How to make a triangular pin cushion, boho style

 

This is a quick 'make' for anyone who wants a pincushion that's so bright you can't possibly mislay it!  It's a simple triangular shape, and you can make it any size you like.  I'd previously sewn this larger purple one.  

Proving you can leave off the sequinned trim and metallic thread if you really want to.  Anyway, let's get started.  You need two squares of equal size in a non-stretchy fabric.  I used calico which gives a good strong base for you to stitch into.  My squares were slightly over 4 inches.  Pick out lots of fabric scraps, and if you're aiming for a boho style then choose lively colours and patterns.  

Arrange your scraps so you can't see any of the calico base.  Use regular sewing thread or strands of embroidery thread to anchor your scraps down, adding decorative stitching and beads wherever you fancy.  I know metallic thread can be a pain in the neck to sew with, but it does add a lovely sparkle.  

You can layer sheer and semi-sheers on top of plains, sew on buttons or ribbon, anything to add interest.  

Keep stitching and embellishing until you're happy with your two squares.  

Once that point's reached, pin or clip your squares right-sides-facing.  Stitch around 3 sides, either by hand or machine.  

Here's the bit to make your pincushion into a triangle.  If you wanted to make a straightforward square cushion, you'd now sew a line from of stitches from side seam to side seam.  Instead, the centre seams are moved to the middle of that line.  Pin or clip your unstitched edge as shown below.  

I sewed a few stitches on the left and the right of this unstitched edge, which you can see in the photo below if you look at the top corners.  (It's so hard to write instructions and be clear enough!  Hope this makes sense.  If not, let me know.)   This leaves a gap large enough to turn your cushion right sides out.  

Do so, and use a pencil or similar to make sure the corners are nice and pointy.  Then take your cushion filling - I used polyester quilt wadding - and don't be stingy, make sure your cushion's well padded.  After that, it's simply a question of sewing the gap closed.  

I covered my closure stitches over with a ribbon, just to make it look prettier.  Even added a few more sequins too, for maximum bling.  

Hope you like this, and let me know if you make your own version.  I'd love to see them.  

Okay, having written those instructions, and being in desperate need of a cuppa tea and possibly a little chocolate treat, I'll round things up with a last photo.  Another couple of scrappy blocks made, for the quilt or cushion or rice bag or whatever I eventually make!  Progress is being made, block by block ...  

Scrappy squares

 I really don't need to start yet another project as I've so many works-in-progress.  But here I go again ... 

Seeing a scrappy quilt on a YouTube channel set me off with this.  I cut 6 inch squares of calico, and arranged on them little pieces of fabric, odd leftovers, small lengths of ribbon.  I've sewn them down with lines of simple running stitch.  

These might look too raggedy edged to be squares, but if I turned them over you'd see the 6 inch square of calico underneath.  

My running stitches are as straight as a dog's hind leg, but they do the job.  I intend to embroider into these blocks, using both matching and contrasting embroidery threads as I'm going for the more-is-more effect, rather than something minimalist.  I've no idea how many blocks I'll eventually make, and this might end up as a cushion cover or a lap quilt, or maybe even - possibly? - a bed sized quilt.  Or is that being wildly optimistic?  Perhaps I should aim for a rice bag as that would only need five squares for the outer sides and base.  

Apart from that on-going project, I had a go at a smaller sewing task this morning.  In a scrap pack I ordered from Bazaar, as per my last post, there was this pink spiral.  

I wanted to try something similar, so found a piece of yarn in the scrap pack and couched that on a bit of white linen (from a chopped-up shirt I never wore).  

I used a pinkish-purple sewing thread to hold the yarn in place, then couched it a second time with gold metallic thread.  It's a nice little technique, and I'm going to add this spiral to one of my scrappy blocks.  

In other 'news', I finished reading Helen Dunmore's 'House of Orphans' which is excellent.  I'd known nothing about Finland's history, so the novel's given me a glimpse into that.  It seems that Finland was part of the Russian Empire from 1809 onward, and they allowed the country a certain amount of autonomy.  However, in the early 1900s there was a period of 'Russification' when Russia wanted Finland to more closely integrate.  Many Finnish people rebelled against this, and it's against this backdrop that the novel's central characters exist.  

I'm going next for a change of genre.  A cosy crime book set in a sleepy Cotswold village.  Hopefully it'll be a quick, fun read before I return to something weightier.  My pile of To-Be-Read books is slowly decreasing.  If only I can stay away from the bookshelves in charity shops and resist the urge to buy any more ... as if!   

Birds, bunting and Bazaar

 

Hello, and I hope your weekend's going well.  I've got my feet up on the sofa, a cup of tea to hand and a packet of chocolate buttons, so I'm all fine 'n' dandy.  I finished the little birds I made the other day, but wasn't exactly thrilled with them.  They're okay, but not quite ... they're just 'not quite'.  So I'm giving up on making birdies for now, and these two will be wrapped in tissue paper and lobbed into the Christmas Decorations box.  They'll reappear next December and can hang on the tree, adding extra sparkle (along with the eleventy thousand baubles and shiny glittery things I already have squirrelled away.) 

