SewAmazin

How I spent National Sewing Month

2009-09-24T14:06:00.008-04:00

Earlier this month I put together a few ideas for this year's National Sewing Month theme, Reuse, Remake, Restyle.

And what have I been doing all month?

In terms of quantity, not a whole lot. But in terms of quality, I'd have to say I've learned quite a bit.

Let me explain . . .

I wanted to reuse embroideries from a project I finished a couple of years ago (see my previous blog entry for details). I've managed to take all the pieces apart, but have yet to come up with an alternate use. And I won't get around to that before the end of September.

So this is yet another UFO . . .

On the other hand, most of my sewing time this month has been devoted to working on fitting the bodice for McCall's M5138. I'm working on this blouse as part of an online class offered by PatternReview - All About Set-in Sleeves and Armholes. As I have come to learn, getting a sleeve to fit correctly depends a lot on having a well-fitting bodice and armhole. Here's where I am on version #3 of my muslin:

Trust me, it fits me better than it fits my dress form, but I'm not ready to share those photos outside of the class just yet. I will try to remember to write about this project in detail later, but let me say right now that this class is wonderful and I have already learned a good deal about analyzing how the mockup fits and what needs to be changed to make it work on my body. I've finally reached the point where I can start to fit the sleeve, so am hoping to be able to report more progress very soon. And maybe a real, wearable blouse, not just a practice garment.

If you want to learn more about sewing garments that fit, I highly recommend the online classes at PatternReview. This is the second online class I have taken this year and I feel they are definitely worth every penny.

So that's how I've spent my National Sewing Month this year . . . how about you?

September is National Sewing Month

2009-09-01T02:56:00.008-04:00

The theme for National Sewing Month 2009 is Reuse, Remake, Restyle. In keeping with that theme, I have a couple of projects I'd like to tackle this month, though I don't know if I'll enter the contest.

First, I've already begun breaking down this cover I made in 2006 for the embroidery arm carrying case for my sewing machine:

I really like the embroidered Sewing Ladies (embroidery designs from Loralie Designs), which form the pockets on the carrying case cover, but since I rarely take the embroidery arm anywhere, this cover has spent most of its life folded up in a drawer. That's a waste of pretty embroidery, in my opinion, so I decided to take it apart and put the pieces to better use.

I'm thinking that the individual embroideries might be used to decorate some sort of a storage basket in my sewing room . . . or they may end up on the cover of a laptop sleeve. We'll see.

Next, I need a carry-all of some sort for walking and taking the Pesties to the Bark Park. I've been using my Westie Sassy Bag. By the time I stuff it full of leashes, wipes, doggie bags, my wallet and cell phone, it's just too heavy on my shoulder. Plus there isn't room for a water bottle for me or the dogs. So I'd like to make a larger bag with an adjustable strap to go around my waist. I have a training treat bag from Outward Hound, but it isn't large enough for all my stuff, either. I don't want a fanny pack, so I'm still working on the exact design. I plan to reuse the pile of freebie nylon tote bags we've received from various charities overs the years for raw materials - zippers, handles, etc.

I've signed up for an online sewing class at PatternReview.com, All About Set-in Sleeves and Armholes, and I have a few unfinished items and new projects simmering in the planning stage, so I should be plenty busy sewing this month.

Stitch N' Pitch at Citi Field: Sept 21 Mets vs Braves

2009-08-28T15:24:00.008-04:00

From the Stitch N' Pitch home page:

"What is Stitch N' Pitch?
Stitch N' Pitch brings together two wonderful traditions — Baseball and the NeedleArts. Come to a ball game and knit, crochet, embroider, cross-stitch and needlepoint. Sit among friends, family and colleagues and cheer on your favorite Baseball Team. Beginners, intermediate and experts are all welcome."

The Mets' 3rd annual Stitch N' Pitch event is scheduled for Monday, September 21 @ 7:10 pm vs. Atlanta Braves. The Group Ticketing page at mets.com contains info about this year's event at Citi Field. The ticket price for Promenade Reserved seating is $15 and all participants will receive a Citi Field Inaugural Season Scroll Pen (with advance ticket purchase).

I attended last year's Stitch N' Pitch at Shea Stadium. Most of the emphasis is on knitting and crochet, which makes sense since most projects using these techniques are very portable, and TNNA, the force behind this program, is a trade organization for professionals in the knitting, crochet, cross stitch, embroidery, needlepoint and embellishment industries.

I'm not sure if I'll be attending this year -- last year's game was so cold and rainy we actually left early. I'll probably wait to decide to go or not a few days before the game.

More information about Stitch N' Pitch:

Buy Tickets to Stitch N' Pitch at Citi Field from local shops in CT, NY and NJ and direct from mets.com
Follow Stitch N' Pitch on Twitter
Shop for Stitch N' Pitch merchandise

UPDATE -- Post-game links & reports:

Celebrating Yarn at Citi Field > Lion Brand Yarn blog post

Ugga Bugga in my Garden

2009-08-28T14:21:00.004-04:00

I thought this was a dragonfly flitting around my head in the garden the other day -- until it landed on our deck:

Here's a closer view:

Creepy! Spent the rest of the day shrieking, ducking and covering every time a flying insect passed by my head. And feeling itchy.

Meanwhile, the garden was a total disappointment this season (much like the Mets -- but we won't go there). Just about everything drowned and rotted.

Everything that is except for the cherry tomatoes. For some reason these are virtually indestructible. Here's one day's pickings:

The basil is also doing well too, so we've had lots of cherry tomato, basil and fresh mozzarella salads this summer.

The last surviving zucchini plant managed to produce two more smallish squashes, but they are not very pretty to look at. I'll probably shred them and make one last zucchini bread, then call it a season.

And like most of this year's Mets -- hopefully we'll be ready to start again next Spring.

Socializing SewAmazin

2009-08-27T09:03:00.007-04:00

I have succumbed to peer pressure and have recently set up an account on Twitter. I'm not sure how useful it will be or how often I'll post an update since I don't have a texting plan for my cell phone (which means it costs me $0.20 per text). For now, I'm following a few people via the web. I can send updates by text from my phone, but I'm not receiving them. I'll be tweeting and following via the web.

If you'd like to follow me, search for sewamazin. I'm still poking around and trying to understand how it all fits together, but eventually I'll post updates. I've added a Twitter widget to my blog sidebar for my tweets.

I'm also on Facebook, but I'm limiting my Friends to people I know in real life, mostly family and friends, with a few exceptions for people I've previously exchanged emails.

