All occasion card featuring a collaged background, a fun frame with a fiber accent and a fussy cut heart

Another thank you card!!  For this card I again used a white card and envelope set.  I trimmed a green cardstock layer and then collaged squares and rectangles to it.  I die cut a wavy frame (SX) from dark brown cardstock and added a knotted fiber accent.  This was rolled up paper cording which I unrolled.  It is cool because it is sort of wispy but with lots of texture!!  I simply tied a loose knot then adhered it with double sided tape.  I mounted the frame to my card using 3D foam tape and then glued my heart inside.  The heart was stamped on decorative paper, embossed in black and then fussy cut.  Therese
 

QAYG - No Binding Pot Holders

I worked on Quilt As You Go potholders today as well as finishing the slow stitching on the last of my little boats.  

I started by cutting three layers of flannel to 7" square and stitching them together.  I dug out some scraps and sorted them to make up some tops for the potholders.  Once I had them sorted I started stitching them to the flannel sandwiches.  For these two I stitched the stacks then positioned this piece facing up on my flannel, placed the gold strip over it facing down, stitched it through all the layers and then flipped it over.  After piecing the other side I did the same thing - laid it face down, stitched it and flipped it.  Once everything was ironed flat I turned the piece over and trimmed the front to the edge of the flannel.  I have six sets ready to go.  I managed to finish only this one set today but I have the  backers and the loops cutout for the others so will be able to work on that later this week.  There will be several opportunities to donate these to events this year so I will keep working on making a supply of them over the course of the year.  If you are interested in a tutorial of how I made these you can check out this "No Bindng Pot Holder" video tutorial at The Sewing Room Channel.   

I am joining Kathy for Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.  Check out the links and you will find some inspiration!!!  

Therese

 

Slow Stitching - boats

I have been working on these little boats for quite a few weeks now and managed to finish the last one today.  I stitched the boats following the lines of the fabric and had fun with the sails.  I filled some spaces with stab stitches, others with running stitch and others with french knots.  These will find their way into a quilt sometime over the course of the year. 

I am joining Kathy for Slow Sunday Stitching at Kathy's Quilts.  These wonderful ladies provide so much inspiration!!!

Therese

 

All occasion card featuring a hand decorated background, lace and layered heart die cuts

 This card started with a white card and envelope set.  I trimmed a blue layer and added a hand decorated background which I trimmed to size.  The background was created when ironed a waxy paper napkin to white cardstock.  The napkin was used to absorb excess wax from some fabric which I had "painted" with wax crayons.  I always use cardstock or paper to protect my iron and it creates a bonus background!!  I added a wide piece of lace securing the ends to the back with double sided tape.  I mounted this layer to my card front and then added my layered hearts.  I used white glue in a fine tipped bottle to glue the white heart (CB) to the hand decorated larger heart. This heart was die cut from paper which I decorated with a large brush and inks.  Quick and easy!!  Therese

Metal leaves earrings and bracelet set

I lost one of my favorite earring last summer while we were camping and searching did not yield any results but understandably there was a lot of ground to cover!!!  For Christmas I asked for some metal leaves to recreate another set.  My sister, Sylvia, complied and I am really happy with the leaves she chose.  They are a bit more shiny and bright than the last ones but still simply elegant.  My ears are sensitive so I had on hand silver wires so it was just a matter of removing the two leaves from the strand and adding them to the wires!  There were four more leaves on the strand so I have pondered for a few days what I might do with them.  This morning I decided to make a bracelet!!  I attached a clasp and two split rings and it was long enough to go around my wrist!  So I have a new set of leaf jewelry which I will not be wearing to go camping!!!   I am so very happy with them!!  Therese

All occasion card featuring a bright heart die cut layered with a white one, a strip of vellum and a coordinating hand decorated background

