2024 Studio Post #33 - a Placemat and Pockets in my Nightgown

What an interesting week! I was able to spend a few days up at the lake with my sister Ann. I brought a number of different projects (sewing and otherwise). My first priority was to add pockets to my white nightgown (originally a robe, but I use it as a nightgown). 

I like pockets! I like having my phone with me (partially because I use a step tracker app) and pockets save my hands from having to grab and hold. They aren't super pretty, but they're very functional. When I got home, I serged the seams so they won't fray. 

This photo looks weird because the nightgown is inside out (to show the pockets) and the way it's draped makes it look wider than tall!

I also made a label for my bed quilt. I decided to name it "Refracting Rainbows." I haven't stitched the label in yet, but I may do it today.

I also repaired my "sub purse." The strap was really frayed. I wear it every time I substitute teach. It has gum, pens, bandaids, etc. It's just handy! I have the fabric set aside to sew a new one, but I haven't gotten around to that yet.

Before I went up to the lake, I had started on a strawberry-themed placemat. Some of our placemats at the lake are looking a bit rough. I quilted and bound it yesterday. I'm not super happy with how it turned out but I'm also unsure how to make others that are better. I'm still learning!

The placemat is actually rectangular, but the angle is due to trying to keep my hands from making shadows on it . . . it's still kind of wonky.

My Brain

I wanted to find my map of Florida so I went through my maps box. I couldn't find Florida, so I laid out all my maps on the guest room bed. I didn't have Florida! (I found it later in my file folder for the trip we're planning to Florida . . . )

As I looked at all these maps, I wondered why I hadn't just stored them in alpha order. Then I remembered. Some maps have two completely different states on them. How does one alphabetize "Colorado Wyoming" or any North / South states?

 

I thought about making folders for the regions of the United States (West, Southwest, Midwest, Northeast, Southeast), Canada, and other locations (county, Caribbean, etc.). And where do Alaska and Hawaii belong?! Then I realized that investing time in this level of organization is completely unnecessary! I just stacked them up and put them back in my map box.

 

My brain sometimes frustrates me. I want things to be organized and orderly. I chose the word "Simplify" for the 2024-25 school year. I'm tired of making things more difficult than they need to be. I really like having paper maps sometimes. But I don't use them often. I almost always have technology at my fingertips. It's okay to just chuck these in a box and access them when I want / need to.

 

Forgetting that I had already taken the Florida map out and put it with my trip planning info . . . that's a separate brain issue!

2024 Studio Blog #32 - Medora Pattern

 At last Saturday's MQ meeting, I won a pattern! The 2025 show will feature "Medora" quilts. The pattern designer (Jill Blair of Materiella) was at the meeting and shared some of her quilts. Then she gave away twenty copies of the pattern. I'm not much of a pattern person, but I could also stand to follow directions and be more careful!

Since I can be a bit wild with my ideas and sewing, I decided to start by making a crib quilt. It's small and do-able. So when I got home from the meeting, I picked out some fabrics. That's it. That's as far as I got. But I love feeling excited and inspired!

If I like the design and the process, I may make a larger Medora quilt. It would be so nice to have a quilt in the 2025 show. And I'd love to build up a stash of baby quilts to give as gifts when someone's expecting.

2024 Studio Post #31 - Random Projects

I'm posting three days early this week! I got into the studio to make a "box" for our pontoon boat for trash and recycling. (I'm going to test it out before making a second one.) I used some of the horse blanket scraps my boss gave me. It was quick and a little sloppy, but it's a prototype. 

 

I also used one small scrap of the fabric to make a little container to hold threads or other junk when I'm hand stitching. When I went to the Crazy Quilters meeting last week, I just made a little pile on the table, but I kept brushing against it. If this little thing doesn't work out, I'll just throw it away.

 

I also stitched up a pair of underpants that had a weak seam, but I'm not posting a picture of that! I think I'll bring my hand stitching bag with me to the lake and try to learn some crazy quilt stitches. I haven't gone to JoAnn's yet to buy embroidery needles, though . . .

2024 Studio Post #30 - Teresa's Brother's Quilt - Made By Their Mom

My friend Teresa lost her mom a year ago. Her mom had made a quilt for Teresa and had started to make one for Teresa's brother. Teresa asked me about it. I jumped at the chance to finish it for her brother! (She doesn't have other quilters in her life.) I've done a tiny bit of stitching so far but wanted these pictures of what she had already made. So much work went into this quilt. What a precious gift from a mother to her son.

 

After I finish stitching on the off-white, I'll find a stencil to stitch in the large open areas. I want to make sure it's okay with Teresa, first, though. Then I plan to attach the two pieces (one is skinnier than the other) and bind it. Again, I'll check with Teresa on the choice of fabric for the binding. 

 

The large green stitching is what she used to baste the layers together. I'll remove it when I'm done with the hand quilting. I've had it for a year now (almost) and I've only stitched a little bit on it so far. Time to get to work on it!

 

 

2024 Studio Post #29 - Tie Dye!

I have wanted to learn how to tie-dye for ages!  Everyone tells me it's so easy, but I just wasn't sure how to go about it. I had set aside three or four garments that had stains but I liked otherwise. I finally went to JoAnn Fabrics sometime in the past year and bought a tie-dye "kit" but was too chicken (or busy) to read the directions and try it.

Then a few cool things came together! At the Akina camp in late July, they provided everyone with black t-shirts and some foam stencils (as well as foam letters, flowers, hearts, etc.). We each decorated our own shirt, then the gal in charge of crafts - Dorenda (?) sprayed bleach water over the foam. This is how my shirt turned out:

 

 

Then the cousins organizing the family reunion asked about people's interest in shirts. Most people said not to bother, so another cousin suggested we tie-dye! Yay! I brought my garments and tie-dye kit, but there were more than enough other supplies to use there! Louie told me I could do a shirt of his first as my "trial" experience. It didn't turn out at all like I was hoping. 

 

Then I tried to do a striped-type thing on my dress. It didn't turn out as I expected, either, but I wore it. I like this dress because it's sleeveless and has pockets. I don't know what I stained it with, but I'm so glad it still fits! I was trying so hard to not be wasteful with the dye that I didn't use quite enough to really get a cool effect. Live and learn!

Another one of his cousins rinsed everyone's tie dyed garments and laundered them all, so I still have the opportunity to practice these skills. I have my kit and I can find more rubber bands. It says that the dye should be used fairly soon after being mixed up, so I'll have to find time to dye a couple different things all in one session. I still need to clean up my studio so I can sew, but I did a creative fabric thing last week!

2024 Studio Post #28 - No pictures

I meant to write before we went on vacation to Michigan, but here I am a full week and a day late, and not much to show for it.

My studio is a disaster dumping zone. I didn't even bring any stitching with me. AND I got Covid and "shared" it with the whole family. Ugh.

This entry is for Sunday, 8/11 and Sunday, 8/18. We're home from vacation and recovering from illness. I did a tiny repair job on our quilt up at the lake (in early August) but didn't take a picture of it. 

I have moved a few of the kids' games from my studio closet down to the game cabinet (to make more room for fabric). 

Oh!!! I just thought of something fabric-related I can share from our Michigan trip! New entry on its way . . .