Please don't be offended if I ignore a friend request on Facebook. I think I'll probably use Twitter for more general socializing -- if that makes sense; so look for me there instead of Facebook.

Late Summer Update

2009-08-26T17:54:00.012-04:00

I'm still here, still sewing a little this summer. I just haven't had enough time for blogging. I hope to be back on a regular basis in September.

Just so I don't forget any projects, I'm making a quick list of some things I've finished lately but haven't blogged.

Simplicity 4589, View E - Tops: I started these back in May and finished two trial versions. Thought I'd have time for more this summer, but these two were all I got around to. They fit okay, good enough for around the house. The best point I remember from working on these is that I used a special gathering foot for making the gathers at the neckline and top of the sleeve, and a narrow hem foot for the sleeve and bottom hems.

Simplicity 4149, View B - Tunic: I moved on to this tunic style top in June. I like this top, but there are some problems with the shoulders on this trial version.

Simplicity 4366 - Pants, View C & E for the Build Better Pants Class on PatternReview in June - still no photos, but I did finish the shorter version as capri pants well enough to wear at home. The longer pants (View E) are done, but still need to be hemmed.

Cool Ties for the Mahwah Marine Moms: I've been working on these on and off all summer and just finished up a batch of about 40 ties, which brings this summer's total to either 95 or 100 . . . I lost count.

Lauren's Quilt: Late July I decided I had to make a simple quilt for my niece's 3rd birthday, so I could get some more quilt-making practice. Lauren recently got a big girl bed and she loves purple, so I used lots of different purple shades and patterns. The quilt design is from BH&G Quilts and More magazine, Winter 2008 issue, and is basically 36 10-inch squares with a solid back and pieced binding. I quilted in the ditch and then used machine embroidery to quilt each square using designs from Anita Goodesign's Quilter's Paradise collection. The batting is bamboo/organic cotton blend. You can see more photos of the quilt in this Flickr slideshow.

Emily's neck pillow: I made this for my niece Emily's 6th birthday in early August. The letter E is a machine embroidered Curlz appliqué alphabet monogram design purchased from Embroidery Boutique.

Richie D's Car Keychain: This was a belated birthday for nephew's 3rd birthday in July. The in-the-hoop machine embroidery design is from Embroidery Library.

I stitched this design earlier this year as an appliqué on a shirt for nephew Joseph

That catches me up to date on finished projects.

I've signed up for two more classes at PatternReview - All About Set-in Sleeves and Armholes begins in September, and Make a Skirt Muslin begins in October. I hope to finally figure out why my sleeves alway seem wonky in the first class, and the skirt muslin class is recommended as a prerequisite for Make a Pants Muslin which I hope to take in the future to figure out my pants fitting issues.

Summer Update & Blog Holiday

2009-07-20T12:12:00.011-04:00

Not much sewing has been accomplished since mid-June, for various reasons. This post is a semi-random list of what has been going on around here, just so it doesn't look like my poor blog has been abandoned.

Early last month I was working on finishing two pairs of pants from the PatternReview class, which I haven't posted about yet. The class was very good and I learned a lot about finishing techniques and upgrades for pants.

At the end of June, I took a quilting class on paper piecing at the Cozy Quilt Shoppe. This class was really good, too, and I enjoyed making a pair of paper pieced leaves, but I haven't had a chance to finish them yet. The Bahama Breeze Quilt I want to make uses this technique and I took this class so that I could be sure I understood how to do it correctly. At some point I'll post about the class . . .

I'm continuing to work intermittently on Cool Ties for the Mahwah Marine Moms.

In June, I found this vintage toy sewing machine at the Scranberry Coop:

I don't know much about it yet other than it is old and I really like the color. I also brought home an old sewing company stock certificate and a pile of old thread spools.

By the beginning of July, the weeks of rain in May and June had produced more weeds than veggies in my garden, so when we finally had a few dry days in a row my energies were focused on removing them while the ground was damp and soft enough to get most of the roots out.

The color of the perennials in our garden have been especially vibrant this year:

see all my 2009 garden pix here

Earlier this month we attended our first Brooklyn Cyclones game at Keyspan Park in Coney Island:

see all my Cyclone pix here - taken with my LG Chocolate, excuse the blurries

The Cyclones defeated the Aberdeen Ironbirds. Since the Mets have been floundering this year, it was nice to watch a team with a winning season. Go Cyclones!

A few days later, we went to Citi Field for the second time this season to see the Mets win against the Reds. It was lunch box nite, and all fans (not just the kids) got souvenir lunch boxes. We arrived super early for the game and wandered the stadium as much as we could. Our seats were in the Promenade Club level along the first base line.

The Pesties (my new name for Keli & Penny, our Westie and Wauzer dogs) have been squabbling and fighting with each other on and off for several weeks. It has not been entirely pleasant around here and we still haven't figured out what may have changed their previously friendly relationship. This photo is from mid-May and they were actually napping side by side; lately they hardly want to be in the same room together, although they will play and take walks together. We have been working on training and exercise to modify their behavior, so that has taken quite a bit of time and energy (physical and emotional) away from my sewing. I think we are making progress . . .

Anyway, that's about the long and short of it. I hope to post about the pants and quilting classes sometime soon, and I have a few projects I'd like to get to before the summer is over.

I'm just not sure when I'll be able to post anything new, so I'm declaring this a Blog Holiday for the balance of the summer. I hope to be back by September for National Sewing Month.

2nd Blogoversary

2009-06-18T12:38:00.003-04:00

Today is my 2nd Blogoversary -- it's been two years since I started posting about my sewing projects here on Blogger.

Why do I keep this blog? This is where I get to "show and tell" my sewing and needleart projects and experiences, kind of like my virtual scrapbook. It's surprising to me how many different types of sewing projects I've attempted in just the past year.

I'm not trying to teach anyone how to do anything -- I'm not accomplished enough to do that. As an experienced beginner at just about everything, I'm just trying to share what I'm working on and how I'm doing it and maybe inspire someone else or get some feedback and advice for myself. I'll continue to share links to instructions and supplies or resources when I can find them.

What's the plan for the coming year? I have a long backlog of projects I'd like to get to very soon. I've been trying my hand at quilting a little, and have 2 or 3 quilts I'd like to work on this summer, one for my bed and a couple wall/throw quilts with a Westie theme.

I'm also making a concerted effort to learn more about constructing garments. In fact, I'm currently taking an online class at PatternReview.com, Build Better Pants. I've learned several new-to-me techniques, but now I think I need to go back and take the muslin class so I can work out more precise fitting issues. In addition to pants and shorts, I have about a dozen patterns for tops, blouses and jackets I'd like to make this year.

