Bird and bear bibs

 I have some new favourite dies -

I think these look good on little bibs, but I also have other ideas for Christmas!

The dies are -660883 -  Loving Bear -http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/660883/sizzix-bigz-die-loving-bear and 660887 - http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/660887/sizzix-bigz-die-wonderland-bird

I love the simple shapes - they are ideal for applique - although for the bear I have embroidered the eyes and nose as the pieces are so small.

To make the bib I cut a triangle 42cm across and 24cm to the point -

and I cut off the points on the top corners.

I fused Heat and Bond to the wrong side of mid grey and aqua coloured plain fabrics and, using the die and the Big Shot, cut out the bird in grey and the heart/wing and the eye in aqua

I fused it in place and then stitched around the shape so that it will withstand multiple washes.

 

 The backing was cut in towelling, the 2 pieces were stitched, right sides together, leaving an opening in one side -

When the bib is turned right side out the opening is slip stitched together.

To complete 2 small pieces of Velcro were stitched on the corners of the bib -

remember that one piece will be on the right side and the other will be on the wrong side.

The bear bib is made in the same way, but I fused the pieces on in stages to make the stitching easier -

If-the scarf is stitched a piece at a time you don't need to keep stopping and starting and securing the ends of the threads

and I stitched French knots for the eyes, and a few satin stitches for the nose -

then the bib is put together in the same way as the bird bib.

I've given one with a bear on it to my daughter for her little boy, and I think I might be making a few more. You can make then personal by adding the baby's name, using one of our alphabet dies - http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/657837/sizzix-bigz-xl-alphabet-die-word-play is a good size and quite fun because it's irregular.

That's all for this week - I hope I'll see you at the Festival of Quilts - I have lots of dies to demonstrate - so come and say hello to me on Lady Sew and Sew, or Beth on Cotton Patch, and Mandy on Abakhan.

Enjoy the show if you're coming, or enjoy some sun and sewing.

Angela

 

 



A turbulence of butterflies - baby quilt

 I'm not sure this is a correct name for a collection of butterflies but it got stuck in my head!

A friend has just had a baby girl, and so I thought I'd make a little quilt for her and, as I really like the new Echo Park range of dies, I decided to applique butterflies on it - and this view is where I started - and where the name turbulence originated.

Here is an image of the die that I have been using - Bigz die 660448

 

http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/660448/sizzix-bigz-die-butterfly-trio and I used the Big Shot http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/660200/sizzix-big-shot-machine-only-white-gray

 I decided not to use the butterfly body's to keep the design simple.

 I used Heat and Bond on the wrong side of the fabrics - which I liberated from my stash - which I applied before cutting out.

I then cut outs of all three sizes of butterflies, and just scattered them over the background fabric, which is a cream print, also from my stash.

then came the job of trying to arrange them - but not too much so that it remained quite an informal arrangement -

This was just a bit too rigid - too much of a straight line -

this was closer - but seemed a bit too wide - so it became this -

I think I'm happy with this now - so I have to fuse the butterflies onto the background and stitch them! Yes that's all and I was hoping to finish it today - not really realistic but I'll have a go. So next week will follow on with the stitching and quilting of this quilt - hopefully.

Until then - enjoy the school holidays, and get ready for Festival of Quilts - 2 weeks today - see you there.

Angela

 

 

Summer Easel Card Owl

Hello! It's Anna here to share some ideas using Sizzix products.

Happy Friday! So are you melting? Week's weather was hot hot hot!!!

Here's a fun easel card I made with Big Shot Plus machine and Owl die from Essentials Range collection. I've never made an easel card before and it couldn't have been easier!

I think he turned out pretty cute :)

I love how the branch holds the owl upright.

In the video I explain how I made this card. Enjoy! The supply list is below.

 

I hope you found some inspiration.

I shall be back Friday to share with you another Sizzix project.
Happy crafting! :)

 

Items used:

Sizzix Big Shot Plus Machine Only (White & Gray) (660020)

Sizzix Bigz Die - Owl #2 (657694)

Sizzix Bigz Die - Branch w/Leaves (656212)

Sizzix Framelits Die Set 8PK - Circles (657551)

Sizzix Framelits Die Set 8PK - Circles, Scallop (657552)

Sizzix Framelits Die Set 8PK - Squares (657565)

cardstocks

cardboard

patterned papers (Echo Park, Bella Blvd, Pebbles)

distress ink

wooden skewer

black marker

 

**************************************

Per le amiche italiane! :)

Ciao, sono Anna e sono qui per condividere alcune idee utilizzando i prodotti Sizzix.

Buon Venerdì! Come va con questo caldo, vi state sciogliendo? Forse in alcune zone d'Europa sta migliorando. Cerchiamo di distrarci un po' con lo scrap... che è meglio!

Ecco una card molto divertente da realizzare. Si tratta di una easel card.

Molti conosceranno già questo tipo di struttura, ma per chi ignora cosa sia, posso solo dire che in italiano significa "cavalletto", forse perchè assomiglia ad un cavalletto da pittore, chi lo sa!

