Have you ever read the blog "
May Your Bobbin Always Be Full"?? I came across it via Pinterest, specifically her
free motion quilting sketchbook.
(p.s. Chelsea, if you click the link, beware, there is an icky spider picture just a little ways down ;) If you are a machine quilter looking for inspiration, DO check it out. Being newly inspired myself, I decided that I needed a sketchbook too. A plain one is fine, but one with a patchwork cover is even better. :)
I had pinned several different tutorials, and ended up going with
this one at FairyFace Designs. Being a part of Sarah's beginner sewing series, the tutorial was simple and easy to follow. The one change I made was adding a very light interfacing to the cover (not the lining) and to the interior pockets. It adds just a tiny bit more structure and keeps the patchwork in check at the same time.
For the patchwork, I used the stitch & flip method described in '
Quilting Modern'. I
love the book, but as I've said before, improv piecing does not come naturally to me. So I pretty much copied one of the examples on page 103 for this layout. Baby steps, right?
I added just a little fancy stitching to the edges of the inside pockets, which worked out really well. And since this is my FMQ sketchbook, you get to see a few of my preliminary, first try, FMQ sketches. NO idea how I would ever actually sew these, except for the loops and maybe the stipple.
Overall, the project was a success. The fit is pretty good when the notebook is closed, and a little weird when the notebook is open, but I have a feeling that this would be the case no matter which tutorial was used.
Have a great day everyone.