The focus will continue to be mostly about sewing projects, including more attempts at sewing garments, machine embroidery and quilting.

I will try to post one entry per week, but will not feel guilty about not blogging when I have nothing new to show. Even if I don't have time to write, I'll post photos to Flickr.

And if I don't have an entry here, I'll probably post something over at Keli's Korner~The Westie & The Wauzer.

-June 18, 2009-213 entries-
Read my first blogoversary post here

Cool Ties for the Mahwah Marine Moms~2009 Update

2009-06-17T13:42:00.008-04:00

Last year (Summer 2008) I made cool ties for the Mahwah Marine Moms to send to the troops in Iraq, to help them keep cool in the desert heat, especially during the summer. The Moms shipped about 500 cool ties for the troops last year.

In April, Terry contacted me about making cool ties again this year. Even though some of the Moms' sons and daughters are finishing up their active enlistment, they are continuing to collect and send care packages for the Troops. In March they shipped 94 cases and later this year they will start another town wide [Mahwah, New Jersey] Support Our Troops Care Package Project in September.

This year, their contact is Chaplain Mike, who ministers to 7 units out of Indiana who are serving all over Iraq.

A few weeks ago (mid-May), Chaplain Mike shared what the conditions are like:

The average temperature this past week, has ranged between 115 and 126. It is so hot here, the toilet water is hot, the shower/sink (on cold) is hot. If you have eye drops in your pocket and use them it feels like you are squirting hot water in your eyes. Cold, bottled, water only takes about ten minutes to get to where you are drinking hot water. When the wind blows, and it is 120+ you feel like you have a blow dryer in your eyes and your eyes dry out. We had a sand storm blow through. What a pleasant experience to have it be 110 at night, with hard blowing sand and dust hit you in the face and get into your nose, mouth and eyes. When we wear our "battle-rattle" (warfighter body armor) you can add 5 - 10 degrees to the temp.

One of the reasons I haven't posted much lately is because I have been working on making more cool ties, as many as I can crank out this summer. I've been working on a few other projects, too, but instead of posting about them, I've spent that time making cool ties. I'll catch up on the blog eventually.

Last year, the deadline for shipping was in July, because the Mom's contacts were leaving after that and they needed a contact person in order to ship packages. This year they have Chaplain Mike for a contact through the summer, so I'll try to match my effort from last year. My plan was to make 20 ties a month last summer; so far I've finished 55 (delivered 35 to Terry, 20 are ready to drop off) which keeps me on target for April, May and part of June. I just bought another 5 yards of fabric, which should yield about 50 more ties I hope to finish by August.

If you'd like to help make Cool Ties (also called Neck Coolers) or donate items for care packages for the troops, you can contact Terry by email at MahwahMarineMoms at yahoo dot com for more information. Instructions can also be downloaded from my Google site.

I've also embedded a Picasa Photo Album below showing how to make Cool Ties.

Cool Ties Instructions

McCall's M5191 Jean Jacket in White Denim

2009-05-18T18:42:00.007-04:00

The first time I tried to make this jacket, McCall's M5191, was almost exactly two years ago. After attending a few pattern alterations classes that year, I was eager to use all the information to make this jacket in tan corduroy. My first attempt wasn't too bad, but it was big in the shoulders and long in the arms, and I'd had some problems finishing the buttonholes. But it was wearable and I'd always wanted to make another version.

I finally got around to making it again, this time in white bottom-weight denim:

In the two years that have passed since completing that first jacket, I've learned how to make better pattern adjustments as well as how to use the sensor buttonhole foot properly. And I took the extra time to read the reviews of this pattern at PatternReview.com and found more than a few good tips.

One of the PR tips suggested assembling the various sections as units instead of following the sewing order of the instructions, so that all the topstitching could be done at the same time. This worked well for me; I assembled the pocket pieces, the front/side fronts, back/side backs and sleeves by sewing the seams as indicated, finishing the edges with an overlock stitch on the serger, then two rows of topstitching on each piece.

The collar, cuffs and pocket flaps were also done at the same time, following similar assembly-line construction. To topstitch very close to the edges of these pieces, I used a left edge topstitch foot, then a regular foot for the second row of topstitching.

I goofed in a couple of places -- pressed the seam and topstitched in the wrong direction a couple of times. I won't point these out, unless somebody notices.

Another great tip from one of the PR reviews was for finishing the edge of the facing pieces with seam binding. At first I tried serging the edge, but did not like the results on the inside corners. It was just too choppy, so I tried the binding method and it turned out well enough. I just happened to have a package of white single-fold seam binding in my stash. Next time, I would take more time to sew it more accurately and I would probably try to use an extra-wide binding, just to make it a little easier to work with and for a neater appearance. Since this is on the inside, I'm not too concerned with a few uneven stitches - this time.

The buttons were in my stash from some long abandoned and forgotten project. Since I used an eggshell/off-white thread for the topstitching (bright white was TOO white), the color of these buttons is just right.

I had a lot of problems making the buttonholes on the first jacket; I later discovered that I was using the sensor buttonhole foot incorrectly and I neglected to use any stabilizer underneath while sewing the buttonhole.

This time, I lined everything up properly *and* I used a scrap piece of medium weight tear-away stabilizer (saved from one of my machine embroidery projects) and each and every buttonhole stitched out perfectly.

Note: Tips on using the sensor buttonhole foot can be found at Janice Henning's Sew Much 4 Retirement website

Another tool that I've added to my collection since the first jacket is a buttonhole cutter. It works like a dream, as long as it's lined up properly to cut the fabric and NOT the stitched buttonholes. All I can say is thank goodness for Fray Check.

After all the buttonholes were finished and the buttons were attached, I decided to add one of my labels to the inside of the collar. Would you believe there's a utility stitch built into my sewing machine that does this perfectly? I think it's meant to be used for attaching belt loops.

This version of the jacket fits me better, but I may have shortened the arms just a bit too much. It is just right for wearing this spring/summer over a t-shirt.

Now that it is finished, I've got a few plans for embellishing it with some swirly machine embroidery on the front and back yokes. I've printed out a few templates on vellum to experiment with the placement, but I'm not sure about the thread colors yet:

Of course, I'll have to stitch a few samples before I make any decisions. It could be mid-summer before I get around the embroidery.

Pajama Party, again

2009-05-18T14:48:00.006-04:00

In March I started working on a few pairs of pajamas. I didn't have a photo of the first flannel pajama pants (Simplicity 3928) until now -- here's the flannel fabric that reminded me of a tablecloth:

I don't know what I was thinking when I first bought this fabric -- it had to be at least 10 years ago. These are pretty basic elastic waisted pants, and this fabric was good enough for making a wearable practice garment.

