Designing a Bag ..........

A quick 10 second sketch for a "Flowerpot" Bag.  First thoughts were summery pinks and greens but out came the fabrics and I decided on something more in keeping with the season.  The cotton shirt that I grabbed before the latest sort out went off to the charity shop a couple of weeks ago would be perfect for lining the crazy quilted outer panels.
 

An Inner zipped pocket .......

The actual shirt pocket unpicked and stitched to the lining the other side is handy for those quick to grab items ...........

Not quite sure about the planned 3D fabric flower(s), I'll do one and decide before finishing it off.  I'm really pleased with the upcycling of the shirt, not only due to the price of cotton these days but it adds a personal touch!  When I think of the pretty cotton dresses my daughter used to wear (many years ago!), I could nearly cry that I didn't think of keeping them for the fabric lol!
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Garden Party Purse

Another one for the pressie drawer - the first "scrappy" project from the recent sort out.  There's a riot of summer garden colour in this wallet.  All the fabrics in the patchwork came from the scrapbag including the binding leftover from the bag in my first ever blog post.  A few crazy quilt stitches and beads add some extra interest:
 

   

Talking of gardens, this was part of ours in March ............

 and now ...........
 

 
There's still quite a lot to do but it's so much more managable for us now thanks to an enthusiastic young gardener who lives nearby, friends and freecycle for a lot of the bricks and paving.
 

If anybody know how to get rid of these weeds, we'd be really grateful for some advice.  Suddenly appearing out of nowhere a couple of years ago we've having an awful trouble getting rid of them and they're spreading like mad!

Thankyou for all your recent comments, I do read them all and digest what you say - thankyou!!
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Horrified!

Firstly the positives, some stitching on the crazy patchwork ............

and some more research material ...............
 

Now as to why I'm horrified.  Idly looking through some google images I came across something which looked familiar and clicked, expecting to find either somebody's interpretation of a design I'd seen in a book or a coloured photograph of the author's work.  Yes, in my opinion, it was somebody's "interpretation" of said design but, according to them, it was a pattern they'd recently designed and which they were selling!  Well, I got my book out to be sure I wasn't imagining things as us embroiderers do often see very similar work from different people and sometimes take inspiration from other embroiderers when we buy their books or attend their courses.  The shape of the object was exactly the same, the shapes and lines of embroidery were exactly the same - nothing had been changed as far as I could tell!  It's sad - very, very sad and, if I'm right, criminal!
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What is a Scrap?

I seem to be overflowing with scraps so last night was time for a sort out.  Out came all the odd bits of embroidery, stuff which could be used for backing, odds and ends of cords etc. which filled one box then the leftover blue and yellow strips from the kitchen window blind in case I need them for the next one.

Bearing in mind that it's only pieces say 6" or less that get put into scrap here there's a sizeable amount of stuff which could be used for crazy patchwork.  Oh and some brown strips that may just be enough for a small coiled bowl:

They're making some quite nice backgrounds ............

Then we're left with the real scraps which are but fragments really with nothing much more than an inch wide.  Horror of horrors this little lot of snippets weighs 650g which equates to more than 4 yards of the average quilting cotton thus up to £40 or more of fabric and being added to all the time.  That's scarey!

Offering them to somebody who might make more imminent use of them did cross my mind but what about all the blue bits for my seascape (the one I've been thinking about for perhaps 10 years and for which the frame will be warped if it spends much more time standing on end before I do anything about it)?  And there's the selvedges I saved should I want to do something fun with them?  Space is at a premium here .......... I need to make some rash decisions!  When my husband asked why I was actually saving them, I started to reply, rather hesitantly, with "I could .............." .  He stopped me with "I could" means you don't actually need them at all.  Use them or lose them I think .......... I better get thinking fast!

The postman didn't bring my zips for the bag today but did bring a disappointment.  I bought (or should I say won) a couple of FQs of "American patchwork cotton" on ebay.  One is lovely but the other is dressmaking fabric.  It's not worth making a fuss for the small amount I paid but I am disappointed that a "quilting shop" sent this out and I have let them know.  I expect I'll find a use for it at some point but it won't be used for the next I Spy quilt as planned.

He also bought a lovely surprise though.

Some months ago I won the above book in a little compeition via The Sewing Directory but never received my "prize".  I had a feeling that the book was coming from elsewhere so just the other day decided to mention it (I must have been feeling brave for a minute or two) ............ not only have I now received the book (the original appears to have been lost in the post somehow) but some fat quarters as way of an apology.  I'm going to sit and have a read this evening to see if there's anything from the book I can use for my crazy quilting blocks (smile).
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Meet "Hope"

When I won the lovely box of Coats threads for my comment on the "Threads of Feeling" exhibition at the Foundling Museum I just knew that I had to make something in keeping with the exhibition and the foundlings.  My token isn't suitable to be pinned to a page of a ledger for hundreds of years, it has no reason to be, but it is apt.

Why a camel?  Well, the camel remains largely unchanged and adapts itself well when faced with the most severe living conditions.

