Quilting - scrappy diamond quilt

A scrappy quilt made up from a LOT of diamond shaped pieces of a variety of different fabrics!!  Some were already sewn in strips and I stitched the remaining to finish up the quilt top.  They were not all the same size and all on the bias which is always tricky to sew so I did not bother trying to match the seams.  I made a very scrappy look which I like.  It came out to about 35" x 69".  I found a piece of fleece that would accommodate the size trimmed it to fit.  I pinned the fleece to the front of the quilt and then stitched all the way around leaving a 4" gap.  I trimmed off the extra triangles left on the edges and bottom and then turned it inside out.  I top stitched all the way around which secured the opening.  Next, I pin basted it to keep it as flat as possible and quilted it by tying knots from the front to the back in every second diamond in each row.  It does not show very much from the front and there are lots of fuzzy ends on the back which contrast with the fleece.  It finished at 34" x 68" which makes this quilt the perfect couch blanket!!! It will be off to its next home this week!  Therese

 

Cardmaking - sympathy card with a handmade paper background, embossing and a serendipity butterfly die cut

We have had a death in our extended family so I have prepared this sympathy card for the family.  It is never easy to lose a loved one.  

I started with a large blue card and added a handmade paper background which I embossed with a decorative frame.  I cut out the inside of the frame and added the serendipity butterfly with 3D foam tape.  It still needed something so I added paper piercing on both edges of the embossed area.  

Therese

 

Cardmaking - another set of cards from March card club

 One of the girls was not able to make it but sent along her requests for finished cards so I made up a set for her from the card kits I had prepared!!!  Therese

March Card Club - Card #3 - embossed & sanded backgrounds with embossed serendipity die cuts

 For our last card we made sanded backgrounds!!  These were cut from decorative paper and embossed before we sanded them.  Some were quite resistant to sanding which surprised me.  Usually paper succumbs more easily to sanding!!  Anyway, we added a bit of ink to the resistant ones to help highlight the embossing.  We added ribbon and tried on a short piece before adhering this large element to our card fronts.  The focal elements were die cut from embossed serendipity paper which I had in my stash and were added using 3D foam tape.  A quick and easy card for our last one!!  It was a great evening of creative fun and connecting.  Therese

March Card Club - Card #2 - stripy background with a long slim image

 For our second card we played with strips of decorative paper!!!  It was no holds barred as we created backgrounds with strips - some this way, others butting up to them, some overlapping, etc!!  I had printed some vertical and horizontal images to accommodate different orientations in the card design.  I left spaces in between the strips on the blue one and none on the green one.  I could have put them all horizontally and layered the image on that way was well.  SO MANY possibilities!!!!  Butterflies and ferns are from  CLKER.  The longest time was spent on deciding between options!!  Therese

March Card Club - Card #1 - pinwheel backgrounds with a round images over metallic scalloped circles

 

It was great to be crafting with friends again!!! The group was smaller this time around but it was a great evening none the less.  

For this card I cut rectangles of decorative paper to fit fully cover my 4" x 5.25" layer.  I then layered two of the same colour and trimmed them - two cut diagonally in one direction and the other two cut diagonally in the other direction which when all put together created two pinwheels in contrasting colours.  It took a bit to get all the triangles in their proper places.  It was easiest if we made up the rectangles with the contrasting triangle and then placed them on our substrate.  Once on the substrate it was easy enough to glue them down properly.  We made sure our edges were as even as possible because if the middles did not line up as well they were going to be covered by our focal element.  We then adhered our pinwheel background to our card fronts and coloured our images.  The birds  are from Birdie Brown and the poppy is from  Cruzine.  We layered our coloured images onto the metallic scalloped circles and added them to our card fronts using 3D foam tape.  That finished our cards!!  Therese

Cardmaking - fabric motifs of leaves and teapot/coffee pots on neutral cards

I was asked by one of my friends if I make cards using fabric.  I certainly  have used fabric many times to make cards so I indicated that I had.  She asked if I would bring some along this week to our fabric sorting so she could take a look.  With such short notice I managed this dozen cards using motifs trimmed from fabric.  The leaves is from fabric I bought years ago to make cards and these were already trimmed ready to go!!  I trimmed green and burgundy cardstock layers and stitched the fabric to them using neutral thread.  I then distressed the edges of my small cards with TH Antique Linen ink and then adhered the large focal elements to them.  The teapots/coffee pots were a similar process.  These ones I had previously cut to make cards and were already adhered to white cardstock squares.  I stitched them to black squares of cardstock.  I added washi tape to the top and bottom of my cards and then adhered the large focal elements in centered in between.  I was previously unsure how to proceed which is why they had been set aside.  So glad to have them made up into cards.  Therese

 

Quilting - a top made of diamonds

I brought some small scraps home from sorting last week without realizing they were diamonds. Some were sewn together on one of the angles into lengths and the remainder were loose.  I stitched them together to make strips and sewed them side by side.  I started with the middle where I sewed two to make a chevron shape but found that the diamonds must have been a different size because the strips were longer.  I will see about trimming this flimsy down to size and backing it for a donation to Linus Project.  I love all the colours and the movement in the way the lines come together.  

Therese
 

Cardmaking - more butterfly cards for IWIN

I made these today to be included in the package I will be sending to IWIN through my daughter in Calgary.  We expect to be visiting for Easter and birthdays.  I love this paper.  It is one I created using digital papers and images.  I added some greetings using a chalk writing font and one with layered ovals.  I did add fiber to the two top cards and a little flower to the one on the bottom left.  It was fun to be creating with this paper and good to have the cards ready to go!!  Therese
 

Sewing - a book bag featuring LONDON fabric and a zippered outer pocket

Another bag (14" x 14" or so  with the LONDON fabric.  Very suitable as a bag for a trip to the library or a quick stop at the grocery store on the way home.  I used the LONDON fabric on the front and black fabric for the back.  I added a zippered pocket to the back along with a few loops which a person can use to secure items to the bag - decorations, keys, etc.  The pocket is topped with a strip of LONDON fabric and black fabric for the lower piece with the zipper added in between.  I lined this bag with red poly cotton broadcloth.  The handle is made from the LONDON fabric and goes side to side for hands free carrying of the contents.  Therese