After working with flannel, I decided to try some cotton knit fabrics and a different pattern, Simplicity 5877:

This pants pattern is different from the other in that instead of a front and back piece, there is a single pattern piece cut through two layers of fabric, one for each leg. The only seams are at the inner leg and the center. The assembly was actually quite easy; I sewed the pieces together using a stretch needle on my sewing machine, then finished each seam with an overlock stitch on the serger.

The waistband construction was also a little bit different this time. Before making the casing for the elastic and drawstring, fusible interfacing is applied to the inside of the pants at the markings near the center front; then two buttonholes are stitched on either side of the center front seam. The finished buttonholes are used to thread the drawstring through the casing.

I made these pants in a large size with a medium waist, but they are big, so next time I would probably cut a medium and reduce the waist even a little smaller. Also, the legs were really long -- I hemmed up at least 3 inches and they still touch the floor, so I adjusted the pattern piece to shorten the legs that much. By the time I make another version, it will probably be summer, so I'd want them a little shorter.

The top went together easily enough, too. I cut the pieces for a medium size and followed the instructions for finishing the neck with a facing. The only step I did out of order was to sew the sleeves in flat, then stitched the arm and side seam as one step. I finished the sleeves and bottom hems with a coverstitch on my serger. It fits well, but is a little big in the shoulders (as most patterns fit on me). I adjusted the pattern to move the shoulder in about 1/2 inch narrower. I also adjusted the sleeve pattern to remove some of the ease in the cap because it was just a little bit too full.

Here's my second version of this pajama top, incorporating the adjustments:

The shoulders fit much better. I finished the neck edge with the facing again, but instead of topstitching near the seam, I topstitched near the facing edge so it doesn't flop around inside. Next time, I'll try to make it so that the facing folds to the outside for a contrasting finish.

For the sleeve and bottom hem, I experimented with a "lettuce edge" on a fabric scrap, using a 3-thread rolled edge on the serger. It was a little too rippled for me, so I decided to use a narrow and short 3-thread overlock stitch and stretched the knit fabric as it fed through the serger. It's just wavy enough for me, but would probably look better with a thicker thread. I couldn't find the right color of woolly nylon, so this is regular serger/cone thread.

To go with the second top, I tried my original pants pattern again, Simplicity 3928, using an aqua thermal knit:

I changed the waistband construction so that it was just like Simplicity 5877, with a drawstring. I should have cut these out much smaller, too, because they are HUGE! This pattern is definitely NOT sized for knits. So I have learned that lesson, too. I can wear them for now, but eventually the bagginess will drive me crazy and I'll have to recycle them into something else. And now I know better.

Before making these pajamas, I had never tried to make anything wearable from knits before, only re-worked some too big Mets t-shirts, so this was a total experiment. It was fun, I learned a lot, got to use my serger and some of the accessory feet for my sewing machine, and I have some new pajamas to wear for a while. And next time I'll do better.

Finished! Mod Sampler Quilt: Stars & Stripes Forever

2009-05-18T13:33:00.006-04:00

It's been almost three weeks since my last post. I didn't really plan to take such a long break, and now I have a lot of catching up to do.

Last time, I was just about finished with my Stars & Stripes Forever version of Oh Fransson!'s Mod Sampler Quilt-along.

Remember, I've always said that I am *not* a quilter, just a sewing enthusiast who likes to try all sorts of sewing projects . . . but I do have more than few quilting patterns I'd like make sometime soon, so this quilt-along seemed like a good opportunity to practice all the steps in the process of making a quilt before diving into something more complicated.

I've done piecing before and was very pleased with the way most of my blocks turned out. I used a special 1/4" clear piecing foot with a guide to get uniform 1/4" seams throughout the project and most of my blocks ended up being exactly the right size without much squaring up.

This is the largest quilted item I've every attempted; the others were small wall hangings or bags, so making the quilt "sandwich" was never a challenge until now. I really like the method suggested by this quilt-along. I used the floor in the entryway to lay out my backing and batting and used curved safety pins to keep it all together for the quilting. The batting in this quilt is an 80/20 cotton/poly blend; I followed the package instructions for pre-washing it before making the quilt sandwich.

Last year I bought a Fab-U-Motion with Stitch Regulator and have used it only a handful of times, so I decided to use it on this project to experiment with free motion stippling. I've never really done free motion quilting successfully before owning this gadget. There is definitely a learning curve to using the Fabric Mover, and by the time I finished this quilt, I was dreaming of squiggly shapes in my sleep. Some of the spots are not the prettiest free motion quilting you'll ever see, but there are some spots that I think are quite good. After about 3 hours, I finished about 1/3 of the quilt:

Here is how I set up my work area - used clothes pins to keep the quilt from shifting around on the fabric mover:

My squiggles are kind of on the large size, but since this is the first time I've used this technique on a large scale, I was more interested in learning the process rather than refining the pattern. Just as I was finishing up the last section of this quilt, I felt that I was finally able to feel how to make a random pattern. I'm confident that the next time will be even better.

Putting on the binding was very similar to other smaller projects I've made, it just took a lot longer to piece and attach it. I used binding clips (instead of pins) to keep it in place while sewing and they really do make a difference. The binding was sewn entirely by machine -- I'm not really interested in doing much hand sewing anymore. I used a blanket stitch from the quilting menu on my sewing machine and stitched from the front.

Here is the front of the finished quilt:

Penny and Keli inspected the back; I think they approve:

Here we are napping with our new quilt:

You can see all the photos for this project in our Mod Sampler Quiltalong Set

Mod Sampler Quilt: Stars & Stripes Forever

2009-04-29T16:44:00.010-04:00

The pajamas are done for now; I'll have an update with photos sometime soon.

You may have noticed the quilt-along button on my sidebar this month -- it links to Oh, Fransson!'s Mod Sampler quilt-along, which started back in March. I thought this would be a good learning and practice piece to try before tackling the Bahama Breeze quilt (the kit I bought at the Quiltfest in March).

The instructions for the quilt-along are clear and I like that the approach doesn't dictate that one way of doing something is better than another method. I've been following along, reading the posts and comments and finally about a week ago, I was ready to get started.

I wanted to use fabrics from my stash, but picking a theme and color palette was a challenge. At first I wanted to use bright blues and greens, but couldn't decide how to pair them up. Eventually I decided that the finished quilt would be used as a throw blanket in our "great" room, which changed the color theme completely.

