Tuesday Tidbits

A couple of my small ideas

Here are a couple of little things that I keep near my sewing area.
This first one is one of hubby's favorites as it keeps the shape pins corralled
It's just a old pill bottle with a small hole punched in the lid. It hold all old and broken shapes .... needles and pins

I used a sewing awl to punch the tiny hole in the center of the lid, just
big enough of the needles to pass through

Sew that you do not find them when gathering the garbage.Or on the floor with ones feet.

The second is a paper clip cup it's magnetic and has a large opening. It's great for those stray pins at the ironing board or when you are stitching in another room. Note  I do not keep any magnetic items near my sewing machine as they tend to scramble their brains.

Well those are my tidbits for today.
Stay in stitches
Hugs Annette

a note to Squirt ... I will have a look for some ideas on a memorial quilt or see what I can draft up for you, You could also check out Moda bakeshop as they have a great number of patterns and great directions.

off to a good start

well this week is definitely off to a good start

Shadow Box ,a king size quilt, is basted and ready for me to quilt
it took 2 hours to get that done, after I had gotten the backing and batting ready and waiting last night( I have started the feathers)

the outdoor kitchen / bar

the BBQ cover set is now complete that took about 6+ hours to do with a few fittings , but now that it is done I feel good about how it turned out. ( done deal )

I did get another apron done Friday night to use a part of a 60 Th birthday gift with some chokecherry jelly and grape jam. The birthday boy was not sure if he will use it as an  apron or a bib when eating ribs etc.

Sew now this afternoon I will get started on the quilting on the shadow box quilt with a stop over at a friends home whom is having a little trouble with her machine...... I hope I can help. (She is back working on her quilt. We had a nice visit and a cup of tea after we figured it out.)

Just might have that quilt done in time , I will have three weeks to work on it and I will have company for at least one of those weeks. I am picking up my mom for a week stay this Thursday.

I do also have a couple ideas that I would like to sew up for a couple birthday gifts that will be here with in the next week or two.

fresh peaches ...yummy

I did a little experiment yesterday. I made a peach cobbler using rice/coconut and a gluten free flour  blend . I found I needed a little more milk in the dough and could have made a little more sauce in the peaches. but all in all I thought it was pretty good.

peach cobbler  mmm....mmm... good



Sew that's it for the moment

stay in stitches

hugs Annette

My first tutorial .... Wrap around binding

IT'S A WRAP

This is a binding using the fabric from the back side of your quilt, sometimes called self binding. This is the first time I have tried to do this type of binding and I just worked it out as I went along. Hope it might work for you as well.

Wrap around binding                                                                                                 

This is my first try at writing a tutorial. Sew, here I go.

When I finished the quilting on this baby / toddler quilt I thought I would try to do a wraparound binding since I had enough extra fabric on all sides.  And as I looked at it and pondered, I wanted to do a mitered corner as well.  Sew I put on my thinking cap and this is what I came up with.

1.       The first step is to trim your backing to 1 ¾” (4cm) from the finished edge of your quilt. And trim the quilt batting to the quilt edge.  Be careful not to cut the backing.

2.       Next you will press the binding in half towards the quilt top, sew that the raw edges all meet.

3.       Now at the corners, they will overlap with a fair bit of bulk. Not to worry about this at the moment it will be taken care of shortly.

4.        With both sides pressed in now take the corner tip and bring it in towards the center of the quilt. Press this triangle; the pressed line will mark the seam line.

5.        First option. Open the triangle and then cut ¼ “from the fold.

 

6.       Now place the right sides of the binding together and sew on the pressed line (double thickness).  Backstitching at the start of the seam. Turn and make sure that it lies where it should be (you may need to take a little deeper seam to have a nice and neat corner). Trim at the inside corner sew that you have a nice flat point.

first option

second option
 pressed lines showing after it is opened up
 this will be your seam line

stitching line  following the pressing lines
right sides together

trimed and centere clipped ... ready to turn

    5b.    Second option. After pressing the corner open it up all the way with right sides together line up the pressed marks, and sew the V type seam. (Single thickness) . This gives a nice neat seam at the miter. Trim away excess fabric and turn and press. I also took a little v out of the center of the V seam to reduce bulk.

pinned and ready to stitch

7.        Pin binding in place to keep it even all around your quilt. Now you are ready to stitch your binding in place using either a straight stitch or any of the decorative stitches your machine has to offer.  

