Cardmaking - new paper and embellishments for this set of baby cards

 One of the girls at church has been recognizing all the new babies in our parish with a card and a little gift.  She needed a new set of cards so I made up these card kits for her today.  I loved the paper and though it is not traditional I thought it would easily make gender neutral cards.  I used the same background paper and yellow cardstock (matched perfectly!!) for all of them and changed up the colour of the card bases and the ribbon to give a bit of variety!!  Always enjoying cardmaking!!

Therese

Sewing - a tote bag with a rainbow and some bright colourful jungle fabric

I volunteered to make a bag with this jungle fabric earlier this year and I am finally getting to it!!  I created a wonderful rainbow using scraps of fabric and then stitched all the pieces to a piece of corduroy - 20"x 16".  With the directional nature of the fabric I trimmed the pieces to fit.  I stitched the top and bottom front over the edge of the rainbow and flipped them up and down. I used rainbow embroidery thread to quilt all my pieces to corduroy.  I added two inside pieces so the jungle would be seen at the top instead of the lining fabric.  The teal lining worked really well and I left an opening in the seam between the lining and the jungle fabric to allow it to be turned inside out once I had stitched both sides and boxed the corners of the bag and lining.  It worked really well and I just hand stitched it closed once everything was well pressed.  I made up the strap and stitched it to the outside and I also added a snap to the middle of the bag's front and back at the top which keeps it closed.  I added a black tie to the strap which allows it to be adjusted for time when a person would prefer to carry it at the end of their arm instead of over their shoulder.  You simply undo the tie (sewn in place) fold up the strap and retie very tightly to secure the handle at a shorter length.  The bag has turned out very well.  I realized afterwards that if I had the strap ready earlier I could have added to the top seam which I top stitched.  Another time!!  Love the fabric and it makes a great bag for the library, a quick shopping trip, a class/seminar or even snacks for the kids when going to the park!!

Therese

 

Sewing - potholders with raw edge applique - chickens, stars, mushrooms, leaves and butterflies

I made up some potholders to add to the merchandise for our next Gramma Link Africa event in the fall.  These were the neck cut outs from the shirt savers Diane and I made last year.  They worked out quite well.  I simply added two layers of flannel in between and loops for hanging.  I stitched all the way around leaving an opening for turning  them inside out.  I hand stitched the opening closed and them top stitched the outside edge with a 1/4" seam.  I have been wanting to make raw edge applique for a while and decided to give it a try with these potholders.  I used a red half circle to create a chicken adding a brown beak and a yellow wing.  I used coordinating thread for all the pieces and then black for the tail feathers and the legs.  I used a decorative stitch for around the edges of the pieces and straight stitch for the details.  It was fun and I will be doing it again!!  

 A primitive start in yellow for the blue and red checkerboard ones.  Mushrooms, leaves and butterflies in a light yellow cotton fabric for the three brown ones.  I used my Inktense watercolours to embellish my white cotton twill tape so it would coordinate.  Love being able to customize white fabric.  

Therese