Easter Gift Bags

Inspired by some lovely Easter ribbons and some soft gelati coloured muslin, I stitched up some gift bags for Easter.

I love relaxing Sunday afternoons.

Winner: Sarah's Creations Giveaway

Thanks so much to all of you who entered the Sarah's Creations Giveaway. The lucky winner of the $50 gift voucher from Sarah's etsy store is  Jenny of Elefantz who said

" Lisa, that pearl necklet is calling my name...honest! :-)

Exquisite cratfsmanship. I'll pop on over and have a look.

Hugs

Jenny"

Congratulations Jenny!

Amelia Hammered Heart Necklace

2B7K68QEDCKH 

@ Home

I have started working on the new cushions/pillows to jazz up our Home Theatre. We recently updated our sofas  - they are now denim coloured which are a welcome change from the dusty pink ones that were all the rage in the early 90's (I am dating myself here!).  This is the room that houses the X-Box and Wii  (where the teens entertain their friends) so I am going for a modern look. I love the Robert Kaufman Metro Living Circles - they are the perfect choice.

Stay tuned for more pillows in the coming weeks!

Tutorial: Gathered Round Basket

I had a few requests for instructions on how to make the gathered round basket that I made last week. This is an easy project and the baskets can be made in any size, are fully reversible,  and are useful for so many things.

Materials: (to make a basket measuring 4 1/2 inches diameter and 1 3/4 inches high)

• 2 pieces of cotton fabric cut into circles with a 8 inch diameter (I used a small side plate as a template)
• 1 piece of fusible wadding (such as parlan or pellon) cut into a circle with an 8 inch diameter 
• strip of fabric measuring 2 1/4 inch x 14 inch (for binding)

Instructions:

1. Fuse the wadding to the fabric circle that will form the outside of the basket, following manufacturers directions.

2. Baste the basket lining and basket outer together with the wrong sides facing.

3. Using a long straight stitch, sew a gathering stitch around the perimeter of the circle, close to the edge. Stitch a second gathering stitch close to the first gathering stitch. Ensure both gathering stitches are within the 1/4 inch seam allowance. 

4. Gently pull the two ends of thread on the wrong side, the fabric will gather along the thread.

5. Secure the threads at one end to prevent the stitches from pulling out.

6. Even out the gathers until the circumference of the circle measures approximately 12 inches. When all the gathers are in place, use a standard machine stitch to stitch a 1/4 inch seam. 

7. Press the binding strip in half lengthwise with the wrong sides facing. 

8. Pin the binding to the outside of the basket and stitch in place. 

9. Fold the binding over to the inside of the basket and stitch in place by hand using a slip stitch to secure.

Edit 07/ 2012 - Just wanted to clarify in response to a few emails - The circles are 8 inches in diameter (the measurement you get if you rule a line through the centre of the circle) and when they are gathered they measure 12 inches in circumference (i.e all around the outside of the circle).

Did you notice our brand new header? My favourite graphic designer, aka Sarah, designed it today. It is wonderful to have a fresh new look. 

Edit 03/2013 Check out Gathered Round Basket - 3 Sizes, to make three baskets that nest inside each other.

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Sponsored Giveaway: Sarah's Creations

We are delighted to give our readers the opportunity to win a $50 gift voucher to spend at Sarah's Creations. Sarah Flood is a jewellery designer from Sweden who works her magic with glass beads, gemstones, and fresh water pearls to make the most amazing pieces of jewellery.

You can see more of Sarah's breath taking work at her etsy store, Sarah's Creations and read more about her work on her blog, Sarah's Creations. Sarah has a special promotion running at her etsy store - she is offering free worldwide shipping if you use coupon code MARCH17 at checkout.

If you would like to be in the running to win the $50 gift voucher, please leave a comment on this post. Entries will close on March 24 and the winner will be announced on March 25. Good Luck!

Hawaiian Leaf Pillow

One of my favourite projects from last year was my Hawaiian Leaf Pillow.  I was inspired by some of the lovely Hawaiian appliqué quilts I have seen. I really enjoy working with DMC Perle 5 thread for the appliqué.

I am now working on another pillow to match using the reverse colours.

I am updating the pillows/cushions in our home theatre and the Hawaiian Pillows will make a good start. These lovely Metro Living fabrics from Marmalade Fabrics arrived yesterday and will be used for coordinating pillows .