I was quite pleased with how this turned out and would do it again for baby quilts , place mats and pot holders , smaller projects.

All done  : )

sew there you have it
hats off to the gals that make the tut's for us to enjoy and learn from
takes a bit of time getting it all together
and I am sew learning about this as well.

Sew until next time
stay in stitches
hugs
Annette

cool and cloudy

Well I think we are into fall now we had a very good run on summer this year I do hope that we have a few more great days ahead yet.
I have been doing a little sewing for others once again some alterations and a little quilt sew far, next I will start on a Man's outdoor kitchen covers . this is a extra large BBQ built into a granite bar with a side stove and a large bank of stainless steel drawers, Not sure why folks think that it is just a quick and easy job. Sew it will be interesting to work on and I hope the fittings go well. I hope to have it done with in the week, now that I have picked up the supplies that I think I will need to sew it up.

I have my daughter's quilt top all put together next to piece the backing and find a spot to put it all together. It measures 100" x 106" . I have told her that I hope to have it ready by our thanksgiving ( Oct. 10 here in Canada ). Which she wants to have this year sew when we go to her home she and I will work on the matching roman blind for her bedroom.

shadow box quilt

close up of border fabric

With the cool weather today I will be putting some zucchini soup on . I do enjoy this one and have reduced the calories in it by using 2% milk instead of cream , we thought it was just fine this way. I also just saw another version of it with a cream cheese blended in instead of the cream ...... oh the possibilities. 

Zucchini Bisque Soup

1-2 tsp marg / butter /olive oil
1 large onion
1 1/2 pounds cubed zucchini
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp basil
salt and pepper
1 cup cream or evaporated milk

Boil onion ,butter and zucchini with chicken stock for 15 mins. Let cool slightly. Puree in 2 batches. to the first batch add nutmeg basil and 1/2 the cream. add remaining cream to second batch. blend together. serve hoe or cold. Freezes well

I tend to blend it all at the same time with a hand blender which works just fine for me ... less dishes
I also will add cheddar cheese and steamed broccoli or cauliflower in the microwave.  leftover potatoes and crumbed bacon are good as well.

Its  a little warmer now ... maybe 8, sure a long way from the weekend which was in the low 30's.

this is what is at the sewing machine at the moment, the BBQ cover will be later today. I have a few errands to run,
 sew take care out there
 and if you have a bunch of zucchini around give the soup a try I know we all like it here even hubby.
in stitches and hugs
Annette

Crazy for Candles Pattern info

I have had a few quilters looking in about the candle mat the Fiona from BubzRugz had made and had on her post a week ago ( Great job Fiona I enjoyed your post and all the goodies you had made for the holidays already )
Sew here I go
I had drafted up the pattern for a class that I had taught a couple winters ago and then started to sell it in the shop that I taught in. I like to do up my own patterns sew not to get caught in the copy right with other designers ( the shop I taught in at the time did not like to get in many patterns and wanted me yo just make copies of other designers ,as this is what her guild had done. She was a small shop and did not stay open very long )
The patterns went over very well and the students loved making the mats for themselves and gifts they are easier than they look . As I tell my students " easy as making rice krispie cake...if I tell them puff wheat cake then they know that it is a little harder"( my puff wheat cake always seamed to fall apart into cocoa puffs until I started to add a few marshmallows to the syrup).

