Pincushions and Flags.

Inspired by the frenetic start to The Great British Sewing Bee.  On the sewing table, on the introduction to the show, is a pincushion.  Made from felt, which is modeled on the The British flag, The Union Jack.
So mine is a Maple Leaf, celebrating Canada.

The top.

The Pieces required to make the pincushion.

 Applique the red Maple leaf on the white felt.

 The back, it was stitched in place with a straight stitch.

 Next pin the two red strips of felt in place .

 The red strips stitched in place.

 Stitching the rectangles around the rectangle, to create a box shape.

 For this I did not use a pattern.  This is a first attempt, without a pattern.

 Leave a gap, to turn the it inside out.  This is the hole which will be used to stuff the pincushion.

The finished pincushion.

Investing in the future, today.

How will we know the crafts we enjoy, will survive another generation.  We inspire the children of today.  They learn about the pioneers, how they had to make do.  How patchwork, was used in everyday living to keep them and their families warm.  Clothing would wear, the bits that could be salvaged was used to create blankets, quilts.  They did not have access to fabric like we do today. Nothing was wasted.  Similar to recycling plastic, paper, fabric was given a new lease on life, in the past.

Hexagons was pieced together. They date back to the 1700's in England. Pieced and Applique quilts arrived and thrived.   When crazy patchwork came on the scene, it was used to its full potential.  Embroidery could be practiced on it,  as the fabrics used to create it was mainly plain fabrics.

 The quilts which survived, today is housed in museums.  These are all in the book, Quilt Masterpieces.

All young women had a hope chest.  In this she would create items which would  go with her when she left home to be married.  She would make 13 quilts, the last one would be her wedding quilt.  This is the one,  which all the ladies of the church would help her quilt, after church on a Sunday, just a short while before she got married.

 A Log cabin quilt, with red centers, to show the hearth of the home.

After church on Sunday people would use this time to socialize, as it was sometimes the only time they got to do so.  Most of the pioneers had farms and worked long hours to carve out a living and a future for themselves.

Thank You to the amazing Grade Three Classes who invited us to share, what we love to do!

More finishes....

The Secret Santa project is finished.  It is now on its way to this incredible special person.

This quilt looks odd, as I took the photo at night time.  It has gone to its new home.
Spring cleaning happened for a few days, sorting out the mess.  Discovered some treasures, including a hidden UFO!

The 365 Challenge, the start of a scrap busting project.

 Oma's Blues.

 Little Hazel.

The Hexie Mug Rug done is finished.

The Hexie Mug Rug...

The Hexie Mug Rug.  This is how to finish it.

Step 1.  Remove the cardboard from the back, starting in the center.

 Step 2.  Place on top of a piece of felt.  This is the backing for the mug rug.

Step 3.  Pin in place, before sewing it down on the felt.

 Step 4.  Use a running stitch, close to the edge.  Stitch through all the layers. Until the flower is completely sewn in place.

 It will look like this.

 Step 5.  Trim the excess felt, close to the edge.  Take care not to cut the flower.

 The Back of the Mug Rug.

A gift from the heart.

Fabric Diet?

Fabric diets help us to reduce our fabric collections. In order to achieve this, we need to use those leftovers up.  Sew them into a square big enough for a quilt backing.  It may require a extra bit of time, the end result is a saving in every aspect.

The twister quilt.

The back is created with all the leftover bits.

The Twister top finished, with the waste squares and the borders.

Then Gluten free Chocolate Brownies:

Recipe.

100g unsweetened dark chocolate
40g semi-sweet dark chocolate
80g butter (use butter)
145g almond flour
2.5ml baking powder
1.3ml  kosher coarse salt
170g castor sugar
2 large eggs
100g of chopped walnuts
50ml of cream

Melt chocolate and butter in a double boiler over a medium heat.  Once the chocolate is melted, remove from heat, cool down.  Add the sugar slowly, until well mixed.  Then add the eggs one by one, whisk into the chocolate mixture. Add all the dry  ingredients at once and mix well.  Lastly stir in the cream.  Now the mixture is ready to be poured into a creased, square baking pan.  Bake for 35 minutes at 350F.  

Leave in the pan to cool.

Once cooled, cut into squares and place in an airtight container.
Serve with vanilla ice cream or so cream.  
Enjoy!

The Hexagon.

It is a simple shape, with six sides, yet it can create the most amazing quilts.  A creative way to use scraps of fabric.

Creating a  fabric hexagon.

Step1.

Cut out a hexagon from card board  and one from fabric about a quarter of an inch bigger.

Step2.

 Make a cross on the back of the card board with Elmer's purple disappearing glue.

Then, stick it onto the back of the fabric hexagon.  Press the two together.

Step3.

 Next glue the fabric sides down onto the cardboard.

Creating a fabric covered hexagon.  It is now ready to be used in a project.

The Hexagon Flower.

Making a hexagon flower with English Paper piecing.

Creating the hexagon flower.

Step1.

Cut seven cardboard hexagons exactly the same size.

Step2.

Cut seven fabric hexagons, the same size.  They must be at least a quarter inch bigger than the cardboard hexagons.

Step 3.

Create the seven fabric hexagons, as shown above

Step 4.

Sew two fabric covered hexagons together, using a whip stitch.  Follow whip stitch tutorial here.
Use the center and one of the petals for this.

Step 5.
Continue to join all six petals to the center of the flower first.

 

Step 6.
Now join the petals together.

The hexagon flower can now be used to create a mug rug, just remove the cardboard and sew a felt backing to it.  Something simple just for Mom.  A quick gift.