry Kitchen Take 3

Okay, is 3 times a charm? I have now taken my one piece of 54" x 60" fabric for my kitchen window and have given it a third life! As you read earlier, my experiment with shirring tape didn't turn out exactly as planned as seen in the pic with green leafy trees in the background. So, ta da, I give you my latest version -- note the snow in the background -- it took a while to get back to it. I ended up cutting the fabric in half, sewing it together to give me a piece twice the width of the window, reused the shirring tape, pleated the top and stapled to a mounting board.

Precious Moments Pillow

This pillow was made from a cross-stitch my sister-in-law created. She asked that I make it into a 12" square pillow for a shower gift. I found a beautiful green moire to use as my framing and back fabric. Then I was lucky enough to find a cotton paisley with all of the thread colors to make a cute ruffle. What I learned from this project is that I really need to sketch out my designs. What happened here was I had designed the pillow in my head at the fabric store while selecting all the materials and embellishments. Then I quickly put it together at home. I was admiring the finished product when I realized I forgot to frame the cross-stitch with the pink ribbon I had purchased. I think it looks fine without it but this is what happens when I don't commit my design to paper.

Pillow Experiment

Hello! It has been a while since I posted a project. I decided to take some of the scrap material I had left over from the Guest Room project and make a pillow. This is a 16x12 pillow. I made the matching piping, created the shirred inserts and added this fun fringe. I watched a video on You Tube on how to end the piping which was quite helpful. I made the shirred inserts by hand which would have been easier with shirring tape but I was trying not to have to buy much to complete this project. I also learned that you really need to add more than an inch to the final panels to surround the fullness of the pillow. I had added a 1/2" all around, but next time I'll know to add a bit more.