I am still making cards for sending our thanks for the season's blessings.  I started with a white card and envelope set.  I trimmed a blue layer and then added a hand decorated background from my stash. It was created a while back using watercolours and plastic wrap.  I trimmed it to width, tore it in two and then trimmed the bottom to fit on my blue layer.  I glued them in place then added a torn strip of vellum which I folded to the back before adhering this layer to my card.  I added a white heart die cut (CB) to a larger heart die cut (SX) cut from some hand decorated paper which I made with inks and a large brush.  I used a white glue in a fine tipped bottle to adhere my white heart to the other one.  I mounted this focal element to my card front using 3D foam tape.   Therese

 

All occasion card featuring a collage background and tag full of hearts

After a wonderful Christmas season I am getting back into my regular life.  I am making cards to thank those who have been a blessing to us over the season!!  

I started with a white card and envelope set - found them in my stash!!

I trimmed a warm pink cardstock background and then created a collage background using scraps from my stash.  I simply taped them together on the back.  I found a scrap of darker pink, trimmed the corners, embossed with hearts (CB), added a little heart and attached with a copper eyelet.  I layered on a collection of heart punchies and then found some coordinating fibers which I secured by wrapping one piece around the center of the bunch and then passed the ends from front to back through the eyelet.  I spread the two ends and then secured them with a small piece of regular tape.  I like the look!!!  I adhered the background to my pink cardstock layer and then added my tag using 3D foam tape.    

It is great to be back creating my space!!!   Therese

 

Quilting - Fun potholders

I made four sets of potholders on the weekend!! It was fun to dig out fabric and find something that worked and then stitch them all together into potholders.  I cut the backs first (7"x 9" or so) and then stitched together pieces to make the fronts.  I trimmed them down to be the same size, added two layers of flannel inside and stitched them all the way around leaving a gap so I could turn them inside out.  I trimmed the corners, turned them inside out and poked out the corners.  I pressed them and was careful to press the opening so I cut overstitch it closed.  I stitched all the way around the edge using coordinating thread and then did around the green square.  Then I added some stitching inside the green square generally stitching straight lines in one go to create my shapes.  I will be bringing them to a family function and passing them on!!  My Mom has made potholders for our family for years.  She is in hospital at the moment so no sewing is getting done!!!  Therese

Durocher Christmas 2022 - ornament favour that celebrates my parents

 I made a bunch of  these ornaments as favours for our family Christmas this weekend.  It celebrates my parents - a wooden spool for my Mom and all the sewing she has done over the course of her life and the blue fabric is one of Dad's shirts which Mom made.  My daughter is creating the tags out of shrink plastic which will include date and location.  We have usually had a celebration every second year and we are blessed to have Mom with us this time and we will remember Dad as he passed in May.  We count our blessings and celebrate with those we love.  Therese

All occasion card featuring a black capped chickadee, hand decorated background, ribbon and flagged rectangles

 I started this card by trimming a large card from brown cardstock.  I added a hand decorated background which I trimmed from a large sheet of brown paper which I had fun decorating a while back.  I added a piece of dark red ribbon and secured each end with a piece of double sided tape.  The little chickadee (CLKER) is laser printed and then lightly watercoloured.  I ran my pattern tracing wheel on all four edges.  I added two little black rectangles which I flagged  and paper pierced with my pattern tracing wheel before adding them to my image.  I added my chickadee to my card front using 3D foam tape.  Perfect start to my cards for family for the new year!!!  Therese

Large birthday card featuring flowers, vellum and embossed greeting

Our daughter in law is celebrating her birthday this week!!  She is a gardener and flower lover so I made her this card.  

