Month: June 2008

bags, craft, patterns, sewing

Car organiser

A little while ago I was lucky enough to be a test sewer for Craft Apple’s latest pattern – the Car Organiser.  Here is my effort, in the front passenger seat:

although it usually lives between the booster and infant seats in the back.

It has a flap pocket on one of the short ends which holds pens/pencils and a mobile phone, and a large pocket on one of the long sides.  On the other two sides I put a flap that closes around the seat belt, so the organiser won’t fly off the seat when you brake suddenly (great idea hubby).

The fabric is from the Nigella range by Amy Butler – sadly, I have now used it all up.  It’s a great pattern, especially in its final completed and tweaked form.  Linda has done a terrific job designing it!

The Timtex took a bit of wrestling, and I did manage to break one jeans needle, but overall it wasn’t really difficult to construct.  Thanks again Linda for letting me be part of the creative process!

by thornberry
craft, crochet

June 2008 CAL squares

They’re finished – and it’s not quite the end of June!  In Bendigo Woollen Mills 8 ply Cotton in Fennel:

and in Heather:

The pattern is Lacy Granny.  Simple and effective – although don’t look too closely at the Fennel one; it’s not quite perfect.

Now just to do that last multicoloured one and sew together the little doll blanket, so I can get rid of that awful acrylic yarn and never have to crochet with it again.

by thornberry
craft, sewing

Hand-pieced pincushion

At Brown Owls last night we took three hours to do by hand what would have taken half an hour by machine.  A completely hand-pieced patchwork pincushion!

Kirsty planned this lovely little project for us.  Despite my initial scepticism regarding hand-piecing, I have to admit that not only was it very satisfying to get something finished in just one evening (well, except for sewing on the buttons) but it was also strangely satisfying to piece by hand!  The fabrics on the front were some that I won from Ravenhill a little while ago.

The fabric on the back is from the Birdseed range by Alexander Henry.  Thanks again to Pip and Kirsty for a delightful evening.

Thanks also to everyone who left me such lovely birthday wishes – I got a real buzz from reading your messages!  My husband bought me this gorgeous clock by Betty Jo for my birthday – I’ve always wanted a cat, but hubby is allergic to them – so this is the closest that I will get to my own feline.

by thornberry
miscellaneous

Life begins at 40

To celebrate turning 40 I got my hair cut short.

At the back it is REALLY short!  I am quite happy to be turning 40, maybe because I am very happy with where my life is at.  I am a bit stunned that I have been an adult for over half my life, and also a little stunned that I am possibly half way through my life.  But overall – it’s great to be 40!  Happy birthday to me!

by thornberry
bags, craft, patterns, sewing

Stella’s Satchel

This satchel was finished late Sunday night, barely in time for Stella’s first day at her new childcare centre on Monday.

I used a highly modified verson of Nicole Mallalieu’s Large Tote and Satchel pattern.  Many thanks to Nikki for letting me pick her brain about how to alter and construct the bag with an interior divider!

The main fabric is dark blue cotton twill from Spotlight, left over from making Clare’s school pants. The front flap fabric is from Amitie’s Blog VIP mailout, and the fabric for the back pocket (below) is from Retro Mummy.

The interior lining fabric is a mixture of the Amitie and Retro Mummy fabrics, with some Heather Bailey for Free Spirit fabric thrown in for good measure!

The flap is covered with clear PVC, and bound in bias binding.  It closes with a magnetic snap, covering the zippered pocket that I inserted into the front of the bag.  The inside divider has fast-to-fuse in the centre to keep it stiff.  Interfacing probably would have been adequate though.

There are two drink bottle pockets on one side of the interior, and a simple patch pocket on the other.  There is a key leash, as per usual, and I didn’t forget to include a thornberry label!

I used the same technique to make the hard covered base as in the Beach Bag pattern.  It’s so straightforward and gives such a great result!  The bag feet and all other hardware, including the strap rings and slide adjuster, come from Nicole Mallalieu Design, as did all the interfacing and fusible wadding.  Almost all the fabric in this bag has been interfaced, and the outer fabric also has a layer of fusible wadding.  The single strap is adjustable in length and is fully topstitched.

I was very chuffed to be able to work out so many modifications and changes myself (with some suggestions from Nikki) and to construct the bag just as I wanted it.  Stella seems to like it!

by thornberry
craft, miscellaneous, sewing, this is ...

This is … the space in which I create

Michelle thought that this week we all needed to have a look at the spaces in which we create.  Here are some photos of mine, which will be familiar to many – I’ve posted pictures of my sewing room before.  This is how it looked on Sunday night:

The ironing board in it’s permanently up position, waiting for me to actually do some of the ironing that is piled up beside the overlocker.  The dress on the mannequin (thanks Nikki for lending me Dolly) is waiting to have the waist seams let out.  I bought it to cut up for the fabric, but other than the waist it fits really well so I will eventually alter it.  You can just see the edge of my tiny old portable TV that I watch when ironing.  It’s right next to hubby’s old couch from his bachelor days (which badly needs recovering).

And here it is from another angle!  I was very lucky that when we renovated our house a bit over a year ago we included a nice large sewing/craft room.  It makes such a difference to have a dedicated space to leave all the works in progress (and the never-ending ironing piles).  It is relatively kid-friendly – Clare does lots of craft at the pine table, which my Dad made for me many years ago.  He’s a great wood-turner and has made most of the furniture in our house.  I also have a couple of boxes of toys for Stella, but she prefers to play with fabric scraps and tape measures.

The chair in the front of this photo was the first chair that Dad made; Mum did the upholstery.  And look, more piles of ironing (incidentally, the ironing piles are now double the size, still waiting to be done).  And there is (some of) the fabric stash in the cupboards at the back.

