In my garden

Yoga bag

I had a lovely black yoga bag for about 7 years but it was falling apart. The trim at the top was unraveling. It was time for a new bag. I did consider buying one but in the end I chose to try and make one myself. I used the old bag as a reference, and even used the old cord for the new bag. The bag is simply two pieces a rectangle  which is joined on the long side to create a tube and  folded under at the top to create a channel for the cord and a circle for the base.

Joe the Fisherman

I received my copy of 'Stuffed' Volume 7, Issue 2 this week. My work is featured on page 133. It's always exciting to see my work published along side so many other talented artists.

Making and Growing

The garden is growing nicely. The above picture shows yesterdays harvest. That pickle sized cucumber was out of this world delicious.

Abby from Whileshenaps is hosting a sew-along, it inspired me to try the pattern. The pattern is 'The Peanut Baby' by Rachael Gander.

 

Cushion Covers

I started working on  new cushion covers this week from some remnant fabric that I had purchased months ago. They are not finished because the warm weather is taking me into the garden, watching it grow. We also went fruit picking last weekend, came home with strawberries, raspberries and peaches.

This week

Work in progress-pieces from my next doll

The garden is blooming-marguerite daisy

Essential Craft Tools

Having the right tool for the job makes a huge difference when working and in the finished product . This week I thought I might show you some of my favourite and essential tools in creating my cushions and dolls.

Rotary cutter, mat and ruler

Three separate items but as a team they are a dream allowing me to cut straight neat edges when making cushions.

Stuffing Stick

Not much to look at  and I am sure it has a proper name but it makes turning arms and legs right side out so very easy. Also it was free with a bag of fiber -fill.

Fabric Marker

I like to use the purple end. I write on the fabric and by the time I am finished with the project the marks have completely disappeared. Magic really.

Scissors

Good  sharp scissors are important in preventing fatigue when cutting. Only use fabric scissors to cut fabric never cut paper with them, constantly reminding my children not to cut paper with my fabric scissors.

 

Seam Ripper

For my mistakes of course.

Tape Measure

Measure twice cut once, the advice my TAFE teachers gave me. My tape measure is in centimeters  on one side and inches on the other.

 

Finally my sewing machine, its a Singer, its basic and well I love it.

What tools  do you use most often?

 

 





Book Review

 

I love books especially books with pretty covers and "My Rag Doll' by Corinne Crasbercu is one of those books. It retails for $22.99.
The book is divided into two sections with patterns following each section. The first sections focus is on making the doll and hair. The outfits and accessories follow in section two and this makes up most of the book. There is only one doll pattern with seven variations on facial features and hair styles. You need to enlarge the patterns by 140%. I had a go at making the doll but did not enlarge the pattern nor did I add a seam allowance. My finished doll is just under 10inch still a good size doll.
The instructions are straight forward and often brief. There are no step by step pictures to follow. The doll and dress did come together easily enough however I would have liked some illustrations  just for confirmation that I was on the right track. The dress I made is on page 68 and the shoes minus the strap on page 30.
The book has no glossary or techniques section and I did have to refer to another craft book for some guidance on a embroidery stitch.
I feel this book assumes the reader has prior knowledge and experience with crafts, knitting and crochet knowledge is also needed for some of the hairstyles. I could not recommend this book to someone who is new to doll making, If you like making clothes for your dolls this is a good book.
I am glad I purchased the book. There are many things within its pages to inspire and challenge me for a while.

A peek at my work space

Working on new cushion covers for the shop. The fabric is a cotton print by 'Richloom'.

What are you working on?

 

Check out my new listings at

https://www.etsy.com/shop/kiriakidesign

Simple Bolster Cushion

Bolster cushions are super easy to make. A bolster nestled by your sofas armrest adds a decorative touch and extra comfort. For more interest add piping to the seams in step 3.

Materials

20’ fabric

50” ribbon
14” square cushion insert

Instruction

1.       Cut one 13 x 19 in rectangle, cut two 3 x 19 in rectangles

2.       Zigzag 19 in side on all pieces.

3.        Pin and stitch the narrow rectangles on either side of the wider rectangles. Seam allowance is ½ in. Remove pins as you stitch.  Zig zag edges. You should now have a 19 in square.

 

4.       Open and press seams flat. Zig zag all edges.

5.       Fold the square in half right sides together with the narrow rectangles on the ends. Making sure the seams meet.

6.        Pin and stitch 1 in in from the edge to form a tube.

7.       Open and iron the seam flat

8.       To make the casing turn the edge over twice ½ in each time. Iron to keep in place and stitch around the circumference. If your machine has a removable extension piece remove it while stitching the casing. It makes it so much easier.

