bag+cushion

this cushion was my first attempt at paper piecing by myself (like, 100%). i had the idea from the quilt that in theory, i could take a grid, cut pieces from it and make a pattern for a patchwork block like that. so i made an incredibly easy block, and stiched it all back up like this. it was originally going to be a handbag, but i ended up liking it better as a cushion cover-backed it with pink florals and a vintage zip. the front does have batting behind it and is quilted to it. it site on my bed with the cupcake cushion and i love them both.


















this i did pretty much straight after. still needed a new handbag, so tried my hand at a simpler pattern using the same technique. i added pockets and a velcro closure. i put a small silk rose in the middle of the pinwheel.its got a lot of compliments at work and im really happy with it-only downside is i feel the handle is a little too long. but hey, ill know for next time.

patchwork

now, for a few months now, my main thing has been patchwork. this is one of my most favourite ever car boot sale finds. i found a bag of what appeared to be fabric, asked the lady, it was actually an unfinished patchwork quilt. 'ok jackpot' i thoght. 'how much?'

'£1'. one. pound. mine. brought it. guess what else she had? yup-a bag full of fabric to finish it with! another pound. got that too!

when i got it home, it was actually much smaller and a very odd shape. genius here didnt think to take before pictures though, did she. anyway-id never done paper piecing before and had no idea how. i literally just had to look at what this lady had done in the past (and judging by the materials and the logo on the woolworths bag it came in, it was quite a while in the past!) and copy it. time consuming, but relatively easy :)

so ive been sitting infront of the tv, watching some CSI, law and order, conviction (because crime programs are the shit whilst crafting. yes.) and i got it to the stage you see in the photos. since then ive properly evened it out into a rectangle (in the pics, one corner is still odd shaped) and i have made it bigger yet. i still have a way to go with it.

i took it to a quilting show to show pat, to ask her advise on how to quilt it-i think im going to hand quilt circles. i have the batting in a bag in the corner of my room. i really cant wait till this one is finished, its totally not my usual colours but it just works, cant really figure out why.

the only thing i dont know how to do is the binding-ive never done this before and genuinely dont have a clue...so we'll see!

and again

wristlet-hand dyed and quilted silk(made by pat) and made by my :) lined in white satin. very puuurdy.

cushion for my bed-obviously , a cupcake. what else would it be.

long time no blog

i havent posted on here for an awfully long time. i suppose its time for an update...or 10!

soooo...since i made that bag...i have made..

this rabbit thing. felt, beans, and cuteness.

a doughnut :D for jo's birthday!

a murloc...polymer clay and pyar win.

this cushion cover for jo's birthday again, the robot applique is from the birthday massacres cd cover

handbag to match!

as i said i may try a handbag today...well i got a bit excited and cut out the pieces last night.

stitched em all up this morning, and this is what i ended up with!

i did find this a challenge.but im so chuffed with it, i think its so pretty :) ill be taking it to work with me tomorrow!

one of the inside. no pockets in this one this time-couldnt get my head around it haha. plus as this is the first bag in this style that ive made, i really just wanted to see if it would work. and it did! whee!

i LOVE the market.

mmmmm after finishing work today (i only did a lazy 9-1 shift-as if im staying longer on a saturday!!) i headed to the market. i browsed around the general habadashery type stall but i couldnt see much i could justify buying.

then i went to the fabric stall...i spoke to a lady for a little while about sewing, she was choosing some fabric to make a suit for her sons graduation. she ended up with some lovely tartan. i found this!!

i was in love and had to have it. turns out there was 1.5 yards there, so i took it, and it only cost me 1.50!!! thats about $3. so impressed. i then decided it would make a beautiful handbag, so i simply MUST have some lime green bits to go with it. back to the habadashery stall, where i picked up 3 of those ribbon bundles-theres about a metre and a half in each bundle...so like 4.5 ish metres...for a pound :D my day was made! i found some matching thread and caught the bus home to craft.

i didnt start with a handbag straight away-i would like to try that tomorrow though maybe. i did make this however

and inside:
not particularly clear but you get the idea. purple cotton lining, all stitching done in the same green as the ribbon. im really happy with this one. just need to figure out what to hold in it!

first go at crazy patchwork :)

this piece was my first piece of crazy patchwork.

purple shades, embellished with whatever i could find! beads, ribbons, roses, embroidery thread, and this cool button at the bottom that i thought kind of resembled the little mirrors in alot of indian fabric. i was really happy with how this came out. i stiched it onto some hand dyed purple fabric, and turned it into a pocket.

it then became a bag! i used upholstery fabric for the bag-just because that fabric is beyond great. my current thing is definitely bags made from sofa fabric :D

the pocket is actually big enough to hold a magazine in!

for size. very happy with how that came out overall.

i do have two more pieces of crazy patchwork underway-one small block that im working into but dont know yet what it will become-its in shades of blue. the other is bigger, shades of blue, pink and purple, not worked into at all yet, and that will probably be a small bag of some sort.