Scribbles & Bits

Banana Bana Fo Fana

I didn't think I'd get the chance to enter the pincushion challenge this month.  I knew I wanted to make a banana that peeled open to reveal a place for needles or more pins, but I couldn't find the two shades of yellow felt I wanted.  Last night, I had to run to the craft store for something and lo and behold: new felt!  The darker yellow for the skin and the lighter for the inside!  Nothing like eleventh hour crafting!  My only change now will be to add a button to the top and some loops so the peels are more secure.  The only other drawback is it's not really something I can work on in public.  For a couple of stages there, it looks really, um, not like an innocent banana pincushion.

Finished Objects and Some Rambling

Hurrah!  The hummingbird cross stitch is completed!  Now to frame it!  Double hurrah!  The garnet and gold scarf is completed.  I was surprisingly productive last night!  Of course, Knitting History's post from the other day has me thinking about all my WIPs I still need to whip into shape.  Some are nearly completed such as the blackwork teacup worked in cobalt blue.  Remember that?  Well, it still needs the felt and the hanging ribbon sewn on the back followed by a vigorous stuffing.  The snowflake quilt has only a bit more quilting and the binding to go, yet still it languishes by my sewing machine.  Other things have quite a way to go, such as the Purple Haze cardigan (the completion of the second front panel and both sleeves.  All with 4 inches of the dreaded 1x1 ribbing) and the Greedy Cat bellpull (which I've paid little attention to lately, but is here with me to entertain me at break and lunch).  And I have one item that I don't even think counts as a WIP since the cat frogged it (a lovely purple cap-sleeved wrap sweater).  Yeah, I wasn't too happy that day, but I can't blame him.  I love handling the yarn, so why shouldn't he?  Then there are the scads of items I'd like to start.  Knit, sewn, stitched, stamped, whatevered: they all catch my eye.  This would make a great present.  That would look lovely on my wall.  What couldn't I do with these?  But time is quite a bit like money: no matter how much I think I have, it's never as much as I thought and just won't go quite as far as I planned.  Ah well, preaching to the choir, right?

Updates!

Between work and some Typepad funkiness, I've been delayed in updating.  But no more!  Let me start with the quilt. Still unfinished.  I need to finishing quilting around the edges of the snowflake  and then bind it, of course.  But even before those things, I have to find time. 

Next, I'm working on a friend's birthday present.  The scarf is a simple garter stitch and is a very nice break from the ribbing on the cardigan (yep, still haven't finished that.  As a matter of fact, I still haven't gotten past the first row of 1x1 ribbing on the second front panel). 

During lunch, I've still been working on the bell pull, but I didn't think it was quite impressive enough to take pictures of yet.  And I didn't want to unhoop/unpin it.   

Mother's Day is coming up quicker than I think so I need to get cracking on gifts for that.  I don't really have any ideas just yet.  I toyed with that card idea again, but it just doesn't seem appropriate for Mother's Day somehow.  "Thanks for always thinking of others!  Here's a gift that will help you continue to do so."  Or maybe I'm reading too much into it.  Maybe I'll make some body lotion.  Glass etching it is! 

I haven't really had a chance to do much cooking.  It's been a lot of heat and serve around here. 

And that's all the news that's fit to print!

I Finally Hold True to My Promise!

Tada!!!!  I have no idea how wide across this is, but that is the fiddly, hard-to-cut out part of the quilt!  I've actually made quite a bit of progress on it since this picture was taken.  It is now completely sewn onto the blue background, a learning experience in and of itself.  The whole thing has been a learning process, so that is good.  I'm going to be working a lot for the next few days, so I don't know when I'll get the chance to finish this since everything from here on out will be parts I feel like should be completed at one time.  But this is exciting!  This is a quilt I've been considering for a couple of years but kept putting off until I found just the right fabrics.  Then I found them all and put it off some more.  Well, birthdays, anniversaries, and Christmas in quick succession helped me to put it off, but I can't really use those as an excuse for January till now. 

What a Maroon

First thing this morning, I uploaded the first picture of my quilt, a picture of the really complicated, lots of cutting part.  The part that makes me so excited about this project.  Sure, I'd made more progress on it last night, but this was the freakin' cool part that I wanted to *ahem* show off.  Anyway, I burned it onto a CD and slipped the CD back into my needlework tote.  Moments later, I headed out the door, rationalizing that I didn't need the tote because it would be a relatively busy day and I might even try to head out early if I got everything done since the rest of the week and weekend will more than likely suck big time.  So there you have it: no pictures. I've tried shaking my fist at the heavens, but that hasn't helped.  So pictures tomorrow (which will probably be the completed quilt). 

I'm Hungry, But That Has Nothing To Do With This Post

Oh my goodness!  Have you seen these?  Yay Clover!!!!  They had two other designs, but these are the two I'm in love with!  The hedgehogs are killing me!  And the birds in the tree!  And the sheep!  And the donuts!  Mmmmmmm, dooonuuuuuts.

And on a completely non-embroidery-related note, I started a quilting project last night!  It's from this book.  I took a picture, but there were issues uploading it, so pictures tomorrow.  Maybe I'll have it completed by tomorrow.  I think I did the most time-consuming part last night. Incidentally, there are some really nice and/or fun projects in that book and, of course, some that are not my taste at all (and that I don't think could be adapted to be my taste). 