The first pair of boxer shorts came my way when, after just a couple of wears, they were torn (probably more due to user error than substandard goods) and I felt the fabric too good to part with.  Within a year or two I had accumulated 8 or more pairs.  Fabrics from the clothing of my own family and having laundered them day in, day out over a number of years - as a compilation I would recognise them anywhere no matter how long I had been parted with them.  What better fabric to use?


From the Coats collection, Duet 100%  polyester thread has been used to stitch the patchwork and then camel together.

Every cloud has a silver lining so my token has some decorative stiching on the patchwork of the inner legs in silver Alcazar again from the collection.  The same thread is also used on the tail.

 
Shisha mirrors to ward off evil.  Actually they're large sequins which are a little more flexible for a stuffed object but the purpose is there.

The hand embroidery threads, beads and sequins were items I already had and the stuffing is from a pillow that I'd bought to use for making a cushion pad.  The buttons on the tops of the legs were from the shorts so nothing was purchased new.  Everything used, apart from the machine threads won, was already in my home.

I nearly forgot to mention that there's a good bit of DNA evidence that he's "mine" too.  There's many a hand stitched item that ends up with a speck of blood here and there but this one had more than a speck.  Pushing a large need from a button on one leg through to the other leg it went right through my thumb and quite a bit of blood escaped before I'd realised it was bleeding.  I used reputedly the best thing to remove it, the enzymes from my own spittle ............ it's still a bit noticable so I'll have another little go later. 

There are those, at home, who think he is more an interpretation of a dinosaur and has the neck of a serpent but, hey, this is my intrepretation and my new attempt to not be so self critical of my work in public lol!

Lastly, he's called "Hope" because there is always hope .............. nobody can take hope away from anybody.  Thankfully I've never been in a position where I've had to contemplate leaving my babies at the foundling hospital but he's my token "token". 

Edit:  Just realised that in my eagerness to take pics and get him put away I forgot to stitch in the mouth.  I shall get onto that now.
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Down to Cornwall

Any thoughts of visiting Clovelly on our way down to St Ives were quickly dismissed due to the rain on Monday.  Neither of us could remember if we'd been to Bude before - if we had it were more than 20 years ago so no harm done to have a little look.  Driving into the centre of the little town himself spotted the "Remnant House".  Oh my, I was in heaven!  A visit to the bank, lunch, drink and a read of the paper in the car and I was still looking!  Boxes and boxes of fat quarters to search though and even a box of cotton "scraps" at 40p a piece to delve into ............. perfect for I Spy quilts ................

Aside from the quilting cottons, rolls and rolls of dressmaking cotton.  Some I've seen in Fabricland and they're a little more expensive here but loads to choose from.  Some old favourites .............

I resisited the box of shiny and glitzy scraps on the floor being pre-occupied with quilts and bags in my head but now back home so wish I hadn't!!!!!

St Ives ...............

The shops were mostly closed but one can still look.  I fell in love with the wonderful vibrant colours in  the work of Yvonne Coomber

Ok, so my legs are long past showing such frivolous shoes to their best but ...............

and there just has to be shells of course ..................

There's a few more days of Cornish time to blog about but meanwhile, back on the home front, there's the camel ...........

Isn't it that someone is supposed to sit astride a camel not that the camel sits astride itself?  I just knew I should have put some darts at the top of the inner thighs to prevent flaying legs!  His lower jaw isn't very horizontal either ........ still, it is an original lol!
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A Week Away

We've just returned from a week in Devon and Cornwall.  Not long enough to do all that we'd have liked again but a lovely week with lots of inspiration for future pieces should I get round to them eventually.

The first full day found a little curtain shop just outside the Pannier Market in Barnstaple with some ex display samples 4 for a £1.  Who could resist picking a few out?

Still in Barnstaple, on to Heathcoat Fabrics  where they had a nice selection of mid range fabrics of many types.  I was particularly looking for bag and/or quilting fabrics but didn't see anything I really wanted to buy.

Wonderful textures on the seafront at Ilfracombe ..............

An evening stroll looking for somewhere to eat didn't see many particularly inspiring menus - well not for those looking for a treat on a sensible budget and it was rather offputting to see the restaurants empty until we came to the Smugglers on the quay.  It was full and we had to wait about 20 minutes for a table.  Most starters were about £5 with mains starting at £7.95 and coffee £1.20.  We were happy with our choices.

The camel did start to get a bit of decoration before we went ...........

We'll see where the stuffing of the object leads.  Last time I tried a necked animal with head insert the head tilted to one side.  The seam allowances are a bit scant to allow for smoothe curves so will be interesting to see what happens!
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Upcycling Progress ...........