9.       To thread the ribbon through the casing channel pin one end of the ribbon to a safety pin and enter through one gap and slowly work the pin all around and emerge through the other gap. Repeat on the other end.  Turn cover right side out.

  

10.       To inset the square cushion roll it up and slowly pull the cover over the cushion. Once the cushion cover is in place pull the ribbon to gather the sides and tie a bow.

 

Bunny Friends

Bunny  craft projects from Mollie Makes magazine.

Seahorse Cushion

 

I think  seahorses are fascinating. This cushion has three resting on a lovely linen blend fabric.
This week I opened an Etsy shop. Something I had been thinking about for a long time. Please stop by and take a look. Just click on the link on the sidebar.

Seahorse Cushion with Pleated Trim

Materials

½ yard linen blend fabric

15 x 24 in printed fabric
Zipper
Cushion insert
Fusible web (wonder under)
Seahorse template

Instructions

1 Cut two  12x 16 rectangles from solid fabric, cut two  4 x 24in strips from printed fabric, cut one 7 x 10 in rectangle from printed fabric for seahorses.

2 Iron the wrong side of the seahorse fabric to the rough side of the fusible web (or follow product instructions). Trace the seahorse template onto the paper side of the fusible web 3 times and cut out.
3 To position the seahorses on the cushion front, firstly fold the cushion front into thirds along the long side. Place pins at the folds. Unfold the cushion front and place the first and last seahorse on the folds and the centre seahorse will sit between them. There will be about 3 ½ in on the top and bottom edges of the cushion front and the seahorses.

 

4 Remove backing paper and iron seahorses onto the cushion front. Top stitch the outline of each sea horse.

5 Fold the strips in half wrong sides together on the short side and iron to keep the fold. Open and fold the other way so right sides are together and stitch the shorts sides. Turn right side out.

 

6 Measure 1 in intervals along the raw edge. Fold starting from the right hand side the second to last mark to meet the last mark. Pin to hold in place. Repeat until you get to the end. In the photo the pink pin will fold to meet the red pin.

When pleated the strip should measure about 11 ½ in. Machine stitch to hold the pleats. Remove pins as you stitch.

 7 Attach pleats to short sides of the cushion front. Place pleats about ½ in from the edges on the top and bottom. Pin and stitch. Remove pins as you stitch.

8 Align the front and back pieces together right sides facing. Measure the zipper length a long the bottom long side and stitch the seam either side of the zipper. Make the seam allowance about ¾ of an inch. Make sure the pleats are not caught in the seam. It’s a good idea to zigzag the edges of the sipper seam at this stage.

 

9 Working from the wrong side of the cushion pieces iron the seam flat. Place the right side of the zipper face down in the middle of the seam. Tack and stitch one side of the zipper to one seam allowance only using the zipper foot. Start at the bottom end and stitch towards the top when you are about 2 ins from the top leave the needle in the fabric, lift the zipper foot and pull the zipper open until the zipper tab is behind the zipper foot release the foot and continue to stitch.

10 Turn the cushion over to the right side. Tack and top stitch the other side of the zipper in place starting at the bottom and working up and again opening the zipper as you get to the top.

11 Partly open the zipper. Align the edges of the front and back pieces right sides together with the pleats sandwiched between the front and back. Stitch around the edges of the three remaining sides to finish the cushion

12 Zigzag edges. Turn right side out and insert cushion.

 

Gathered Cushion Cover

Finished size 31x33cm

Materials

90cm cotton fabric
Matching thread
Cushion insert 36x36cm
160cm cord

Instructions

1 For the front cut two 13x37cm strips and one 13x72cm strip. For the back cut one 30x35 cm piece and one 17x35cm piece.

2 Zigzag down the length of the 72cm strip encasing an 80cm cord. Repeat on the other side.

 

3 To gather the fabric hold the cord in one hand and push the fabric towards the centre. When gathered it should be the same length as the other two pieces.

4 With right sides together stitch the three strips of fabric to form a rectangle, with the gathered piece in the middle.

 

 

5 Unpick the zigzag stitch and remove the cord. The easiest way is with a seam ripper.

6 On the right side of the fabric top stitch down the length of the seams. The front piece is now finished.

7 For the back pieces fold one long side ( 35cm)of each piece under 1cm press and fold under again  1 cm and hem.

8 Place the back pieces on the work surface right side up. They will overlay by about 5cms. Lay the front piece on top right side down. Pin the front and back pieces together and stitch around the rectangles perimeter. Remove pins as you stitch.