Per realizzare la card ho usato la Big Shot Plus e la fustella Gufo, che fa parte della collezione Essentials Range, che altro non è che una raccolta di fustelle “essenziali” e che penso molte di voi avrete già in casa. Anche tutte le altre fustelle usate per questo progetto (Framelits) sono della stessa collezione.

Ho scelto il gufo, giusto per non fare la solita forma rettangolare. Non avevo mai creato un biglietto con questa struttura fin'ora, ma devo ammettere che non avrebbe potuto essere più facile!

Cosa dite, la civettina è carina? :)

Mi piace come il ramo tiene la civetta in posizione. E' inutile che mi perda in ulteriori chiacchiere... 

Nel video che ho creato per voi, spiego tutti i passaggi per fare questa easel card. Buona visione! L'elenco dei materiali è in fondo.

Spero di avervi dato qualche ispirazione.

Sarò di nuovo qui Venerdì per condividere con voi un altro progetto Sizzix.

Happy crafting! :)

 

Materiali:
Sizzix Big Shot Plus Machine Only (White & Gray) (660020)
Sizzix Bigz Die - Owl #2 (657694)
Sizzix Bigz Die - Branch w/Leaves (656212)
Sizzix Framelits Die Set 8PK - Circles (657551)
Sizzix Framelits Die Set 8PK - Circles, Scallop (657552)
Sizzix Framelits Die Set 8PK - Squares (657565)
cartoncini
cartone
carte scrap (Echo Park, Bella Blvd, Pebbles)
distress ink
spiedino di legno
pennarello nero

New fabrics and a new die!

I you all enjoyed the Easter weekend.

It was lovely to have a long weekend and to have time to relax and enjoy the sunshine. We also started to decorate our dining room - it's almost finished - but unfortunately the baby quilts still  need to be quilted - maybe this weekend!!

Recently I was given some lovely fabrics from the Fenton House collection by Guetermann, and have been thinking about what to use them for - and now I have a new die to use - so it may be a marriage made in heaven.

I am so excited about using these lovely fabrics.

I'm using the 3" finished square Bigz die - 657608, and die 660183 - 3" finished Isosceles triangle ( and half triangle), also a Bigz die

When these shapes are stitched together they will make a star, but as I'm running very late this week I can only show the pieces laid out -



 to give you the idea of what this will look like.

I'm not sure at the moment how big this will be - or quite how I'm going to join the blocks together when they're made - but that's part of the fun.

So that's all for now - I'll be hard at work this weekend - creating this quilt and also finishing the baby quilts - update next week.

Have a great weekend.

Angela

 

Spring flowers

What a lovely morning - bright sunshine and lots of primroses in bloom - I think Spring is definitely here - even though it's still a bit cold outside.

Last week I met a whole lot of you at the Sewing for Pleasure show at the NEC in Birmingham, where we made coasters using the lovely flower die - http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/659961/sizzix-bigz-die-flower-5

 

 these made an easy and relaxing workshop project - we cut the flower using the flower die and the coaster circles using -http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/660117/sizzix-bigz-l-die-circle-5
and we used the lovely new Big Shot Plus machine -http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/660020/sizzix-big-shot-plus-machine-only-white-gray
We stitched the flower centre to the flower first, and then stitched the flower to one of the circles.
To complete the coaster we stitched the 2 circles together.
Now some of you will have noticed that this is the same flower die that I used last week to make cushion covers because I want to show that you can use one die for lots of different things.
During one of the workshops one lady suggested that the coaster could become a needle case - so here's one I made earlier -

I used a thicker felt for the front and back of the needle case, and a thin felt for the centre



leaves, and the front flower. Instead of stitching all round the circles I just stitched a straight line on one side.
Later the same day another lady suggested that a child's bag could be made by leaving an opening at the top, and attaching a ribbon -

Again I used a thicker felt for the circles to give some strength to the bag - this would make a cute little Easter gift - filled with little chocolate eggs, or some beads to make some jewellery.
So now I'm back home, and haven't got any shows booked for the next few weeks so I can concentrate on those little baby quilts!!

Flower trilogy

It certainly feels like spring is here - I have a scattering of snowdrops in my front garden, some delightful miniature daffodils in the back garden and the mornings and evenings are getting lighter.

So as I've been busy preparing for the Sewing for Pleasure show at the NEC, this weekend, a project with flowers seemed to be the obvious choice, and I have to admit that this project keeps growing!

It started with coasters, which we will be making in workshops at the show, and then I thought it would be nice to show another project using the same die - and that has now turned into 3 cushions embellished with the same flower but each slightly different...... and then I thought about napkin rings, table runners, bag embellishments .....so I've stopped. There are 3 cushions, and the idea now that you could make lots of different things just using one die - the only limit is your imagination or time!

We have lots of different flower dies but for these projects I have chosen this slightly irregular flower

http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/659961/sizzix-bigz-die-flower-5

 

and I used it with the lovely new Big Shot Plus ( not because I needed to but because I just love this new size machine!!) http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/660020/sizzix-big-shot-plus-machine-only-white-gray

 

 

This is the first cushion - with the flowers scattered randomly - some with leaves but most without.