............ or not but we'll come to that!  Remember these?  They look much better pressed
  

 
Foundation piecing in preparation for some crazy quilting.  Hand or machine I'm not quite sure.  My new glasses should be ready on Friday ............. perfect eyesight to 4.5 in about 8 years is frightening but I won't dwell and I'm quite excited that, for the first time, somebody understood exactly what I wanted/needed ......... something with a largish vision area but not "Deirdre Barlow" and now I know why I complained about being able to see too much of the inside of some spectacles when my husband said they were fine............ because my eyes are wider apart and I have a wider face then him.  Perhaps that will sound better if I say that he has a narrower face with eyes closer together lol!  Just how come it's taken 5 eye tests over 8 years to have things explained properly?  Asked if my sewing/needlework was a hobby, I was just about to reply that it was more a way of life when my husband replied "obsession"!  Don't think I can argue with that!


The fabrics are very tightly woven hence hand embroidery, even with the new glasses, is going to be hard work!  Maybe a mixture of both and perhaps some beads.

I had no inclination whatsoever at this time to make twin creatures but even one needs a left AND a right side.  Another day to spend making the corresponding sides then!!!!!!!
 
Thankyou for your lovely comments on the quilt .......... I'm kind of impressed that I made something that big too!  Looking at Dana's suggestion of an edge stitch foot, I tried out the Juki blind stitch foot with a central guide ............ why on earth didn't I think of that?  I did press the seams open on the quilt and I'll still need to play around with the tension a little but at least it's now going to be in the ditch or equally parallel to according to the needle position - the edge stitch foot is going on the Christmas list along with the open free motion quilting foot!
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We Have Colour ............

on the back of the cushion ..............

I like the surprise element.  It wasn't difficult to decide which of the ideas to use ............. I dropped the rotary cutter on the tiled floor so the other two were out (and that's the 2nd blade I've ruined the same way this year).  No buttons this time (trialling velcro).  I've been looking at machines that do more decorative stitches (I only have a couple to choose from) .............there's no harm in looking ................... and, for the first time, think I might quite like one!  I think might like is as far as it will get for the forseeable future!


A few pics from a recent drive to Dungeness .........

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with fish and chips at the Pilot never failing to please.
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Shisha

A bit of shisha work that I did on the rainbow piece a couple of weeks ago ............

There is a little bit of shisha on the cushion I did last year and which went off to a new home at Christmas ...............

India was the chosen research subject for one particular term when I was studying for City & Guilds part 1 ............... the first term we had to actually produce an item.  Here is my cushion (all fabrics & threads hand dyed, reverse applique, quilting, shisha and buttonhold bars).  I don't have a picture of the back (before we possessed a digital camera) but the closure was dorset buttons ............. the rings of which were recycled along with the (remaining) mirrors when the cushion eventually went off to another land in the sky!

Look what the postman brought this morning .............. a cat "bag" to cut out & sew ...............

Do I need it?  No
Do I even know what I want it for?  No, not really except perhaps for inspiration
The point is it seems that nobody else wanted him so for 99p he has a new home!
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WIPs

Over 80 blocks now complete so just over half done for a finished size of 40" x 40".  However, I need a finished size of 50" x 52" so an extra 80 or 90 blocks by my reckoning.  I could use a border (or two) to speed things up but not sure if it would look quite right.  I really could do with a large pin board to put these up and see how the ratio of shades and tones is working out .  Never mind!  Thankyou for the comments and thoughts everyone.  On the iron .......... think I will stick with what I've got for now and just remember to switch it off regularly.

This weeks contribution to the "Rainbow" .............. some detatched chain stitch.  The hand stitching is such a struggle.  I'm not entirely happy with it and the rhythm of the needle dancing in and out of the fabric is lost now that I'm having to use a magnifying glass.  This is so disappointing and I'm really not sure how to progress from here ..........

The beginnings of a bag being stitched at 1am this morning - something to satisfy my rainbow thing of the moment?  I don't think I even like it now 

What to do?  Join a postcard challenge!  I am really looking forward to thinking these out and hope to work on one tomorrow.
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Shells

Shellness (on the Isle of Sheppey in Kent, UK for those unfamiliar with this area) is one of those magical places.  Much like Dungeness ............ remote, desolate and sometimes eerie but oh the shells.  Fragments embedded into the sandy bank separating the road from the beach .....................

In places the beach is entirely covered with shells (this one's from flicker as it's clearer than any of mine)

If you decide to visit, you might want to be mindful that it is a nature reserve ........... not only a nature reserve but THAT kind of nature reserve as well so, like us, visit out of season or during non-sunbathing weather!  The beginnings of some shells on my "Rainbow" piece .........

I am really struggling with my eyes and this stitching so progress is going to be very slow but I hope to be able to show at least a little bit more each week.  I have lots of ideas for other stuff I could do in the meantime but there are more pressing things too ............ some blinds for home.  I want to do something like this ..................

There is only one copy in the county library system and it's out on loan until sometime next month.  Then it could take up to a week to get to our branch library but I want to start NOW .............. if only I could tell them I only need a quick 5 minute look to get an idea of the block sizes and see how they are paper pieced!

On a more positive note, I knew what the postman would be holding when he knocked the door this morning ........... my prize from Fibrefrolics - aren't they just "my" colours!  Some merino tops, silk fibres, ribbons, fabrics, Angelina ................ lots to play with!

Penny had also previously awarded me a "Sunshine Blogger" award which was exciting too.