When I was getting started on the slipcovers for my old couch, I mentioned that one of my inspiration pieces for decorating that room was this set of storage boxes with stars and stripes. By the time I finished the slipcovers, I was pretty happy with the room, but thought it needed more pops of red and white. A throw blanket would be just the thing.

In my fabric stash, I had quite a few red, white and blue and patriotic fabrics. The difficulty was in narrowing down and choosing pairs of fabrics for this Mod Sampler Quilt. At first I tried pairing either red or blue with white, but then the choice of sashing was too hard for me.

At last I matched the blue and red fabrics together and left the white for the sashing. I tried to match the pairs so that one fabric with stars was paired with a stripe or solid:

Some of the pairs interpret this plan more obviously than the others, but overall I liked the match-ups. And as I put the blocks together they seemed to make more sense.

Block A:

Block B:

Blocks A & B were fairly straightforward and I managed to put them together in one evening.

Block C:

Block C was a bit more challenging, but breaking it down into 4 sections and staying organized helped keep it in order. I used the 1/4" clear piecing foot with a guide to sew all my blocks and I was amazed at how little squaring up I needed to do in the end, especially with this block.

Block D:

Block E:

Block F:

Blocks E and F were a little confusing for me at first. I realized that I had cut my pieces all the same size, but I should have cut some sizes in one color and some sizes in the other color. Fortunately, I could mix and match and cut down larger pieces to the sizes I needed. Even though I squared up each time around, the outer edges are just a touch off.

Stitching the sashing between the blocks wasn't too bad, but sewing the rows together and keeping the columns lined up proved more challenging. It took me a couple of days to get through piecing the top together, but it turned out pretty well:

This is spread across the full-size bed in our guest room (just to give an idea of the size).

Piecing the back was also challenging, mainly because of the large sections of fabric being joined together:

The top section is the same red/white strip used in my blocks and the bottom is a larger print stars on navy. I can't even see the seam where I had to piece the bottom together.

I've made my quilt sandwich and have it all pinned together, ready to get started on the actual quilting. I'm going to try free-motion meandering or stippling on a sample piece first, and I'm going to try and use my Fabric Mover. This will be the first time I've tried to use it on a large piece, so I'm hoping it will be a good test drive.

It may be a week or so before I have another chance to post an update on my progress, but if I can, I'll upload photos to Flickr as I go along.

Here's a link to a slideshow of all my Mod Sampler Quilt photos

Rejoice, He is Risen

2009-04-11T17:34:00.008-04:00

For Easter, I'm sharing another needlework flashback and cross stitch sampler:

The design is called Rejoice Sampler and it appeared in Cross Stitch & Country Crafts Magazine in March/April 1996. The designer's name is Donna Yuen.

It was stitched on ivory 32ct Belfast linen and the stained glass border features metallic blending filaments. I stitched this just in time for Easter in 1997.

These images are scans of my old 35mm photos, but here's a slightly closer view (click on either image to see the original scan size):

some of my other Easter needlework projects can be seen here

Happy Easter

Slipcovers: Throw Pillows, Finally

2009-04-09T14:15:00.003-04:00

It's been over a month since I finished the slipcovers for our old couch, and I finally got around to re-covering the original throw pillows. Here are the before (left) and after (right) photos:

The new pillow covers are made from an upholstery remnant purchased at an Ethan Allen warehouse sale:

The colors in the herringbone pattern are almost exact matches to the colors in the new slipcovers. The blue piping was made from scraps leftover from the ottoman cover and the 18" nylon zippers are from JoAnn Fabrics.

Here are close-ups of the zipper closure on bottom/back of each pillow:

And another view on the contrasting color loveseat:

Now, I think I'm finally finished with this project . . . .

New Bed Covers for Keli and Penny

2009-04-09T13:31:00.007-04:00

Last September I made matching bed covers for Keli and Penny from a doggie themed denim fabric printed with bones and pawprints.

At the time, their matching black wire crates were located upstairs in our bedroom. We had zippered Port-A-Crates for them to sleep in downstairs in the kitchen during the day or when we are away from home.

Our little escape artist, Penny, discovered that she could push through the zipper to get out of the Port-A-Crate, so we've swapped locations and the wire crates are now in the dining room. We still zip it up at night so she doesn't wander in the middle of the night, and she doesn't dare push through the zipper while we are in the same room. I don't know what we would do if she ever discovers how to escape from the wire crate.

I made both of those denim covers the same size without realizing that Penny's crate is two inches narrower than Keli's crate, so although her bed fits, it's a little squishy when its all tucked inside.

Last weekend, I finally got around to making a second set of covers (so I can have one in the laundry and one on the bed) and I even remembered to make Penny's bed a little bit smaller this time:

These were constructed exactly the same way as the first set, adjusted for the difference in crate width. I embroidered their names on each, to make it easier to tell which crate the bed will fit inside. The fabric is yet another blue home dec fabric from my stash (I still have another yard or two of the same pattern). It's a nice change for spring.

Making a new dog bed cover

It's a Pajama Party

2009-04-07T18:21:00.001-04:00

Not really a party, just a theme for March and April . . .

Our niece Jenna's birthday was in March and as her gift, we decided to offer her a weekend visit to introduce her to sewing. Jenna aspires to be a designer someday, so knowing how to construct a garment is important. I chose the pajamas for a project because I wanted her to really learn how to make something practical and be challenged, while being able to finish it in a day.

Friday night we set up her sewing machine, her mom's Kenmore, so that she could learn how to use it, since that's what will be available to her at home. It's a good basic machine; I was very thankful that the user manual was available to show me how to put in the bobbin, because it was different from any machine I've ever used - it was vertical and all my machines have had horizontal drop in bobbins.

Our plan was to go shopping at my local JoAnn Fabrics on Saturday to get a pattern and any other notions. Since the McCall's patterns were on sale that week, I had done a little pre-shopping online for pattern ideas and also printed out sizing charts and instructions on how to take measurements. We took Jenna's measurements and decided she needed a girls pattern in size 10 or 12.

Jenna had never been inside a fabric store before, so we took a few minutes to look at the variety of fabrics and other items available. It was a lot for her to take in at once. We made our way back to the pattern area and looked through the catalogs to find pajamas. We chose two patterns, McCall's 4291 (left) and 5744 (below) which both have simple elastic waisted pajama pants in multiple sizes. Both patterns have tops which hopefully we'll make sometime in the future.

After we selected the patterns, we shopped for thread and a few other notions. We didn't need fabric because we were planning to use flannel from my stash. While we were shopping, Jenna carefully selected a sewing basket to keep track of her supplies; we examined several sizes and shapes and chose one in her price range that would accommodate her new collection of scissors, pins, thread, etc., with room to store more in the future.