I've rummaged around on my dedicated crafting space (a.k.a. the dining table) and from under mounds of creative clutter bought out the bunting I began making.  After my mini bunting turned out so well I'd decided to sew a larger version, and have three triangles already completed.  

Two more are underway.  I've used a thrifted tablecloth as a base, though I've also slid pieces of plain red cotton under the semi-sheer red Indian fabric to keep the colour vibrant.  The red/green material's from an upcycled sari, as is the peachy piece.  There's also pink Petersham ribbon and the green's from what was once a skirt or a dress, I forget which.  

The other photos I have to show you are from two scrap packs delivered yesterday.  I'd bought them from a company called Bazaar, who specialise in Indian sourced products.  They've very environmentally aware, and try to reclaim and make available for sale any and all fabric scraps from their clothes or homewares.  I'd been recommended to watch a YouTube channel by Annie Claxton, and she raves about these scrap bags.  Having resisted for as long as I could, I caved in and ordered two.  One in pink, the second in purple.  

The individual packs are inside reused plastic bags, and your whole order's inside a simple bag made from sari material.  

If you quote a code given by Annie, you receive an extra treat or two.  In my case, a length of plaited paper that'd be nice for present wrapping, plus a cluster of metallic beads.  

As well as fabric in the packs, you get odds and ends, like this white bobble trim.  

There were trimmings in the pink pack too.  I really like the little circular piece of white cotton that's got pink yarn couched in a spiral design on it.  Think Ill have a go at making a few of those.  

I definitely liked the pink selection more than the purple, which did feel a wee bit sparse.  But then again I have to consider how much I'd normally pay for a fat quarter of silk or one of these cottons.  There's always an element of chance when ordering a scrap pack as you're dependent on someone else's taste.   I'm not unhappy with what I received as there's plenty of scope to use all the individual pieces.  

As it's upcycled and reclaimed material, some of it's rather shopworn.  This embroidered panel in white is looking more off-white, even (dare I say) a tad grubby.  So I'll soak it in a mild detergent and see if it brightens up.  If not, I might dye it or maybe embroider into it with some bright colours.  

Love the patterned silk in the centre of the above photo, plus the sequinned blue in the bottom right corner.  

The funny thing in the bag looked like an old fashioned hairnet!  But it's some sort of gold coloured yarn almost felted together.  The only use I can think of for this would be in doll making, as it'd make a small doll a bonny head of hair.  I'm imagining a Sixties style bouffant that looks as if it's been laquered by noxious smelling hairspray!  

Some gorgeous fabrics here.  The pink fishy design.  The one with the sequinned trim.  The cranberry and gold patterned material.  Then there's the large panel at the top, which is begging to be made into the side of a bag.  

Well, I hope you enjoyed that round-up of my spending spree.  My bank balance won't thank me for it, but I enjoyed sorting through what goodies I'd been sent.  And if you want to discover the enthusiastic and very creative Annie Claxton, she's found via this link.  Enjoy what's left of your weekend, and let's see what delights a new week will bring.  Bye!  

Mini boho beads and a little birdie

After all the cold weather recently it's been a ridiculously mild day, though I'm not complaining.  I actually managed an hour in the back garden.  Clearing away dried up stalks and brown crispy looking leaves, the remains of last year's Michaelmas daisies, Cosmos, crocosmia, verbena and so on.  The garden looks slightly neater, and it was pleasing to see spring bulbs popping up, as well as snowdrops that're already flowering, so pretty and delicate.  

On the crafty side of things, I finished off a little collection of boho style beads as I'd wanted some to give away.  Previous beads had been longer, but  I reckon these dinky little uns look just as good, if not better.  I love the way making these beads uses up even the tiniest scraps of fabric, pieces that'd otherwise be relegated to cushion-filling.  It makes sense to squeeze every bit of value out of our fabric purchases, don't you think?  By the way, the tins you can see in the photo above don't actually contain lip balm, but make ideal containers for seed beads, sequins and the like.  I also use empty spice and herb jars to keeping crafty things in.  Always good to find an extra use for something.  

The other thing I did today was try making a little fabric bird (smaller than the previous birds I'd made into wall hangings).  I'd seen some beautiful little Indian fabric birds, embroidered and embellished, and fancied making something similar. 

I drew a basic bird shape and cut it out of interfacing, and ironed that on to a flimsy red & orange material, formerly a skirt.  Then added plain red cotton for the backing.  I stuffed the bird and added a fabric wing, a red felt beak, plus beading.  

This is as far as I've got with the bird, but I want to embroider it more, and add one of the boho style beads I made too.  