Crazy for candles ...fall

Sew now back to the patterns...... I do have them for sale  @  $10.00 Canadian plus shipping .
until October 31 I will pay the shipping If anyone is interested in the pattern.
I am hoping to make a link on my blog to my patterns but have not gotten there yet.I think I will have to have one of my kids help me with that

crazy for candles .... winter

And with the pattern I do allow what I call oops room and if you do not need it you could make one of these

A table mat / runner
I have made a few different items out of the  extra oops pieces from long runners to small place mats. It is fun to play with  the bits left over to see what you can create.

Sew do drop me a line if you are at all interested, and we'll see what we can do to get the patterns out to you. I am also working on another runner idea and will share that one soon.

 At the moment here in Canada in the prairies it has been a beautiful summer we are still having temps in the 30's c they say that they should last a few more days before it becomes seasonal here.  The farmers  in our area are having a great harvest with out a frost. The farmers in the south of the province were not so lucky as it was to wet to get the crops in from all the flooding.

I will close with a pic of my front step with my morning glories.... they are having a good year as well.


Sew until next time stay in stitches
hugs Annette

Fall is in the air

quilting at the campsite
it's finished

Well it is getting to that time of year...... fall I am not ready for it I have been enjoying summer alot this year.

Last week was very much summer except for one tree.... in our campsite of course .... it has turned yellow and was dropping it's leaves.

just a touch of fall

the chokecherry tree

There were chokecherries to pick there as well sew of courxe I picked enough for a couple more batches of syurp, 32 pints . I think that should be enough for this year.

I did manage to work on a quilt the one day that I was alone at the camper as well as little reading .

set up on the picnic table with my feather weight

some good reading and a few new projects to try

 I got a few walks in and a few days on the beach for a swim and just some good old relaxing  . I even had a cook on some days.

Sew now it is off to work I go.

Take care out there

Stay in stitches

Annette

Challenge 2012 for the Stitches Conference

Stitches Conference Challenge 2012

Haus of stitches featured fabric for the stitches conference challenge. The fabric comes in both blue and copper. One must have taken a class in one of the 10 years that it has been on. Then you purchase 1 meter of the challenge fabric and create anything you would like with it. It can be wall hangings tote bags large or small quilts runners etc. just as long as they can tell that the fabric is in the finished item. They will be judged at the next conference in 2012. Sew I have picked up the fabric shown and now I have to play around with a few ideas of what I would like to sew up with it. I have also picked up a couple extra pieces that are from the same line. Sew as I get started I will give you a few sneak peeks of what I am up to .

this is the challenge fabric with a center medallion the fabric is by Peggy Toole for Robert Kaufman called Jewels of India

this is some of the fabric line for Jewels of India

On Holidays

I have been on a few days off and they sure seam to be busy. We took in the induction ceremonies at the baseball hall of fame in Battleford.  We picked chokecherries on Sunday and then made jelly and syrup on Monday. We had a visit with my brother and his wife on our way back home. Then off to the city 2 days in a row with dentist appointments, and now we are at the camp grounds, I will be home Thursday and hope to get this posted and maybe grab something to work on in my down time.

 Sew far I am only working on a pair of socks for my mom. My daughter's quilt is on hold the fabric should be here in the next day or sew. I may bring it out here to work on a little, not sure if it stays windy we will not take the boat out to go fishing.

 I did get the embroidered badges made for a friend. They are just for fun. They have frogs on them this year and is the third level of life saving, sew we think. Her daughter is a life guard at the local pool in the summer. Her first year she was saving gophers, last year it was salamanders and this year she has been saving frogs and pumping the chlorine water out of their tummies. I should have been taking pictures of these sew that I would remember what I have done from year to year with them. And once again I have dropped them off and there is no picture…….sorry. It is really cute my friend makes up a certificate and presents them to her daughter. We have talked and think that they would look good in a denim quilt. Sew now we have to wait until next year to see what she will be saving for her level four badge.

Sew I did make it home of a short stop to pick up a few things out of the garden and now we will be heading back to the campground ( about 40 mins away).
stay in stitches
hugs Annette