Finally we were read to get started. Back at home, we prepared the pattern pieces, chose a cutting layout, started pinning the pattern pieces to the fabric, cutting them out and sewing them together. Jenna did most of the work -- I demonstrated each step along the way and then let her finish, and she did a great job.

Here she is pinning away:

and pressing some seams:

When it was time to sew the hems, she used my sewing machine because we could really slow it down, making it easier for her to stitch:

We started our day at 10am with our shopping trip and worked all day until 10pm, stopping every hour or so and for lunch and dinner and by the end of the day, the pajamas were finished:

Jenna did a great job for her first time sewing. She even wore the pants to bed that night. And when we visited a week later, she showed us a pair of pajama pants she made for her brother Jack (with some help from her mom). And I hear she has plans to make pajamas for quite few more members of her family. I'm sending her an old OOP McCall's pattern to use for the adults.

You can see more photos in Jenna's Sewing Weekend Flickr Set.

The flannel we used for Jenna's pajama pants has been in my "collection" for probably 8 or 9 years. I don't know what I was thinking when I bought it, because it's all pink, which I hardly ever wear and is likely why I never used it until now.

Last year I bought a lot of knit fabrics in blues and greens that I wanted to use to make pajamas for myself. So I decided I'd use the remaining pink flannel in place of muslin to try out some of the patterns and make fitting adjustments. Yes, I realize the knits will fit a little differently than the woven flannel, but the basic measurements should be close.

My first pattern is Simplicity 3928 (which appears to be out-of-print now). The pajama pants are pretty straightforward and my first pair fit well enough. I made only the pants for my first sample -- the fabric makes me think of old fashioned table cloths, but they are good enough for sleeping in. (I don't have a photo yet, but will add it to Flickr if I remember to take one.)

They were a little long and baggy in the legs and the back waist felt a little low, so I added an inch to the pattern height at the center back and tapered to nothing at the side seams for the next pair of pants.

For the second trial pj's I also tried making the top, View B. It turned out okay. It wasn't too terribly difficult to make, but I don't much care for this style now, so probably won't be making any more.

I am NOT going to share the back view of these pajamas in my blog, but if you really want to see the photo, you can look here.

I think I need to make some sort of adjustment to the pattern for the excess bagginess in the back of the top -- definitely need to add some room at the hemline, but I'm not sure what to call the back adjustment. I've had this type of gapping on the other blouses I attempted a year or so ago, so it's definitely something I need to address.

Well, I'm ready to move on to working with some of the knits in my stash and I 'd like to try another out-of-print pattern in my stash, Simplicity 5877. It looks like the pants are made with seams only at the inside leg and center. These could be great or a disaster, but at least with a knit they'll be stretchy. And blue-ish.

And, um, in case you were wondering, no I won't be making the short version of the top that the model is wearing, I'll attempt the longest version with the long sleeves. Maybe.

2009 List of Completed Projects

2009-03-31T19:57:00.005-04:00

Just a bit of blog housekeeping . . . I like to keep my sidebar uncluttered so instead of listing the year's completed projects there, I update this post monthly. It contains links to photos or blog entries for completed projects only - not the in-progress updates.

The most recently completed projects are at the top of the list.

Updated thru August 2009:

Emily's Neck Bolster Pillow & Richie D's Cartoon Car Keychain
Lauren's Purple Quilt
Tops & Pants: Simplicity 4589, 4149 & 4366
Cool Ties for the Mahwah Marine Moms
White Denim Jean Jacket - McCall's M5191
Pajamas, again
Mod Sampler Quilt-along: Stars & Stripes Forever
Slipcovers: Throw Pillows
Another Set of Bed Covers for Keli & Penny
Pajama Party
St. Patrick's Day/Best Friend & Four Leaf Clover Banner
Slipcovers: Ottoman & Sofa
Thankful Heart banner
Heart Runner/Mini Quilt
Fleece Blankets: no sew Cars and coverstitched vehicles
Joseph's 2nd Birthday gift: No-Sew fleece pillows, car appliqué shirt
Ryan's 2nd Birthday gift: Thomas shirt, Cars pillow and With Love Tote bag

Re-Purposed?

2009-03-28T10:07:00.005-04:00

I spotted this Damascus antique sewing machine turned into a lamp while shopping at the Scranberry Coop last week:

My first reaction was How Cool is This and Wouldn't it be Perfect for my Sewing Room?

Then I thought, but what if it was still functional and someone turned it into a lamp just because it was old?

In the end, it did not come home with me; I don't really have the right space for it. But I'm sure someone will find it and treasure it.

Finished: Best Friend and Four Leaf Clover Banner

2009-03-18T21:14:00.006-04:00

Well, it's a day later than planned, but it's finally finished.

My previous post about this project has all the machine embroidery information and links.

The embroidery phase of this project went really smoothly; choosing the border fabrics and piecing them together progressed well also. I used EcoCraft Eco-friendly (100% PLA) batting for this project because I had a large enough piece left in my stash. I ran into trouble when I tried stitching in the ditch quilting and forgot to use the dual feed foot, and ended up picking out several rows of stitching that were all puckered.

Later I had problems with the binding. I don't know what I was thinking, but it ended up being too narrow the first time I tried to apply it and I decided to trim the edges of the banner to try and make it work. I should have just ripped it out and started over. What a mess -- I decided to trim about 1/8" from each side to straighten it out again and made a quick shopping trip to find a new binding fabric.

I finally got a binding on the piece and after taking the first set of photos decided I should have done more quilting. I know, the quilting should be done before binding, but I just had to do it. Look at the before photo (below left), it just doesn't look finished compared to the after photo (below right), does it?

First I attempted channel quilting around the shamrock shape on the top block. I know, it's not quite perfect, but isn't it more interesting? (oops -- that should have said echo quilting, not channel)

(left: after quilting; right: before quilting)

Last, some wavy lines to frame the sampler block:

(left: after quilting; right: before quilting)

I used a Sulky 30wt blendable green variegated cotton thread for these sections.

Here's a close-up of the center block, a white terrier dog with a shamrock on it's collar:

The decorative stitches were sewn through all layers in 40ct rayon thread; I thought this stitch resembled four-leaf clovers. The green shamrock buttons were added after finishing the binding.

I still think the binding is a little bit wonky in sections, but overall I'm pleased with the finished project. I think the color and fabric selections go together well. And now that it's finished, I can see how I could have added other design features to help the sections flow together better.

I definitely need A LOT more practice quilting.