Have You Hugged Your Cell Phone Today?

This weekend brought a new cell phone that seems so small I don't know how I'll listen and talk at the same time.  It also seems really delicate to be bouncing around in a pocket in my purse.  Hence the quilted cell phone case in the picture.  Yes, it's OK to laugh.  I even laugh a bit.  BUT if you would also like to swaddle your cell phone, I offer a brief tutorial.

Quilted Cell Phone Case

Materials

Fabric (a fat quarter should more than cover it)

Quilt Batting

Your favorite fastener

Needle and thread or sewing machine 

1. Measure your cell phone.  Length, width, and depth. 
2. On all sides, be sure to add the depth of your cell phone.  Add enough on each long side for 2 sets of your favorite seam allowance (one set to hem the sides and 1 set from when you sew the sides to themselves to make the pouch).  Add enough on the bottom for a seam allowance.  Add enough at the top for a seam allowance plus enough for a flap (if you're so inclined). 
3. Cut out 2 pieces of fabric if you would like a different lining fabric or cut out one pattern piece on the fold of one fabric. 
4. With right sides together sew up the sides, leaving one open to invert it and shove the batting in.
5. Invert it and shove the batting in.  I did one big piece folded in half lengthwise.  You can do more or less.  Whatever feels nice.  Too much more and you might want to consider cutting a larger piece of fabric.
6. Sew up the last side.
7. Quilt the whole thing using your favorite stitching pattern.  In my case, I just followed the diamonds printed on the fabric. 
8. Place your cell phone onto the side that will be on the outside of the case (long sides of the fabric rectangle should be parallel with the long sides of the cell phone).  Gradually pull the fabric over it until you have a pocket as deep as you would like.  I made mine so it completely covered the cell phone.  You may wish to see the cell screen.  Whatever works for you. 
9. Pin those sides together, slip the cell phone out and sew up the sides.  Invert the pocket.
10. If you made a flap, attach your favorite fastening device (snap, button, Velcro).  Hoorah!  You are done!

What I like about this is you can do a lot of variations.  Since it only uses a little bit of fabric, you can use a special fabric on the outside and a less precious fabric as the lining.  It uses up scraps.  You can try a new quilting stitch.  Always wanted to learn sashiko?  This would be a small, non-threatening project to learn it on.  Love buttons?  Use that to close it.  Want to add a pocket to the side for lipstick or a pocket to the back for a notepad?  Easy enough.  Want to skip the quilting and embroider it instead?  Or make a case for your glasses?  Turn it into a gift bag?  Bead it?  Knit the whole thing?  Well, there you have it.

Randomly, I also cooked this weekend, but I think I'll post the recipes tomorrow.  This post has really gone on long enough. 

Now For Something Completely Different

My first painting on canvas EVER!  It's acrylics on a 9x12 pre-prepared canvas.  And it's an abstract peacock.  I've had this picture inmy mind for a while.  I'm glad to finally have it committed.  Bonus: I feel like a real artist now!  Now on to the dog quilt.  Since she has to be outside while I'm at work, I wanted her to have something nice and warm and soft.  I looked at dog blankets in the store, but I knew I could make something equally sturdy (and quite a bit less expensive).  I found this fun fabric for $1/yard. I bought 2 yards (I really have a bad habit of overbuying on fabric) and ended up only using 1, so yay!  I have enhanced the fabric stash!  The 2 other pictures of it are just close-ups on the quilting.  I kept it simple on this - I just folded the fabric in half (right sides together) and sewed up two sides, turned it out, popped in the quilt batting, and seamed the last side.  Then I just did vertical quilt lines along the color columns (does that make sense?).  Anyway, this was a nice way to start to get back into the swing of things when it comes to quilting.  I haven't made a quilt since I was in elementary school (approx. 8x10).  That one was very simple - squares  hand-sewn together and stitch-in-the-ditch quilting.  I really enjoyed the process, but never made another one for some reason, I think largely because I have this "thing" about wasting supplies.  I'm pretty thrifty with mine, but if I'm using someone else's, I go into uber-thrifty mode to the point where I just sort of block up and can't do anything because I'd just feel terrible for wasting some else's money, essentially.  Yep, I've got issues.  Anyway, while I had all my sewing supplies out, I went ahead and made a cover for my serger!  I found this fabric when I purchased the other, so I picked up 2 yards of this as well.  I love the ice cream colors and retro feel.  Don't remember how much I paid for it (not much.  See "thrifty" above), but I have about a yard of that left as well.  It's basically just 5 squares sewn together to make a box without a bottom (thanks, Cap't. Obvious!). 

Of course, all of a sudden, I've really started having this problem focusing on one project at a time (holidays are not a good time for this to happen), so with the other projects I started the other day, I worked on these.  They are knitted squares of wire (currently on stitch holders).  I'm using 28 gauge artistic wire.  This will become a necklace this weekend.  The pattern is from Alterknits by Leigh Radford (ISBN 1584794550), another book I'm loving!  The photography is so lovely!  Well, the whole book is lovely, actually!  There's this thing with the binding - a wavy detail that I can't describe.  Maybe I just need to take a picture of it.  I don't know - I'm just charmed by this book!  And soon I will be working on some arm warmers from it.  I have the wool, I have the ribbon, I have the needles, now all I need is the time and my Bob Newhart episodes!