I started with a dark red card and added a lovely intricate background paper that coordinates perfectly!!  I trimmed a piece of vellum and tore it vertically then the both pieces horizontally which leaves the outside edges neat but the insides more natural.  I adhered the four pieces of vellum to my card using double sided tape.  I printed the flowers (CLKER), fussy cut them and then added black marker to the edges to make them neat.  I watercoloured them to coordinate with the background paper.  Once they were dry I added them to mu card using double sided tape.  I embossed a strip of white cardstock, trimmed out a piece long enough for my card and added two strips of dark red cardstock to the top and bottom.  I added a layered silk flower with a white brad before adhering this element to the bottom portion of my card!!  Very happy with how it worked out!!!!  Therese
 

Quilt top in bright colours

 I worked on this quilt top this week.  I had previously stitched together the triangles from some leftovers I acquired along the way.  I dug out my little box of precut square which were acquired a few years ago and came up with some rows that would complement the colours in the square that were already finished.  I like the way it turned out!!  I have set it aside and will finish it up later with batting and a backing.  It was fun to be back to quilting!!  Therese

Large birthday card featuring glittery balloons, embossed vellum and greeting

Our youngest granddaughter has a birthday this week.  She will be two!!!  I made this card for her and we will be sending it digitally.  

I started with a lilac card and then trimmed a piece of decorative rainbow paper to fit.  I embossed three strips of vellum with polka dots, folded the tops over the edge of the background and secured them on the back with regular tape.  I put a little piece on the bottoms as well to keep them from moving.  I glued the background to my card front.  The balloons I had made earlier.  They are digital (CLKER) and were printed on white and fussy cut.  I watercoloured them then added glitter glue to them and left them to dry.  They are beautifully sparkly!!!  I tied black heavyweight thread to them and then used 3D foam tape to position them on my card front.  Love how they look!!!  I embossed a strip of white cardstock repeatedly with the Happy Birthday embosing folder (CB) and then trimmed a piece the size I needed.  I layered it with pink cardstock strips - top and bottom.  I added this embossed strip to the bottom of my card.  I used glitter glue to embellish the little cake in the greeting and gel pens to colour the candles!!  Perfect!!!  Finally, I added a bit of white glue to the places the balloon cords fell naturally and placed them in the little puddle and left them to dry.  I am so happy with how it turned out!!  Therese
 

Small all occasion cards with handmade backgrounds for donation

 This is the next set of cards I made with handmade backgrounds.  Some were found in my paper stash.  Some of the others I made as I went which is always fun!!!!  The top left is a serendipity collage background which I toned down with ink with a little cactus (BlackBerryJelly), next on top - a faux leather background with a glittery butterfly, top right - sheet music painted with bronze acrylic paint with a little punched butterfly (SU).  The next row  -  sheet music painted with bronze acrylic paint and a die cut dragonfly (SX), pink and green acrylic paint background (using up leftover paint from a project) with a postage stamp, serendipity background with ink and a thankyou (BBJ), stamped doily with clear embossing powder resist with watercolour cut up into inchies with some little flower die cuts, bronzed song sheet with punched butterfly and a different serendipity background  toned down with ink and a little dandelion (CLKER).   Lots of fun and so enjoyed the freedom to create whatever I was inspired to!!!         Therese

Small all occasion cards for donation

 I found a set of small envelopes in my stash and decided to make some all occasion cards to donate to my church.  I trimmed cards to fit, search my paper scrap stash for backgrounds and then added focal elements such as butterfly punchies & die cuts, inchies, flower die cuts, leaf punchies, and postage stamps.  The embellishments were added to different layers including layered punchies and ribbon.  It was a fun day of creating with no limits or parameters so I could just go for it!!  I see that the leaf card has a hand decorated background which is stitched fabric paper!!  You can see more handmade backgrounds in my next blog post!!        Therese