The Hawaiian Leaf Pillow is in the latest issue of Handmade magazine

along with my Sewing Roll Project.

Sewing Room Projects

I have recently joined a sewing group, where four of us meet each fortnight to sew and have a laugh together. It is so nice to devote a day to sewing with like minded friends. I plan to start another quilt soon, but in the meantime I have been making some smaller items that have been on my "to do" list for a while. It is lovely to work on some projects for myself - mainly things to brighten up my home.

This week I recovered my table top ironing board, something I have been meaning to do since I bought it a couple of years ago.

Here is a little round basket to match - it is perfectly sized to catch snippets of thread while sewing.

Book Review: Playful Patchwork by Suzuko Koseki

One of the first Japanese sewing books I bought was Machine Made Patchworks by Suzuko Koseki because I was enthralled by her creative use of colour and print, and her wonderful way of combining fabrics. When I noticed she had a new book about to be published (and in English) , I ordered Playful Patchwork and have been eagerly awaiting its arrival.  It did not disappoint when it arrived yesterday!

Playful Patchwork is divided into chapters on Straight Line Piecework, Curved Line Piecework, Appliqué, Quilting, and Projects. In each chapter she shows how to make a range of blocks using the technique, and then these blocks are used in a variety of projects from coasters, pot holders, bags etc.

There are picture tutorials/lessons showing step by step how each block is constructed, so the book would be very useful for the patchwork beginner, but still has plenty of inspiration and irresistible ideas for more experienced sewists. There are lots of "patchwork pointers" throughout to give you some of the tricks of the trade. Full sized patterns are included.

I bought Playful Patchwork from The Book Depository. (You gotta love the free shipping!)

To find out more about Suzuko Koseki, you can read a lovely account by Ayumi over at Pink Penguin, who recently had the pleasure of meeting her at the Tokyo Quilt Festival.


We would like to warmly welcome our newest sponsor, Jodie from The Haby Goddess. The Haby Goddess is an Australian online store that sells an exciting range of haberdashery and craft supplies, craft mags and books, and much more.

Pretzels and Apples

Sarah made us some delicious pretzels this afternoon - perfect for a relaxing happy hour alfresco style. She used a recipe from Bread by Sara Lewis. She added some Tuscan Seasoning to the glaze - very tasty.

I love cute stationery supplies and made some apple inspired pegs while Sarah was baking. I covered some wooden pegs (clothes pins) with Japanese Masking tape, and then added a sweet apple die cut (using the Preserves Cricut cartridge).

The larger peg had a piece of adhesive magnet added to the back so that it can stick to the magnetic board in the craft room. The pegs would also look sweet on gift bags.

Owl Pillow

I love public holiday Mondays! The extra day makes all the difference. To be honest, I wasn't really sure why we have a public holiday in March called Labour Day but I now realise it is celebrate the economic and social achievements of workers (I can't argue with that!). I put my time to good use this morning in the sewing room while the teens did their homework.

Sarah mentioned that she would love an owl cushion to match her room so it was fun to sew one up. I based it on a pattern I found at The Sewing Republic, with a few alterations.

After I took the photo, I realised my stuffing skills need a bit of work - it has been a while since I made any softies.

"Oy with the Poodles Already!"

"Oy with the Poodles Already!" a quote from the well loved TV series, Gilmore Girls, is one of Sarah's favourite catch phrases. It is useful in all types of situations! When she spotted the poodle fabric in my stash, she immediately put in a request for a poodle pouch.

You can view a video clip of "Oy With the Poodles Already"  (Season 2, Episode 22)  here.  Sarah's other favourite Gilmore Girls quote is "Monkey Monkey Underpants" but we will save that one for another project! (For fun underpants projects check out the very clever and creative Myrtle and Eunice and Ricrac. )

Mini Gift Bag

Small Pieces of Scrap booking Paper or Card

+

Japanese Masking Tape and Twine

=

Sweet Gift Bag

Here is a template showing the dimensions I used. You will need a piece of scrap booking paper that measures 8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches. Cut to size (refer to template below) and fold along dotted lines. The twine/string was cut at 4 inches.  I used 1/4 inch width double sided tape to join the sides and base.