 

I chose to stitch around the flower petals and centres on this, and the leaves I just stitched down the centre -

 

On my second cushion I decided to arrange the flowers more formally into a wreath -

 



 and I just stitched the flower centres in place so that there is a slight 3D effect -

which made me think that it would be nice to create more of a 3D effect so that led to this cushion -

Each flower uses 5 cut flowers. Fold 4 of the flowers into quarters and stitch to keep in place -

and then stitch the 4 flowers together onto a base flower -

and then add a centre -

or -

Make as many as you like (I made 3) and then stitch them onto a cushion cover -

So this trilogy of flower cushions make me smile, and think about eating out on the patio - which made me think about a table runner with flowers scattered along it. The 3D flowers would make a nice embellishment for napkin rings, and you could add a name tag to each one for easy setting planning.

If you cut the flowers out of voile you could scatter them on tables for parties or weddings.

They could also be used to decorate a plain bag for a special occasion.

Think I'm getting carried away here - so perhaps I should stop here and get some more work done on those overdue baby quilts.

Whatever your weekend holds I hope you'll find some time to sew, or perhaps come and see me at the NEC in the Sewing for Pleasure show.

Angela

Little Welsh Bag

What a cold week! - I hope you're all wrapped up warm and cosy. Last year I went on holiday to Norway - and it was very cold - but the Norwegians have a saying - there is no such thing as bad weather - just the wrong clothing - so with that in mind I've found some of my beautiful welsh wool fabrics.

Now I know a bag won't keep you warm - but it made me feel warm making it ( and I still have quite a bit left so it may become a winter lap quilt!)

I know it doesn't have any handles at the moment - but I'm trying to find some that I really like.

Now this bag is so easy it only takes a couple of hours to make - and can easily be made in different sizes - just by changing the size of the squares used.

For this bag I used the 4" finished square  http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/657609/sizzix-bigz-die-square-4-finished-4-1-2-unfinished along with the Big Shot Machine and I cut 17 squares in a mixture of colours -

I laid them out in 5 rows ready for stitching together -

I pressed the seams flat open to reduce bulk, and then joined the rows together.

As the wool fabric can stretch a bit I decided to use an interfacing for strength ( you could use a wadding but that will add bulk to the bag) so I used the stitched shape as a template to cut the interfacing, and then cut the lining as well.

Pin the interfacing to the wrong side of the bag, and quilt to keep the layers together ( I stitched in the ditch) and then join the 'v's together -

 pin the first 'v' matching points A together, and then stitch from A to B, and then match point AC to C and stitch to D

Here's a photo so show you how that should look -

Repeat with the other side of the bag, and then repeat with the bag lining.

Next join the side seams - but only half way ( which is where there is a seam to make it easy)

 

Repeat with the lining.

Turn the bag right side out, and put inside the lining ( which is wrong side out). Pin the edges together and stitch, leaving an opening to turn the bag right side out. Stitch carefully and then snip the seams at the 'v' at the middle front and back of the bag.

Turn the bag right side out and then slip stitch the open edges together.

Now all that remains is to attach straps - you can make straps from matching fabric, or you can buy ready made straps - which is the way I have decided to finish my bag - but I haven't found what I want yet - but hope to have them ready to show you next week.

By the way I found my welsh wool fabric because I tidied my sewing room - it's not quite ready to show off  - but almost everything now has a place and I can walk right across the room, and use my empty table for sewing!!! - now that is a win for me.

As ever it's time for a cup of tea, and then I might just see if I have enough wool left to make a little lap quilt.

Bye for now.

Angela

 

 

 



 



Very quick flower quilt

I know this will look like a cheat - it's quick because it is only 50cm square - it's a quilt for my grand daughter Abi, it's her 4th birthday next week and I've bought her a dolls bed - so I had to make a little quilt -

As you can guess she likes pink and purple.

 As I mentioned last week I really like this die http://www.sizzix.co.uk/product/659960/sizzix-bigz-die-flower-4 - so it was an easy choice. the fabrics are all from my stash/scraps - I fused adhesive web to the back of the fabrics and cut 2 sets of flower, centre and leaves from each fabric.

I cut 2 pieces of white fabric and 1 piece of wadding - 52cms square - and stitched them all together - leaving a portion of one side open - so that the quilt could be turned right side out. I slip stitched the open edges together.

I then randomly arranged the flowers, centres and leaves, and fused them in place.

All that remained was to machine stitch the flowers, centres and leaves in place using a straight stitch.

All that remains is to make a little pillow - and it's complete.

So how have I got on with sorting the sewing room? Well it's not completely sorted - but I can see a lot of the carpet now, and the piles of things to be sorted are diminishing - so I hope it will be one last push this weekend.

One problem that has emerged from all this sorting and tidying is that I have found quite a few unfinished projects, and lots more that haven't yet been started yet - so I need to exercise some discipline and get these stitched before starting lots of lovely new things! I'll keep you updated with progress.

Angela