The other space in which I create is my lounge-room corner.  Crochet, hand-sewing, embroidery.

Thanks again to Michelle of Quilting Mick for this week’s great theme and to Angela of three buttons for hosting this meme!

by thornberry
crochet

Mossy Cowl

When in need of some instant satisfaction, try crocheting a scarf!  I started the Mossy Cowl on Friday, finished it on Saturday.  Apologies in advance for the dodgy photos; the best that I could manage today unfortunately!

This is a great alternative to a scarf – it doesn’t fall off, yet provides that nice warmth around the neck.  It’s crocheted in Yarn Barn kid mohair (two strands held together), using a No.8 bamboo hook.

It’s quite difficult to describe the colour of this yarn accurately – none of the photos have it right.  It is mostly brown, with flecks of teal, red, and other colours throughout.  The stitches are super-easy and effective, with combinations of front post stitches.  I hadn’t done any of them before, so it was good to add another type of stitch to my repetoire!

I’m running a little behind with this week’s “this is”, but will get there eventually!  Too much to do this evening and too little time.  Must dash – goodnight all!

by thornberry
bags, craft, fabric stash, miscellaneous, op-shopping, patchwork, patterns, planned projects, sewing, vintage patterns, work in progress

Weekend sewing plans

I have a relatively free weekend ahead, so am hoping to start (and finish) some sewing.  Maybe if I put my plans in writing I might feel compelled to follow through!  These fabrics arrived this week from the Amitie blog VIP club.  How incredibly cute!

I plan on using the fabric with the numbers to make a childcare bag for Stella.  There is a lot of stuff that a one year old needs to take with her to childcare!  I’ll combine it with a similar print that I bought from Retro Mummy, and I’m still deciding what plain fabric to mix them with.  I’m planning on using the Large Tote & Satchel pattern from Nicole Mallalieu, with loads of extra internal pockets, and I may incorporate some clear PVC over the exterior of the bag to protect it.  The delicious little red riding hood print will possibly become the bodice of a summer dress for Stella (which won’t be made this weekend – it’s way too chilly here in Melbourne to be thinking about summer clothes now).

This top is still cut out, waiting to be sewn.  Maybe I’ll get to it this weekend.  Clare also needs a pair of school pants – once again, fabric and pattern are all ready to go, and I can whip them up fairly quickly with the overlocker.  I’ll be embarassed if I don’t get at least that project done!

Speaking of school clothes and chilly Melbourne winter, I finished Clare’s school scarf and beanie.

The scarf was done without a pattern – it is just US double crochet (Australian treble) using two balls of Patons Superwash 8 ply.  The beanie is a modification of a pattern I found somewhere on the internet, worked entirely in double crochet like the scarf.  Easy peasy.  Elsewhere on the crochet front I have almost completed the Mossy Cowl, and hope to start on a scarf using the Pear Tree yarn.  There is also the matter of two June CAL blocks to complete (but I’ve got the rest of the month to finish them off, surely).

My fat quarters are all ready to send for the Vintage Sheet Patchwork Swap.  I’m looking forward to seeing what patterns I receive in return – and thinking of what I will do with them all.  Elizabeth has promised to have some great suggestions on her blog next month.

And to finish off – another op shop dress pattern.  This one is from 1977.

Wow ladies, bad hair.  And I’m still cacking myself at this post by Jodie of Ric-Rac.  So beautifully put (or should that be sung)?

by thornberry
craft, crochet, work in progress

May 2008 CAL blocks

This time it took me until June to finish the May Ravelry 2008 block a month CAL blocks, but finally they are done!  The pattern is Flower Burst.  As usual, the yarn is Bendigo Woollen Mills Cotton 8 ply, crocheted with a 4.5 mm hook.  Although the patterns are for 12 inch blocks, because of the yarn weight and hook size I am using mine end up as 9 inches.  In Lime:

and in Fennel (which was yarn meant for a different project, but now it’s made it’s way into this one):

This is how the squares are coming along so far (including a sneak peek at one of the June squares done in Fennel):

I’m about to introduce another colour – Heather, a lovely purple – since it was also in the stash (also originally intended for a different project).  Hopefully it will tone nicely and balance out the intensity of the blue.

And the Multicoloured square?

I’m only going to do one more block in this yarn which will be six, enough for a small doll blanket.  Then I’ll deliver the rest of the yarn to the op shop.  It hurts my eyes, and isn’t worth the effort.  Lesson learned – I prefer to crochet in quality yarns, preferably not acrylic, no matter how little it costs.

by thornberry
bags, craft, crochet, embroidery, planned projects, sewing

My brown owl – and a new blog

Somewhere over the past few weeks I slipped in a little bit of stitching time.  My Brown Owls tote bag embroidery is now complete!

It was lots of fun, and quite relaxing.  Embroidery takes a really long time though to cover a small area, doesn’t it!  I don’t think that I will become addicted – I’ll just do a little every now and then, when deemed necessary.  The tote bag will eventually get some fabric trim to match the rest of my “uniform” (an apron – still existing only in my head).

Nicole Mallalieu finally has a blog!  Yay Nikki!  Go over and have a look – it’s a great way to see what she is up to and she’d also love feedback.  I have SO MANY of her bags all planned in my head waiting patiently to come to fruition.

We were away in the country visiting my parents for the long weekend, and you know what that means – car crochet!  I’ve finished a few more 9 inch blocks, and a school beanie for Clare.  I’ll hopefully photograph them and blog them over the next couple of days.  Thanks also for the lovely comments about the cardigan – Clare wore it all weekend.

by thornberry
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