Stitch N' Pitch goes to Cooperstown

2009-03-18T11:14:00.008-04:00

Update: Read an account of this Stitch 'N Pitch event at Cooperstown ~ Craftzine.com blog

-------------------------------------------------------------------

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE - March 6, 2009

STITCH ‘N PITCH Comes to Cooperstown

-Hall of Fame to host celebration of two timeless traditions, baseball and needlearts-

(COOPERSTOWN, NY) – As part of Youth Baseball Week, the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum will give visitors the chance to create their own needlework projects by hosting STITCH ‘N PITCH, a program of the National Needlearts Association, on Sunday, April 19, starting at 10 a.m. and running throughout the day. Admission to the Stitch ’N Pitch program is open to all Museum visitors with a paid admission, as the event will consist of an interactive session where visitors can use their hands to stitch a baseball-themed needlepoint or crochet project which can be brought home.

Patterns featuring baseball bats and wristbands will be available to fans, and more intricate designs will also be on display.

STITCH 'N PITCH, a program of The National Needlearts Association, has taken baseball by storm over the past few years. Numerous major league and countless minor league organizations have hosted STITCH 'N PITCH events over the past three summers. More information on the organization is available at www.StitchNPitch.com

To read the rest of this press release, visit the National Baseball Hall of Fame website.

We attended the Stitch N' Pitch event at Shea last September and were disappointed to find the emphasis was almost exclusively on knitting and crochet. I would have liked to see more variety of needlework encouraged since there are many, many other forms of needlearts, but these are portable and easy to work on during a game.

In Progress: Best Friend and Four Leaf Clover Banner

2009-03-15T23:27:00.004-04:00

Last month, for Valentine's Day I made this quickie Thankful Heart banner. This month, for St. Patrick's Day, I planned a companion piece based on another Embroidery Library sampler verse design, Best Friend and Four Leaf Clover.

I started out embroidering the Best Friend verse on some linen-type fabric. Then I remembered I had another design, a Celtic Shamrock appliqué that would look nice with it. And one last thing needed was a Westie - okay, technically they are Scottish, not Irish, but I wanted one on this banner. I used this freebie dog design, downloaded from EmbroideryDesigns.com and changed the colors a little, embroidered on some green fabric. It's not a real Westie design, but it is a floppy eared terrier, sort of like Penny.

This is what I've come up with so far:

I made a last minute decision while embroidering to change the dog's collar color from red to green, but forgot that the same color thread was used for the tongue. So my dog has a green tongue. It could happen.

I've cut some strips of coordinating green fabrics to make a few "scrappy" borders between the embroidered pieces. This should be finished in time for St. Patrick's Day.

Annual road trip to the Quiltfest of NJ

2009-03-15T21:38:00.010-04:00

Just over a week ago, three of us "Material Girls/DKnJ" made our annual road trip (see 2007 and 2008) to the Quiltfest of NJ, in Somerset, NJ. This year, the weather was sunny all day and we didn't have to drive through rain or snow.

On the drive down, we wondered how well attended this year's show would be on a Friday, considering the current state of the economy. We arrived a little later than usual and found that the main parking lot was full, a very good sign, even if we did have to walk a bit further than usual. Once inside the Garden State Exhibit Center, we discovered it wasn't jam-packed crowded, but there were plenty of quilting enthusiasts shopping and viewing the exhibits.

As is our custom, we all started out in the same direction, but quickly split up to visit the vendors at our own pace, with a plan to meet for lunch. It took me a little bit of time to get into a shopping mode - I still don't really need anything new, and with Rich in between jobs I'm trying to be careful about buying too much stash just for the sake of stash.

I managed to find a few things for the Westie fabric collection I couldn't pass up.

From The Quilted Cat, these are one yard pieces:

From Westie Fabric Collection

selvage info:
left: Santa Claws & Paws by Deb Strain for moda C modafabrics.com Pattern #.19077;
right: Robert Kaufman Dogs Spotted Everywhere Screen Print D# 6476 www.robertkaufman.com

From WebFabrics, these are two white on white textures, hopefully for making Westies in quilts.

selvage info:
Dimples by Gail Kessler for Andover Fabrics C Patt 1867 www.andoverfabrics.com

And this quilt pattern from Critter Pattern Works:

Small Dogs quilt designs for traditional machine appliqué (not digitized for machine embroidery); I only plan to make the Westie and maybe the Schnauzer someday.

I've updated my list of Westie Quilt Pattern Links to include the pattern above, plus a few others.

One of the special exhibits at this year's Quiltfest was Linda Hibbert: One Woman Show and one section of the display caught my eye because of her AKC dog breed quilts - she had designed patterns for all the breeds and made quilts according to the group they belonged to. I took this (poor) photo of the Westie block with the camera on my phone:

A better image of the Terrier and six other group quilts (as well as individual breed designs) can be found at SilverLiningsOriginals.com Canine Corner page (scroll down the page). And yes, I've ordered the e-pattern for this head study design. I'm seeing it on a pillow to go with the new slipcovers . . .

Right across from the Terrier group quilt was the booth for Quilter's Obsession and right away the sample quilt for this Bahama Breeze pattern called to me:

The batik fabrics are beautiful and fit perfectly into the color palette I used for the master bed and bath last summer. Remember these valances? And my original plan for the Sew Fun quilt? I never did get started on that quilt . . .

I didn't buy this right away, for several reasons. First, I already had that Sew Fun quilt planned, but never started; second, this pattern is for a throw quilt and I need a queen size; third, the pattern requires paper piecing, which I've never tried.

So I went to lunch to think about and talk it over with the other girls . . . and after lunch I decided to buy the kit. I still wasn't sure I'd try to increase the size to a queen. But after Rich saw the fabric and liked the pattern, we decided I'd buy a second fabric bundle so that I could make a queen size quilt. Wish me luck! I'm tentatively putting this on the project list to get started in April.

I picked up just a few other items at the Quiltfest -

Also from Quilter's Obsession, these fat quarter bundles, just because I like the colors. These may end up as a baby gift sometime in the next year:

And because I want to use the full potential of my embroidery machine for quilting, I bought this Quilter's Paradise machine embroidery collection from Anita Goodesign from Above & Beyond Creative Sewing (one of the show's sponsors):

And last, these pins from Meadow Gems, just because I like them:

So I didn't do too bad, really. Almost everything I bought was with the intention of using it for a current or soon to be started project.

I just need to get started on a few of them.