Once I've made this, I want to try a bird about half this size, so really teeny-tiny, and with masses of embellishment.  I was listening to podcasts about politics while stitching this red bird, and handsewing is the ideal thing to distract you from the amount of nonsense coming out of a politician's mouth!  

Hope you enjoyed your day, and wander by tomorrow (or the next day!) to see the finished red bird.  

A painted fabric roll, and didn't my fingertips suffer for it!

Over the last couple of days I've been sewing a fabric roll, using as a base this painted fabric.  These were scraps of mainly cotton that I painted and stenciled with acrylic paint, then machine sewed together.  It took me a while to figure out what I could make with this fabric rectangle, but I liked the idea of slow-stitching into it.  Because the paint had stiffened up the material I didn't need any interfacing, but just added a backing fabric and began sewing lines of running stitch up and down to give the quilted effect I wanted.  

The only drawback was that, as I noted earlier, the painted fabric had stiffened due to the painted effects, so pushing a needle into it was harder than it'd be with fabric in its natural state.  I've never got to grips to using a thimble, so ended up with sore fingertips and some nicely developing callouses.  However, after a few muttered curses, I eventually quilted the entire piece.  Next I folded over roughly a third of it lengthways to create a pocket.  Then sewed two further lines of running stitch to divide one long pocket into three.  I added a couple of buttons to show where the pocket edges were.  Afterwards I added a length of ribbon for a tie, and the fabric roll was done.  

It can be bundled into a smaller roll, so the upper third folds down to form a top for the pockets, safely enclosing any small bits and pieces inside.  As shown above and below.  

Or if you can bundle the roll up with that upper third unfolded (if that makes sense.)  As per below.  

And here it is rolled up,  

I'm definitely going to make another of these rolls, but next time I'll be kinder to my hands and choose softer material to work with.  

Hope you enjoyed seeing what I've made, and thanks for stopping by.  Let me know if you have any questions or comments, won't you?  

 

Normal service is resumed

My smartphone's working again!  Repaired.  New SIM card inserted.  Scratch on the screen but we'll ignore that.  Honestly, I really don't want to become someone who's wedded to their phone, but it's sooo handy.  Checking the weather report before you head outdoors (hello Storm Isha), doing a quick bit of online banking, seeing if your bus in running on time, taking photos of a pretty view or something you're making or doing.  Everyday life is perfectly possible without a smartphone, but the truth is everylife's simply easier with one.  

Anyway, let's show you what I've been up to.  Friday was fun as I'd signed up for a two hour lino cutting class.  As with the session I went to last year, this was at Leeds Art Gallery, and loosely themed around 'fantasy', with special regard to Angela Carter and her re-telling of traditional folk and fairy tales.  

We'd to draw an image of our choice, so I went for a wolf running through a snowy wood.  (You can just see it on the left of the photo above, on a sheet of photocopied images we were given as prompts.)  

I'm not entirely sure you'd know that from what I came up with!  But I had fun and it was a friendly group, and I'll be signing up for the next class too.  The other things I've been up to are definitely indoor-based as it's been too flipping cold outside for any kind of gardening.  

I was really pleased with this mini bunting.  Initially, these triangles were going to be stylised Christmas trees.  No, really!  I was browsing on Ann Wood's site where she generously provides lots of free patterns for cute little 'makes'.  This is the link for making scrappy Christmas trees which I saw and thought I'd like to sew, despite it being January and the festive session a long way off ... Sometimes you have to go where the mood takes you.  I like Ann Wood's use of subtle shades and natural fabrics, but I fancied something snazzier involving shiny glittery pretties.  

However, once I'd sewn my trees, they weren't giving out Christmassy vibes, so I idly wondered about turning them upside down and sewing them into bunting.  It worked perfectly, and they've found a temporary home on my bookcase. 

I've started making a larger version of the bunting to hang on the wall, and will show you that when it's finished.  Projects like this are an ideal way of using up short lengths of ribbon or braid that you don't want to throw away, but you're not sure why you're keeping.  I'm trying for a zero waste approach to crafting, and this bunting ticks the box.  

My last two or three evenings have been spent making and embellishing this fabric cuff.  I'd bought and worn to death a cuff years ago, from Accessorize, and ever since that fell to pieces I've hankered after a new one.  Not finding what I wanted in the shops, I made one. 

It's a first effort, so a learning experience.  I think the secret with these fabric cuffs is to avoid subtlety.  Layer on the fabric, stitch into it and stitch and stitch some more.  

By the way, if anyone's interested in me detailing how I made the cuff, let me know in the comments.  I want to make a second one, not as wide as my first effort, and can write instructions and take pictures as I go if wanted.  It's a really nice exercise in slow stitching, and you only need such tiny scraps of fabric to make your finished piece. 

Okay, that's all for now.  I'm going to curl up on the sofa and read more of 'House of Orphans' while Storm Isha whips the treetops around and hopefully doesn't do too much damage.  Bye!