QAYG - Potholder quilt in blues and browns

I started this quilt very early this year by cutting all the squares - decorative (12"), fabric batting (12") and the backing (15").  Each square has a front, batting and backer centered on each other in that order.  Once layered I pinned them all and put the stack aside.  I had managed to "quilt" three or four sometime in the spring and there is sat until this weekend when I took the stack and decided to get it going again.  I managed to add stitching to all the squares in a very all over fashion by going around the elements in a variety of way.  None are the same. The quilting secures all the layers to each other.  It went relatively quickly so I decided to see about stitching them together.  I laid them out in an arrangement I liked and sewed the top row together by putting the backers back to back and stitching along the edge of the front nice and close.  To bind these together you fold each backer twice over and stitch it to the front of its square.  Then you add another square and repeat the process.  In my case I only had three squares per row.  The benefit of this process is that you never have a large amount of fabric in the throat of your machine - only one square.  Once all the rows are done you sew them to each other using exactly the same process.  This finishes your quilt and all that is left is the binding.  Again, the binding of the outside edge is exactly the same process - fold over twice and stitch to the front.  Once you have gone all the way around you are done!!!!!!  This is a great method for doing squares as you go.  I used the same fabric for all the backers which frames the front squares quite nicely and gives a very even look to everything.  Making the squares in different patterns, with varied quilting and in different colours would make a very scrappy quilt.  I think I will try one in a rainbow of colours next time and see how that goes!!  Therese

A fabric wallet with place for coins, bills and cards!!!

One of my grandsons wanted a cyan wallet for Christmas!!  I knew right away that I had a piece of fabric that would be perfect.  It is a shimmery blue and sturdy!!!  I did some internet research.  I did not find one that suited my purposes completely so I just used them as inspiration and made this one.  I has a velcro close with a tab to make it easy to open.  There is room for bills in the little folders I made using a page protector.  

I added toppers so it would be easy to remember that the big bills are in this one and the smaller ones in the other.  They slide nicely into the back pocket.  There are two front pockets which hold cards. I cut one piece of fabric 4.25" wide and longer than I needed.   I hemmed the end and then started folding and sewing until I had all the pockets I needed. I tucked the other end all the way behind the pockets, trimmed and hemmed it.   I cut another piece of fabric which I doubled over as well to form the little pocket for change.  I used a decorative stitch on my sewing machine with coordinating thread and stitched up the edges to encompass the trimmed edges.  This piece comes all the way to the front to protect the front pockets and has velcro on the inside.  I stitched on a little pull under the velcro to help open up the flap.  I stitched it to the back of the first piece and added the velcro pieces.  I refolded all the pockets and then stitched up the sides of the wallet.  After checking to see how it worked I found that I should have stitched the bottom of the front flap where the velcro is to the front of the pocket for the bills because when you pulled on the flap to open it it pulled up the pocket.  No problem, I simply hand stitched those pieces to each other and now it works perfectly!!!   Therese

Fabric corner bookmark - simply stitched

 I made this bookmark for a special person this holiday and decided to simply stitched both trimmed edges instead of making one larger than the other and folding over stitching like the ones I made a while back.   I cut two squares of fabric 3" and 2.75" and folded them in half diagonally.  I placed one over the other and simply zigzaged the edges capturing the cut edge within the stitching.  I am quite happy with how it turned out and it was much quicker than the other ones I made.  A little less sophisticated but the recipient will be very happy with the fabric's theme which will be the most important thing!!!  Therese

Christmas cards featuring reused card fronts

 I created these fun Christmas cards for some of my grandchidren!!!  They are fun and reuse cute Christmas card fronts from past years!!!  It is so nice to be able to reuse these images and give them another opportunity to bring blessings to special people.  I simply trimmed the card, added a layer in most cases and then mounted them to a larger card and then added an insert!!  Ticking things off the Christmas to do list!!  Therese

Bookmark with slow stitched and painted butterflies and a card to mail it in

I stitched up this beautiful bookmark using a piece of slow stitching I did a while back that features little embroidered butterflies painted with Inktense paints which dry permanent.  I turned over the fabric about a quarter inch and then backed it with a black and floral fabric just a slight bit bigger so that it highlights the front.  I added a length of black ribbon while I was stitching the border.  I used a decorative stitch on my sewing machine and used a medium green thread - ivory was too light and black was too dark.  I am really happy with how it worked out but I might have made it just a bit shorter so it would be completely encompassed by most books!!!  I created a card which will accompany it to its recipient in time for Christmas.  The card reused a very elegant card front which I punched on the bottom edge and then embossed just above it.   Therese