Slipcover Progress: Final Wrap-up and Links

2009-03-11T15:00:00.003-04:00

Below is a summary of all my blog entries for this slipcover project, in chronological order:

Slipcovers: the Plan and some progress (Ottoman)
Slipcover Progress: Cushions are Done (Sofa)
Slipcover Progress: Cutting and Pin-fitting (Sofa)
Slipcover Progress: Putting it together (Sofa)
Slipcover Progress: Finishing Touches (Sofa)
Slipcovers: Throw Pillows, Finally

All the project photos are in my Slipcovers Picasa photo album

Slipcovers

I've wanted to tackle this slipcover project for a number of years, but various obstacles or distractions always seemed to push it aside. In a way that was a good thing, because a lot of the other projects I've worked on in the interim helped me develop the sewing skills to make this slipcover the way I wanted it without compromising. Of course, my version was a lot more complicated than a basic slipcover and if I ever decide to make another, I will make a much simpler design.

From Slipcovers

For example, constructing the various bags, purses and totes I've made over the past few years helped me to visualize three dimensions when joining the inside corners of the slipcover where several seams intersect. Also, making cushion covers for other furniture helped me with making and attaching piping. More recently, making covers for the dog beds helped me with planning how to insert a zipper and using the original covers as patterns. These were steps I considered easy so I could focus on the more challenging aspects of fitting curves and corners and making kick pleats.

I still plan to cover the throw pillows sometime soon and I'd like to integrate some pops of red and maybe a Westie or two into the room. That will have to wait for now.

Some statistical odds and ends:

Fabric Used: Sofa: 22 yards Miss Kitty Denim (home dec fabric, 54" wide), and about 5 yards muslin (45" wide) for lining the kick pleat under- and overlays; Ottoman: about 1-1/2 yard fabric remnants
Piping: made 880 inches or about 24 yards for the sofa and cushions; about 120 inches for the ottoman
Zippers: made 4 @ 42 inches each = 168 inches or 4-2/3 yards of Make A Zipper
Hardware used: Designer SE with clear B foot, single welt cord foot, and narrow zipper foot; Huskylock 936 serger set to 3 thread overlock stitch with regular S foot and large piping foot for clean finished seams
Notions: T-pins, air and water erasable marking pens, chalk wheel, bedskirt/twist pins, button cover kit, rotary cutter and mat, extra long 120" measuring tape
Reference Book: Simplicity's Simply the Best Home Decorating Book

*****

Links: (I'll add to this list if I find other helpful resources)

Simplicity's Simply the Best Home Decorating Book - available from many vendors, this is a good basic how-to book, especially for beginners. The styles in the photos are a bit dated, but the instructions for measuring, constructing and installing basic home decor projects such as window treatments, bedskirts, pillows and slipcovers are easy to follow. Be sure to use your own imagination and don't be put off by the balloon valances and ruffled pillows in the photos!
Pam Damour - The Decorating Diva has a DVD Super Slipcovers that was somewhat helpful, after the fact. I didn't realize I had this in my stash until after I was finished with my project. I watched it just the other day and it reinforced some of the steps I had followed on my own. It's a good overall demo video for experienced sewists, but very new beginners would probably need more detailed information. Some steps, such as constructing welt cording or making the skirt, were described verbally but not actually demonstrated in detail.
Sew, Mama, Sew! Blog >> Sewing for the Home (September 2008) ~ Sewing a Slipcover - a step by step tutorial for a basic wing chair slipcover

Slipcover Progress: Finishing Touches

2009-03-11T12:07:00.008-04:00

Wow, I can't believe it's been two weeks since my last entry. I finished the slipcovers earlier, but haven't been able to get back to blogging until now. Part of the reason for that is I am sharing my desktop computer with Rich until his new laptop arrives, and his job search activities are a higher priority than my blogging at the moment. Right now I am using an older back-up laptop that I use mainly for machine embroidery; I've fitted it out enough to access the internet on a limited basis, but the keyboard is squishy so please excuse any typos that slip through . . .

Anyway, last time I wrote about the slipcover, I was just about finished putting it all together, but still needed to do a few alterations and finishing touches.

First, I needed to re-stitch the back section around the shoulders to take out too much fullness. That fixed the gapping problems.

Next, I needed to finish the edges of the underlays for the "faux box pleats", which I have recently learned are more accurately called "kick pleats". I pinned the underlays in place on the sofa and marked the top edges, then serged them for a neat finished edge. Each corner of the sofa has one full underlay; the front center has a smaller underlay and the front left and right corners have smaller, angled underlays. After the raw edges were serged, I attached them to the sofa with twist pins (also known as bedskirt pins).

On a different slipcover, these could have been sewn onto the body of the cover; however, my cover doesn't have a horizontal seam for a skirt and I couldn't figure out how to sew them invisibly without adding a lot of bulkiness and sagging. The original upholstery is stapled to the frame of the sofa (see my previous blog post), so I am following that design, but am using twist pins instead of staples.

I had not serged the seams of the cushion covers yet, so that was my next assignment. I used a large piping foot to help guide the way and finished all the inside seams of the cushions.

left: before serging; right: after serging

I wanted to find some fancy twist pins to use on visible areas of the slipcover, but couldn't find any that I liked. But I did see some comments about upholstering the twist pins using button covers. So you know I had to try this out.

The least expensive pins were at Bed, Bath & Beyond, a dozen in a package for $2.99. I bought several packages for this project, but have made only 6 upholstered pins so far. The button cover kit I found was at JoAnn Fabrics, a Dritz kit for 1/2 inch covered buttons.

To make upholstered twist pins, I followed the basic instructions for making covered buttons, pushing the fabric and button top into the tool as directed on the package:

Instead of inserting the button back I pushed the head of the twist pin into the button cover:

The last part was a little tricky and I had to improvise and use a few different "tools" to help push the twist pin into the button cover evenly. After it was securely in place, I pushed the bottom of the white part of the tool to pop out the finished pin.

I found that trimming the fabric after it was pushed into the bottom of the tool removed some bulk and made it easier to push the head of the twist pin into place. On a few of the covers, a few loose threads of fabric poked out afterward, so I put a little bit of Fray Check on them, just in case.

The result: half a dozen covered twist pins!

The last finishing touch is to cover the throw pillows. I could use the same fabric as the slipcover, but how boring would that be?

In my stash I found this herringbone upholstery remnant, bought at the Ethan Allen warehouse sale a few years ago, and I think it coordinates well with the Miss Kitty Denim:

I'm pretty sure this fabric will stand up to the challenge of Westie naps, but I don't think I'll finish these throw pillows for a few more weeks, since I have a few other projects I'd like to get started first.

There's no rush, since we already have plenty of throw pillows.

Next post: My final wrap-up and some links for future reference