 

9 Zigzag edges to minimize fabric fraying. Turn right side out and insert cushion

Basic Cushion cover with a zip

Finished size: 41 X41cm

Fabric name: Lisette 2012

Materials

Fabric 50cm
Matching thread
Zipper 30cm (12in)
Insert 41 X 41 cm

 

Instructions

1 cut two squares 42 X 42 cm

2 zig zag all edges of both squares to minimize fraying

3 place the squares right sides together on your work table lay the zipper on one edge and mark where it starts and ends. Pin and stitch the seam using a 1 cm seam allowance. Leave the zip opening unstitched.

 

 Hand tack the zip opening closed along the seam line. Iron the seam allowance open. (Black thread was used for the photo)

4 place the zip within the tacked section of the opened seam right side down. Position the zip slightly off centre so the zip teeth sit on one seam allowance only. Pin in place and tack.

5 using the zipper foot on a sewing machine place the fabric right side up and stitch the zipper in place to form a rectangle around the zipper. Remove tacked threads.

6 partly open zipper. Line up the two squares right sides together. Pin and stitch up the other three sides.

7 clip corners and turn right side out. Insert cushion.

 

Simple Cshion Cover with Opening

I adore the print on this cotton fabric. Its fresh and all the butterflies remind me of warmer days. For this cushion I wanted to highlight the larger tree with the flower on the right. therefore a little  fabric was sacrificed to make this possible. This cushion cover is easy to make and it has an opening which I like because unlike the basic cushion from my last post its easy to remove for laundering.

Materials
50cm of fabric if using a solid more if its patterned.
matching thread
cushion insert

Instructions
1Cut fabric, one piece for the front 42cm X 42cm. Two pieces for the back 25cm X 42cm.
2 Starting with the back pieces fold one long side under 1cm press flat, repeat and iron to create the hem. Stitch down its length. Repeat with the other back piece.

3 Lay the  back pieces on your worktable with right sides up. overlap the two pieces to form a 42cm square. The hemmed sides should be facing the middle. The overlap will be approximately 10cm

4 Place front piece on top of overlapped back pieces  right sides together. pin together to prevent sliding during sewing. Stitch around the entire perimeter of the square. Trim corners zig zag edges to prevent fraying.

5 Turn right side out. Insert cushion

Basic Cushion Cover

The Square

finished project 36cm ( 14in)



Materials Needed

furnishing fabric approximately 40cm (16in)

Matching thread

cushion pad 36cm (14in) square

Instructions

1 Cut two 38cm (15in) squares. Most furnishing fabrics will indicate on the selvedge which way a pattern runs. its  a good idea to cut and stitch both pieces running the same way. I placed a pin to help me remember which way is up.

2 (this step is optional) Looking  at my fabric I felt it needed a pop of colour so I satin stitched the centres of some of the flowers with neon yellow embroidery thread.

3 Place fabric right sides together, pin to prevent slipping during sewing. Lightly mark the opening with tailor's chalk on one side about 18cm (7in) long.
4 Stitch around the perimeter 1 cm in from the edge. remove pins as you stitch. Back stitch start and finish to reinforce stitch. Zig-zag edge to prevent fraying.
To help me sew straight I keep the needle in the centre position on my machine and line up the fabric with the edge of the all-purpose foot. This does two things it gives a seam of about 1cm and a straight line.

 

 

5 Turn right side out, gently poke out corners with a chopstick. Insert pillow pad and slip stitch opening closed.

(if your pillow form has a zipper closure, open it and gently ease some stuffing into the corners for some nice corners.)



 



 

Card making

last week I attended a card making class at my local library. there were six of us who signed up to make eight cards ( four of each design). it took me about two hours to make all the cards. hope the library offers similar classes in the future.

The Shy Seahorse

Seahorse Pattern and Instruction
Finished project approximately 7'' tall

Materials Need:
10'' x 10'' fabric for body
5'' x 5'' felt
Black embroidery thread
Sewing thread to match fabric
Stuffing

Assemble
1.Cut out all pieces from chosen fabric using the template provided. Make sure to cut a mirror image of the body pieces.

2.Tack the back fin to one body piece. Hem the top of the pouch piece and tack it onto the belly. As shown above.
3. Pin and stitch belly piece to body from points A to B. Check seams

4. Pin body pieces right sides together. As shown above. Starting at the opening slowing stitch all around, backstitch at the start and finish. To turn corners place the needle down into the fabric, lift the foot, spin the fabric in the desired direction, release the foot down and continue stitching.
5. Check all seams and clip curves. Turn right side out, fill with stuffing. Close opening with ladder stitch.
6. Embroider the eyes using 3 strands of floss.

Final thoughts
The seahorse makes a perfect safe toy for little hands especially if a noise maker like a small bell is inserted into the stuffing before it is stitched closed.
 Only the male seahorse has a pouch. make a pair one with a pouch and one without.
Seam allowances are included. Use a short stitch length. I used a 2mm length.